Garelochhead railway station (Scottish Gaelic: Ceann a' Gheàrrloch) is a railway station serving the village of Garelochhead, on the Gare Loch, in Scotland. This station is on the West Highland Line and is a boundary station for SPT. It is sited 8 miles 76 chains (14.4 km) from Craigendoran Junction, near Helensburgh, between Arrochar and Tarbet and Helensburgh Upper.[4] ScotRail manage the station and operate most services, with others provided by Caledonian Sleeper.
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 View north towards Arrochar & Tarbet | |||||
| General information | |||||
| Location | Garelochhead, Argyll and Bute Scotland | ||||
| Coordinates | 56°04′48″N 4°49′31″W / 56.0801°N 4.8254°W | ||||
| Grid reference | NS242910 | ||||
| Managed by | ScotRail | ||||
| Transit authority | SPT | ||||
| Platforms | 2 | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Station code | GCH[2] | ||||
| History | |||||
| Original company | West Highland Railway | ||||
| Pre-grouping | North British Railway | ||||
| Post-grouping | LNER | ||||
| Key dates | |||||
| 7 August 1894 | Opened | ||||
| Passengers | |||||
| 2018/19 |  8,818 | ||||
| 2019/20 | 8,594 | ||||
| 2020/21 | 1,678 | ||||
| 2021/22 |  8,478 | ||||
| 2022/23 | 10,030 | ||||
Listed Building – Category B | |||||
| Designated | 8 July 1988 | ||||
| Reference no. | LB19490[3] | ||||
| |||||
History
This station opened to passengers on 7 August 1894.[5]
The station was laid out with a crossing loop and an island platform. There were sidings on both sides, and a turntable on the west side of the line.[6]
The station was host to a LNER camping coach from 1935 to 1939.[7] A camping coach was also positioned here by the Scottish Region from 1964 to 1967.[8]
Until the 1960s, the station was served by a local shuttle service between Craigendoran and Arrochar & Tarbet in addition to main line trains to Fort William and Mallaig. Latterly operated by a Wickham diesel railbus, it fell victim to the Beeching Axe in June 1964.[9]
Facilities
The island platform is equipped with benches, a help point, a car park and bike racks, the latter two located outside the station. The only access to the station is via a subway, some steps and a ramp, so the station does not have step-free access.[10] As there are no facilities to purchase tickets, passengers must buy one in advance, or from the guard on the train.
Passenger volume
| 2002–03 | 2004–05 | 2005–06 | 2006–07 | 2007–08 | 2008–09 | 2009–10 | 2010–11 | 2011–12 | 2012–13 | 2013–14 | 2014–15 | 2015–16 | 2016–17 | 2017–18 | 2018–19 | 2019–20 | 2020–21 | 2021–22 | 2021-22 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entries and exits | 3,868 | 4,824 | 5,940 | 5,269 | 5,156 | 5,374 | 4,706 | 5,040 | 5,122 | 5,682 | 5,256 | 6,920 | 7,806 | 8,556 | 9,796 | 8,818 | 8,594 | 1,678 | 8,478 | 10,030 |
The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.
Services
Monday to Saturday, there are six services to Oban and three to Mallaig (the latter combined with Oban portions, dividing at Crianlarich), and one service to Fort William (the Highland Caledonian Sleeper, weekday mornings only) northbound. Southbound, there are six services to Glasgow Queen Street High Level and one service to London Euston via Queen Street Low Level & Edinburgh Waverley (the Highland Caledonian Sleeper - does not run on Saturday).
On Sundays, there are two trains northbound to Mallaig, the Caledonian Sleeper to Fort William and one extra to Oban only, plus an extra summer service to Oban; Southbound there are three trains southbound to Glasgow Queen Street. In summer months, the extra summer Sunday service returns to Edinburgh, avoiding Glasgow.[12][13][14]
| Preceding station |  National Rail | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Helensburgh Upper | ScotRail West Highland Line | Arrochar & Tarbet | ||
| Helensburgh Upper | Caledonian Sleeper Highland Caledonian Sleeper | Arrochar & Tarbet | ||
| Historical railways | ||||
| Shandon Line open; Station closed | West Highland Railway North British Railway | Whistlefield Halt Line open; Station closed | ||
References
Bibliography
- 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. (October 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. OL 11956311M.
- McRae, Andrew (1997). British Railway Camping Coach Holidays: The 1930s & British Railways (London Midland Region). Vol. Scenes from the Past: 30 (Part One). Foxline. ISBN 1-870119-48-7.
- McRae, Andrew (1998). British Railways Camping Coach Holidays: A Tour of Britain in the 1950s and 1960s. Vol. Scenes from the Past: 30 (Part Two). Foxline. ISBN 1-870119-53-3.
- Jowett, Alan (March 1989). Jowett's Railway Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland: From Pre-Grouping to the Present Day (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-086-0. OCLC 22311137.
External links
- Train times and station information for Garelochhead railway station from National Rail
- RAILSCOT on the West Highland Railway Archived 1 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine