Arailway platformis an area – normally paved or otherwise prepared for pedestrian use, and often r
Arailway platformis an area – normally paved or otherwise prepared for pedestrian use, and often raised to a greater or lesser degree – provided alongside one or more of thetracksat arailwayormetro stationfor use by passengers awaiting, boarding, or alighting from trains. Almost all stations have some form of platform, with larger stations having multiple platforms. The world's longest station platform is atGorakhpur JunctioninIndia.[1]The term "platform" is also sometimes applied to any type of raised loading bank provided beside a railway line or siding for the loading and unloading of freight wagons.Among some United States train conductors the word "platform" has enteredusage as a verb, as in the announcement:"The last two cars of this train will not platform at East Rockaway".[2]Height relative to trainsMain article:Railway platform heightThe most basic form of platform consists ofan area at the same level as the track, usually resulting in a fairly large height difference between the platform and thetrainfloor. This would often not be considered a true platform. The more traditional platform is elevated relative to the track but often lower than the train floor,although ideally they should be at the same level. Occasionally the platform is higher than the train floor, where a train with a low floor serves a station built for trains with a high floor, for example at theDutchstationsof theDB Regionalbahn Westfalen(seeEnschede). On theLondon Undergroundsome stations are served by bothDistrict lineandPiccadilly linetrains, and the Piccadilly trains have lower floors.Atramstop is often in the middle of the street; usually it has as a platform a refuge area of a similar height to that of the sidewalk (e.g. 100 mm (3.9 in)), and sometimes has no platform. The latter requires extra care by passengers and othertraffic to avoid accidents. Both types of tram stops can be seen in the tram networks ofMelbourneandToronto. Sometimes a tram stop is served by ordinary trams with rather low floors andmetro-likelight railvehicles with higher floors, and the tram stop has a dual-height platform, as inAmstelveen,Netherlands. A train station may be served by heavy-rail and light-rail vehicles with lower floors and have a dual- height platform, as on theRijnGouweLijnin theNetherlands.