Which is the UK’s worst crossing?

Every UK population centre served by a railway seems to have a problematic level crossing - not least in the North Yorkshire constituency served by Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, who would therefore be fully aware of the cost of balancing the needs of voters and train operators, as well as safety.

The following list is by no means exhaustive, and we look forward to learning from RAIL readers about their own experiences.

■ Altrincham: The Navigation Road and Deansgate Lane crossings are always busy because they are used by both National Rail and Metrolink.

■ Barnes: Vine Road has two crossings within yards of each other, with half-hour waits commonplace. It’s frustrating to view the second closing when you are still on the first.

■ Bulwell Forest: The crossing is shared by half-hourly Robin Hood Line services and ten-minute interval Nottingham trams. Traffic piles up in a residential area, not helped by the tram stop and a retail park next door.

■ Canterbury West: St Dunstans Street crossing is awkwardly placed among lots of historic buildings, so a bridge or tunnel is out of the question.

■ Colchester: The tight curve on the Clacton line and Town station branch has a 10mph restriction, so long waits ensue at East Gate because several roads also converge at this point.

■ Colwick: The level crossing has six trains per hour plus oil traffic from Sneinton. It is right next door to the A612 and a racecourse.

■ Craven Arms: Life in the Shropshire village was severely dislocated for two months last year when the level crossing through the middle of it was replaced.

■ Datchet: There are two crossings close together on the Windsor & Eton line, so the whole town can seize up in the rush hour.

■ Foxton: The A10 Cambridge-Royston main road across the London main line can seize up for 15 minutes with 1½-mile traffic queues if a Barrington Quarry freight also shows up.

■ Gloucester: Horton Road crossing is right next to the station. As most trains reverse in the platform, they have to pass over it twice in quick succession. Ambulances serving the nearby Gloucestershire Royal Hospital are regularly held up.

■ Hampden Park: The crossing on the East Coastway line on the northern outskirts of Eastbourne is claimed to be one of the busiest in the country, with an average of 16 train movements an hour, Traffic tailbacks have to be seen to be believed, and there is widespread abuse.

■ Hull: Spring Bank West crossing causes big traffic jams because it is next to a three-way junction, a dual carriageway, and traffic lights.

■ Langley Green: The West Midlands level crossing struggles with a reported 12 trains per hour during the working day.

■ Newhaven: The town’s level crossing is often clogged with heavy lorries to and from the port that sometimes queue across the track.

■ Northallerton: The problem of severe congestion at the town’s three level crossings has been raised in Parliament. Bridges, by-passes and tunnels have been discussed with local MP Rishi Sunak, but he hasn’t opened his cheque book yet.

■ North Sheen: Manor Road crossing is often congested, with the barriers down for 30 minutes an hour for services over the Kingston and Hounslow loops, and to Reading. A new footbridge reduces misuse by pedestrians.

■ Paignton: If the barriers at the northern crossing stay down for too long, it can end up gridlocking the entire one-way system round the Devon town.

■ Pencoed: The two sides of the town (between Cardiff and Bridgend) are separated by a crossing which can be shut for up to 40 minutes in an hour, while the narrow Victorian road bridge is only for one-way traffic determined by traffic lights. The result: gridlock and accidents.

■ Smithy Bridge: As rail traffic builds up north of Rochdale, there is no real solution because of the close proximity of a canal.

■ Tallington: Where the East Coast Main Line crosses the main A16 road. There are reports of the barriers being down 50% of the time during the day.

■ Thatcham: The Berks & Hants Line crossing barriers have been recorded as being down for 23 minutes in a single hour.

■ Wem: There are often-huge traffic jams. And the lack of a footbridge to the nearby station means that would-be passengers sometimes miss trains because they can’t get to the platform they want.

■ West Worthing: This is not the best place to be in the rush hour, with stopping services terminating and restarting from the adjacent station and accessing the nearby stabling sidings.

■ Wool: The Bournemouth-Weymouth line level crossing is awkwardly positioned at a main road junction. Traffic has to wait while trains slow down for the station alongside, sometimes two at once.