Network Rail Made £4.8m From Train Station Toilets In Just One Year

City AM
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Network Rail Made £4.8m From Train Station Toilets In Just One Year
Victoria station's toilets brought in over £900,000 in one year, but have now dropped their charges

Network Rail has revealed it brought in £4.8m from train station toilet charges over the year, with over £900,000 of that coming from Victoria station until the fee to use its loos was ditched last December.

In newly released figures for 2016/17, Network Rail said it collected nearly £700,000 from Euston, and over £400,000 at Liverpool Street, Paddington and Manchester Piccadilly. Any income made is reinvested into the upkeep and improvement of the station facilities.

The total Network Rail made is a decrease on last year's £5.4m though, with the rail body saying last December it had ditched the toilet charge at London Victoria and Charing Cross stations.

At the time, a spokesperson for the rail body said the impact of scrapping charges will be monitored "with regard to cleaning and security, and the costs involved in keeping standards as high as our expectations".

The scrapping of the Victoria charge came after Network Rail made nearly £1.4m on the toilets at the station, for 2015/16. It had charged visitors 50p to use them, after a refurbish meant the loos now include showers and a full-time toilet attendant.

Paddington station made over £425k in a single year from its toilets

How much Network Rail made in toilet charges for 2016/17

1. Victoria £911,528.67
2. Euston £698,625.62
3. King's Cross £538,507.86
4. Liverpool Street £467,768.48
5. Paddington £426,256.86
6. Manchester Piccadilly £415,564.20
7. Edinburgh Waverley £331,946.09
8. Glasgow Central £325,109.84
9. Charing Cross £269,665.36
10. Leeds £245,685.91
11. Liverpool Lime Street £150,166.37
12. London Bridge £21,544.30
13. Birmingham New Street £ -

Total: £4,802,369.56

Birmingham New Street became free of charge for the 2015/16 year.

Network Rail says the installation of barriers helps to prevent potential overcrowding and "deter any illegal activity". It charges between 30p and 50p for the use of station toilets.

Victoria proving a lucrative hotspot for loo charges comes with the station ranking as the second busiest in Great Britain.

The most recent figures from the Office of Rail and Road have London Waterloo still holding the top spot with over 99m entries and exits last year. Victoria was the second busiest station, followed by Liverpool Street, London Bridge and then Euston.

This article originally appeared on City A.M.

Last Updated 13 December 2017