Ardrossan Town railway station

Ardrossan Town railway station is one of three remaining in the town of Ardrossan, North Ayrshire, Scotland. It is one of the oldest operational railway stations in Ayrshire, although services and facilities are severely cut back from the station's peak in the early 20th century. The station is currently managed by Abellio ScotRail and is on the Ayrshire Coast Line.

For other railway stations in Ardrossan, see Ardrossan railway station (disambiguation).

Ardrossan Town

Scottish Gaelic: Baile Àird Rosain[1]
LocationArdrossan, North Ayrshire
Scotland
Coordinates55.6402°N 4.8122°W / 55.6402; -4.8122
Grid referenceNS230420
Managed byAbellio ScotRail
Transit authoritySPT
Platforms1
Other information
Station codeADN
History
Original companyArdrossan Railway
Pre-groupingGlasgow and South Western Railway
Post-groupingLMS
Key dates
1831Opened as Ardrossan
2 March 1953Renamed Ardrossan Town
1 January 1968Closed
19 January 1987Reopened
Passengers
2015/16 20,068
2016/17 24,186
2017/18 21,586
2018/19 22,348
2019/20 22,364
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

History
Ardrossan Town in 1968

The station was opened in 1831 by the Ardrossan Railway and was simply known as Ardrossan.[2] The original station had two side platforms and although it was a terminus at first it became an intermediate station upon the opening of Ardrossan Pier railway station in 1840.[2] The station was rebuilt some time around 1890,[3]

It became part of the Glasgow and South Western Railway, passing to the London, Midland and Scottish Railway during the Grouping of 1923. The station then passed on to the Scottish Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948 and was renamed Ardrossan Town by British Rail on 2 March 1953.[2]

The rebuilt station consisted of two through lines with the addition of a bay platform at the north end.[3] A goods shed and yard were located to the west of the platforms. The main offices were located on the Up platform, consisting of a one and two storey ashlar building.[3] The station was closed on 1 January 1968[2] and lay derelict for a number of years, though the double tracks into the bay platform remained and were used for stabling empty DMUs from time to time.[4]

Upon electrification of the Ayrshire Coast Line, the station was reopened on 19 January 1987,[2] now unstaffed and on a far smaller scale: the double track to the harbour was singled and the Up platform removed, meaning trains from both directions would now have to use the former Down platform. After electrification, the nearby level crossing gates remained for a number of years but have since been removed. The station buildings remained unused but were later refurbished for use as commercial properties and the branch lines into the bay platform at the station were lifted. In the early 2000s, the surviving station office buildings were demolished and replaced by a contemporary red-brick commercial unit. The goods shed remains as private property.

Services

Monday to Saturdays there is an hourly service to and from Glasgow Central, with most services continuing to Ardrossan Harbour to connect with the ferry service to Brodick on the Isle of Arran.[5]

There was no Sunday service for many years, but in the May 2016 timetable a limited service is provided (5 arrivals & 4 departures) to connect with the ferry.

Preceding station National Rail Following station
Ardrossan Harbour   Abellio ScotRail
Ayrshire Coast Line
   Ardrossan South Beach
  Historical railways  
Connection with
Ardrossan Railway		   Glasgow and South Western Railway
Largs Branch
   West Kilbride
Link closed; station open
Ardrossan Winton Pier
Line open; station closed		   Glasgow and South Western Railway
Ardrossan Railway
   Ardrossan South Beach
Line and station open
Railway Stations in Ardrossan
Castlemill Junc │ Holm Junc
Ardrossan South Beach
Ardrossan Railway
Ardrossan North (L&AR)
Parkhouse Junction
Harbour Junction
Ardrossan Town (AR)
Ardrossan
Montgomerie Pier
(L&AR)
Winton Junction
Ardrossan Winton Pier (AR)
Ardrossan Harbour (BR)
Harbour Sidings

References

Notes
  1. Brailsford 2017, Gaelic/English Station Index.
  2. Butt, page 18
  3. Hume, p. 43
  4. "Railscot - Ardrossan Town in 1985". www.railbrit.co.uk. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
  5. Table 221 National Rail timetable, May 2016

Sources
  • Brailsford, Martyn, ed. (December 2017) [1987]. Railway Track Diagrams 1: Scotland & Isle of Man (6th ed.). Frome: Trackmaps. ISBN 978-0-9549866-9-8.
  • Butt, R. V. J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199.
  • Hume, John R. (1976). The Industrial Archaeology of Scotland, Vol. 1: The Lowlands and Borders. London: B. T. Batsford Ltd. ISBN 0-7134-3234-9.
  • McSherry, R. & M. (1996). Old Ardrossan. Ochiltree: Stenlake Publishing. ISBN 1-8720-7477-4. OCLC 35557839.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.