|
Railway Lines in the Armadale Area
Updated 26 July 2011 |
|||||
|
|||||
|
Exhibition in West Lothian until Autumn 2013: Making Tracks: Railways in West Lothian
|
|||||
|
Armadale Railway Station opened later than planned, on 4th March 2011
Photos taken 22 March 2011
Rail construction in south Armadale, looking ~south from here. KAP 31 May 2010
Railway development, Station Road, Armadale, January 2010 KAP
Preparations for the new railway line under Station Road, south Armadale (PAP), May 2009 |
|||||
|
Railscot Photos of the Bathgate area
|
|||||
Description of the Introduction of Railways to Armadale: Past and Present Chap VII The Airdrie South - Ratho (Newbridge Junction): a 25 mile line run by North British, which included local stations that were closed in January 1956: Westcraigs, Armadale and Bathgate Upper
The old station, Armadale
Above: Armadale Station signal box with a white structure which is a copy of the tower at the Empire Exhibition. Station Master: George McGillivray; signal man Jock McCallum? who lived in South Street; Stewart and Bill McGillivray, brothers of Jean Hardie whom we thank for the two photos. Below: The photo is a floral representation of one of the Clyde steamers. The photo was taken when the LNER had prizes for best kept stations.
Our thanks go to Alex Hogg for the two photos featured above. He told us, "When I worked there the Station master had to move out of the house which was upstairs due to dry rot and we got involved in helping to bring the ceiling and the walls down (not ideal for office working). The Station master when I left was a Mr. Prosser, and as the station house was deemed to be uninhabitable we (the staff) helped move him to a house down at Bathville Cross that the Railway bought for his use. The goods yard behind the signal box was at that time used mainly for local coal merchants but included Banana vans for Marshall the fruiterer and I think it was Russell's. On occasions we were entertained by rather big banana spiders which had stowed away with the fruit. I remember the men catching two and put them together but there was a fight to the death. At that time the line was still in use with coal trains to/from Westcraigs and to Ravenscraig, why I didn't turn the camera on to them I simply don't know. There was also a signal cabin down the line to Bathgate I think it was called Bogside which came under the Armadale Station master." Interestingly, Charles Colquhoun remembered a big black spider and, when I asked Jean McGillivray, whose father was Armadale's Stationmaster until they moved to Linlithgow, she told me, "Yes, I remember the big black spider in the hand of bananas being unloaded and the porter asking for a jar to put it in and I took it to school. Don't know if it was poisonous or not!" Ann Glen of Airdrie told us, "As a railway enthusiast and historian, the photos of Armadale station are of considerable interest - including the garden with PS Jeanie Deans sailing amid the flowers. After privatisation and staff retirements, Airdrie station's award winning garden lapsed." We are also grateful for her following correction as we are always keen to make information as accurate as possible: # "It was interesting to see that you mention 1858 as the date of the first station at Cappers. ...... The Act for the Bathgate & Coatbridge Railway was only obtained in 1859. Mineral traffic commenced on 27 April 1861 when a train crossed the new line for the first time but passenger traffic was delayed until 11 August 1862. By then, basic stations and platforms would have been available along the line. "
The old station, Armadale, April 1961 (Loco 69163) © www.transporttreasury.co.uk My thanks to Vic Smith of York who has pointed out that the train shown was a railtour, organised by the Branch Line Society, which actually ran on 6th May 1961 |
|||||
|
Railway Archives for the Armadale Area at the National Archives of Scotland NAS cat ref: RHP95305 and 42312: Bound
plans and sections of proposed branch of Monkland Railways (subsidiary
branches include Armadale Toll and Boghead), 1852 |
|||||
|
|
|||||
 Symbols of Armadale's former railway station on the old cycle path. Does anyone know who designed these and their location now? |
|||||
|
|||||
|
|||||
|
|||||
|
The Airdrie-Bathgate Rail Link Amendments courtesy of Graeme Elliott Developments of 2006 - 2010 Airdrie-Bathgate Railway Plans National Helpline for enquiries (open 24 hours a day, every day of the year): 08457 114141 The Airdrie-Bathgate Railway and Linked Improvements Bill was lodged with Scottish Parliament on 30th May, 2006. During September, as part of the private bill's Preliminary Stage, a committee of five MSPs took evidence from interested parties such as representatives of West Lothian Council and local community councils. The £300 million project, funded by Transport Scotland and delivered by Network Rail, aims to provide another rail route between Edinburgh and Glasgow by 2010. It is planned that there will be four passenger trains every hour in both directions through West Lothian. As a result, people living in the west of West Lothian will have direct rail access to Edinburgh and Glasgow. Locally, apart from plans for upgrading Livingston North and Uphall Stations, Bathgate station will be relocated and a new station will be created at Armadale. Figures cited by Network Rail suggest that Armadale could have over 1,000 boardings a day* making it a fairly large station, possibly bigger than the one at Bathgate. Supporters of an additional halt at Blackridge are also optimistic that they have a strong case for their bid. (*It is interesting to note that when the Bathgate - Edinburgh railway line was re-opened, initial estimates were for 278,000 passengers in the first year of operation, and 335,000 by 1989-90. The actual figures turned out to be 335,000 and 932,000. At first, the last train from Edinburgh Waverley was the 19.03.) Participants in the consultation process so far have commented that their presentations were received sympathetically. It was believed that the strong economic and social arguments for the new line to serve communities in West Lothian and North Lanarkshire had been clearly stated and had been well understood by the committee. 14 November 2006: The Parliamentary Committee, responsible for scrutinising proposals, published its Preliminary Stage Report, which endorsed the general principles of the Airdrie-Bathgate Railway and Linked Improvements Bill and recommended that it should go forward as a Private Bill. 23 November 2006: The Bill proposing the construction of a new £300 million railway line between Airdrie and Bathgate was given unanimous support by members of the Scottish Parliament. Transport Scotland has committed funding for the project to a maximum of £299.7 million pounds. Its declared aim: 'To provide a safe, reliable and efficient railway fit for the 21st century'. The Bill moved to Consideration Stage where all aspects of the project's plans were scrutinised. 24 January 2007: Oral evidence at the Consideration Stage began. Wednesday 28 March 2007: Unanimous approval of Airdrie-Bathgate Railway and Linked Improvements Bill was given by Parliament. 9 May 2007: The Bill received Royal Assent. Phase One of the project (Advance Works: the double-tracking of the Bathgate-Edinburgh line and station upgrading) began with a completion target of 2008. June 2007: Ron McAulay, Director, Scotland, Network Rail, and Stewart Stevenson MSP, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change, took part in the ceremonial sod-cutting at Livingston North station to signal the beginning of work on the project. Autumn 2007 to 2008: The first phase is the upgrade of the Edinburgh - Bathgate to become a double-tracked railway. Preparations for this involve widening of the track bed; renewal / replacement of bridges; upgrading of Livingston and Uphall Stations. Once completed in 2008, this part of the line will be able to provided better, more reliable services between Bathgate and the capital. Spring 2009: Construction of Armadale station is planned to begin. Winter 2010: Anticipated completion of works, which will mean that services will be running the full length of the railway line by December 2010. (Once completed, the entire length of the rail line Edinburgh Waverley to Glasgow Queen Street will be double tracked and electrified.) Advantages of the new services have been cited as:
What will the new Project involve?
|
