Oban railway station
Oban railway station is a railway station serving Oban in Scotland. It is the terminus of one branch of the highly scenic West Highland Line 101.3 miles (163 km) north of Glasgow Queen Street. It was originally the terminus of the Callander and Oban Railway. Services are operated by Abellio ScotRail.
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| Location | Oban, Argyll and Bute Scotland |
| Coordinates | 56.4121°N 5.4749°W |
| Grid reference | NM857298 |
| Managed by | Abellio ScotRail |
| Platforms | 2 |
| Other information | |
| Station code | OBN |
| History | |
| Original company | Callander and Oban Railway |
| Pre-grouping | Callander and Oban Railway operated by Caledonian Railway |
| Key dates | |
| 1 July 1880 | Opened |
| Passengers | |
| 2015/16 |  0.176 million |
| 2016/17 |  0.164 million |
| 2017/18 | 0.181 million |
| 2018/19 | 0.178 million |
| 2019/20 | 0.169 million |
| Notes | |
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road | |
Oban station provides interchange with the adjacent ferry terminal, offering connections to a number of destinations in the Inner and Outer Hebrides via ferry services operated by Caledonian MacBrayne (Cal Mac). Known as the "Gateway to the Isles", Oban is Cal Mac's busiest ferry terminal.
History
Oban station opened on 1 July 1880. A ticket platform (long since disused but still in situ) was located on the west side of the single line, about 1⁄2 mile (800 m) to the south. Just south of there, a short branch line diverged to the east, towards a goods yard and engine shed.
Two additional platforms were constructed on the west side of the station in 1904, following the opening of the branch from Connel Ferry to Ballachulish.
Following closure of the goods yard and engine shed, a rail-connected oil storage depot occupied part of the site for a number of years, although this has itself since closed.
Since 1982, only the 1904-built platforms remain in use (still numbered as Platforms 3 and 4). The present small station building was officially opened on 3 January 1986, the occasion being marked by the naming of two Class 37 locomotives. Despite it being a listed building, the original station building was subsequently demolished.
Signalling
Since its opening on 1 July 1880, the single line between Dalmally and Oban was worked by the electric token system, this being the first ever application of that system in everyday service.
Oban originally had two signal boxes, namely Oban Station signal box (the larger of the two), and Oban Goods Junction signal box. The latter was situated about 1⁄4 mile (400 m) further south, where the line to the goods yard and engine shed diverged from the single line. The original signal boxes contained 21 and 5 levers, respectively. The single line between the two boxes was doubled in 1881.
In connection with the station's enlargement, Oban Station Signal Box was replaced (on the opposite side of the line and slightly nearer the station) in 1904. The new box contained a frame of 64 levers, subsequently shortened to 48. Oban Goods Junction S.B. was replaced in 1929.
Oban Goods Junction S.B. closed on 4 May 1969. Oban Station S.B. closed on 5 December 1982, when a 'no signalman' system of electric token working was introduced on the section from Taynuilt signal box. The last remaining semaphore signals were removed at that time, including the signal gantry.
The Radio Electronic Token Block system was introduced in 1988 and the Train Protection & Warning System was installed in 2003.
Services
2019
In 2019, Monday to Saturdays, there are seven trains per day (six on Saturdays) with six trains going onwards to Glasgow Queen Street, and one train operating as far as Dalmally on weekday afternoons. On Sundays, there are three trains per day all year round to Glasgow Queen Street.
Ferries
Oban station is located next to Oban ferry terminal. Caledonian MacBrayne ferries sail daily from here to the islands of Lismore, Colonsay, Islay, Coll, Tiree, to Craignure on Mull, to Castlebay on Barra and to Lochboisdale(winter only) on South Uist. The times of connecting trains to/from Glasgow Queen Street are included on Cal Mac timetables.
In 2005 a new ferry terminal was opened, and in 2007 a second linkspan opened, allowing two vessels to load/unload at the same time.
| Preceding station | National Rail |
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connel Ferry | Abellio ScotRail West Highland Line |
Terminus | ||
 Ferry services |
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| Scalasaig | Caledonian MacBrayne Oban – Colonsay |
Terminus | ||
| Craignure | Caledonian MacBrayne Oban – Mull |
Terminus | ||
| Achnacroish | Caledonian MacBrayne Oban – Lismore |
Terminus | ||
| Scarinish | Caledonian MacBrayne Oban – Coll & Tiree |
Terminus | ||
| Arinagour | ||||
| Castlebay | Caledonian MacBrayne Oban – Barra |
Terminus | ||
| Lochboisdale | Caledonian MacBrayne Oban – South Uist (winter only) |
Terminus | ||
| Historical railways | ||||
| Connel Ferry Line and station open |
Callander and Oban Railway Caledonian Railway |
Terminus | ||
References
- Brailsford, Martyn, ed. (December 2017) [1987]. "Gaelic/English Station Index". Railway Track Diagrams 1: Scotland & Isle of Man (6th ed.). Frome: Trackmaps. ISBN 978-0-9549866-9-8.
Sources
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Oban railway station. |
- 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.
- Fryer, Charles (1989). The Callander and Oban Railway. Oxford: Oakwood Press. ISBN 0-8536-1377-X. OCLC 21870958.