What determines how many platforms a station has?

Question

I am working on a college project and need to know how many platforms to provide ?

Answer 1

in most of the passenger terminals I have been on, each platform serves two tracks, one on each side.

number of tracks of course will be determined by the maximum amount of traffic you expect at peak travel times.

Answer 2

It depends.  How many tracks will there be (and how many in each direction)?  Will there be trains (I'm assuming this is what you're talking about) that bypass the station (like express trains bypass local stops)?  How many train lines (routes) will serve the station?

This sounds interesting.  Let me know these things, and I'll try to help you out.

Answer 3

The amount of traffic will determine the number of tracks. So we start from the basic premise that each track needs a platform. If you have two tracks these could be one island platform in between the tracks with a face to each track. Or, you could have a platform on each side of the track. You now move up to four tracks. You could have two island platforms with two faces each, or one island platform serving the middle two tracks and two platforms on the outside. Alternatively, it may be that the station is a wayside halt and only slow trains will stop. So you might decide that the two middle tracks are for fast, non stop trains with no platforms serving them and just a platform on each side of the station serving the outside, slow tracks. It may also then be that the station is a junction serving a branch line. So there might be a bay platform at the end of the station serving that branch line. There may be a branch line at each end of the  junction, so you could have bays at each end.

So, you will see that there are many considerations to be taken into account. I've only dealt with a few parameters, but I think you can build from there. Don't forget that a larger station might also have a platform or platforms for goods and parcels traffic.