MERSEYRAIL’S busiest station was yesterday branded one of the worst in Britain.

Around 60,000 passengers travel through Liverpool Central Station every weekday, but the Government’s “Station Champions” have found more than half of them think it is sub-standard.

In a report for Transport Secretary Lord Adonis, Chris Green and Professor Sir Peter Hall named Central in a rundown of the 10 UK stations most in need of upgrades, and called for a £50m fund to be lavished on them.

But the news will have come as no surprise for Merseyside’s transport chiefs, who have lobbied for years to get cash for the dilapidated terminal.

Little over a year ago, Merseytravel chair Cllr Mark Dowd branded the station “not fit for purpose” and “a tip”.

At the time, he was hitting out at the Office for Rail Regulation (ORR), which was refusing to back an overhaul of Central in its draft funding plans.

But, in March, Network Rail (NR) finally said it wants to spend up to £15m increasing capacity.

And in the longer term it said there should be a new platform and an extra tunnel – or even a whole new station.

Passenger numbers through Central have grown by an average of 10% a year over the past few years. Peak time crushes there often mean it has to be temporarily closed.

Lord Adonis yesterday backed his “champions’” report and endorsed their call for minimum standards for all stations. But, asked if the Government, the ORR and NR had been wrong to refuse to fund improvements in the past, he told the Daily Post: “I think the right decisions have been taken but we’re keen to see what more we can do at this key interchange station.”

On the minimum standards plan, he added: “I want every station to be a good station – a hub of the local community life and somewhere you wouldn’t mind spending time.”