Laurencekirk railway station is a railway station serving the communities of Laurencekirk and The Mearns in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The station was reopened on 18 May 2009 at a cost of £3 million.[4] It is sited 210 miles 44 chains (338.8 km) from Carlisle, and is between Montrose and Stonehaven, on the Dundee to Aberdeen line. There is a crossover at the north end of the station, which can be used to facilitate trains turning back if the line south to Montrose is blocked.[5]
 | |
|---|---|
 Laurencekirk station after restoration and reopening | |
| General information | |
| Location | Laurencekirk, Aberdeenshire Scotland |
| Coordinates | 56°50′12″N 2°27′55″W / 56.8368°N 2.4653°W |
| Grid reference | NO717718 |
| Managed by | ScotRail |
| Platforms | 2 |
| Other information | |
| Station code | LAU[2] |
| Classification | DfT category F1 |
| History | |
| Original company | Aberdeen Railway |
| Pre-grouping | Caledonian Railway |
| Post-grouping | LMS |
| Key dates | |
| 1 November 1849 | Opened |
| 4 September 1967 | Closed |
| 17 May 2009 | Re-opened |
| Passengers | |
| 2018/19 |  86,332 |
| 2019/20 |  88,566 |
| 2020/21 | 8,778 |
| 2021/22 | 45,386 |
| 2022/23 | 60,670 |
Listed Building – Category B | |
| Designated | 8 March 2001 |
| Reference no. | LB47653[3] |
| Notes | |
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road | |
History edit
The station was opened on 1 November 1849[6] by the Aberdeen Railway, which ran from Aberdeen in the north to Guthrie (just outside Arbroath) to the south. The line joined the North British, Arbroath and Montrose Railway north of Montrose at Kinnaber Junction and Arbroath and Forfar Railway at the triangular junctions at Friockheim and Guthrie.[7][8] The station was closed on 4 September 1967[9] by British Railways.
Re-opening edit
The residents of Laurencekirk, many of whom now commute to Aberdeen and Dyce had successfully campaigned for the station to be reopened – the official announcement being made during December 2006 that the station would open in December 2007, to be funded by Transport Scotland and the Regional Transport Partnership Nestrans.[10] The announcement of December 2007 for the re-commencement of services to and from Laurencekirk was ultimately overly ambitious and it was announced in early 2008 that the station would be finished and ready for the December 2008 timetable change.[11] However, in a New Release from Transport Scotland, the opening date was given at Spring 2009.[12] The station was reopened by the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure & Climate Change, Stewart Stevenson on 17 May 2009.[9]
The station building, which had fallen into poor overall condition was refurbished during Spring 2008, and a new car park with 70 parking spaces was built by Aberdeenshire Council and Nestrans, across the railway line from the station building, together with a small number of disabled parking spaces next to the station building.[11] First ScotRail made provisional plans for 19 trains to serve the station each day, made up of 10 northbound services and 9 southbound services, with southbound services serving both Edinburgh and Glasgow.[11] ScotRail will also be responsible for gritting and snow-clearing at the station.
On the first anniversary of the reopening of the station, it was revealed that almost double the expected number of passengers had used it – 64,000 people as opposed to a projection of 36,000.[13]
Facilities edit
Although the station is unstaffed, both platforms are equipped with shelters and benches. Platform 1 also has a help point and is adjacent to the car park, whilst platform 2 has a ticket machine. Both platforms have step-free access, and are connected by a footbridge, which also has a ramp.[14]
Passenger volume edit
| 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 | 2022–23 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entries and exits | 56,496 | 73,594 | 86,138 | 92,470 | 102,770 | 112,914 | 104,488 | 96,002 | 95,848 | 86,332 | 88,566 | 8,778 | 45,386 | 60,670 |
The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.
Services edit
As of the May 2022 timetable, Laurencekirk is served by an hourly stopping service which runs between Montrose and Inverurie. Some services also extend to Perth or Glasgow Queen Street westbound, and Inverness eastbound (although some terminate short at Aberdeen or Dyce). A limited service operates on Sundays, northbound to Aberdeen and southbound to Glasgow Queen Street, Edinburgh Waverley and Perth.[16]
| Preceding station |  National Rail
|
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montrose | ScotRail Dundee–Aberdeen line |
Stonehaven | ||
| Montrose To Montrose |
ScotRail Aberdeen Crossrail |
Stonehaven To Inverurie | ||
| Historical railways | ||||
| Marykirk Line open; station closed |
Caledonian Railway Aberdeen Railway |
Fordoun Line open; station closed | ||
References edit
- ^ Brailsford 2017, Gaelic/English Station Index.
- ^ Deaves, Phil. "Railway Codes". railwaycodes.org.uk. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
- ^ "LAURENCEKIRK RAILWAY STATION INCLUDING CANOPY". Historic Scotland. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
- ^ "Rail station finally back on line". BBC News. 18 May 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
- ^ Bridge, Mike, ed. (2017). TRACKatlas of Mainland Britain: A Comprehensive Geographic Atlas Showing the Rail Network of Great Britain (3rd ed.). Sheffield: Platform 5 Publishing Ltd. p. 95. ISBN 978 1909431 26 3.
- ^ Butt (1995), page 139
- ^ Awdry (1990)
- ^ Jowett (1989)
- ^ a b Quick 2022, p. p=276.
- ^ "Rail Network (Local Railway Stations) (PE629)". Public Petitions Committee. Scottish Parliament. 3 September 2003. Archived from the original on 24 April 2010. Retrieved 6 April 2008.
- ^ a b c Wallace, Charles (20 March 2008). "Station plans on course". Kincardineshire Observer. Johnston Press. Retrieved 6 April 2008.
- ^ "Minister celebrates 25 years of ScotRail network by announcing major boost to east coast services". Archived from the original on 2 November 2013. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
- ^ Cruden, Gary (17 May 2010). "Town's reopened station proves to be popular platform with travellers". The Press and Journal. Retrieved 18 May 2010.
- ^ "National Rail Enquiries - Sorry, something went wrong". www.nationalrail.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
- ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal". dataportal.orr.gov.uk. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
- ^ eNRT May 2022 Edition, Table 214
Bibliography edit
- Awdry, Christopher (1990). Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 1-8526-0049-7. OCLC 19514063. CN 8983.
- 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.
- 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.
- Quick, Michael (2022). Railway Passenger Stations in Great Britain: A Chronology (PDF) (5th ed.). London: Railway and Canal Historical Society.
External links edit
- Train times and station information for Laurencekirk railway station from National Rail