Blackridge railway station explained

Blackridge
Native Name:Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: An Druim Dubh
Symbol Location:gb
Symbol:rail
Borough:Blackridge, West Lothian
Country:Scotland
Coordinates:55.8844°N -3.7502°W
Grid Name:Grid reference
Manager:ScotRail
Platforms:2
Code:BKR
Classification:DfT category F2
Years1:12 December 2010
Events1:Opened
Footnotes:Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Blackridge railway station is a railway station on the North Clyde Line. It serves the village of Blackridge in West Lothian, Scotland.

History

The original station in this locale was called Westcraigs, built by the Bathgate and Coatbridge Railway. It was also the site of a junction with the Wilsontown, Morningside and Coltness Railway. Opened on 11 August 1862,[1] in some timetables the station was called Westcraigs for Harthill.[1] The station closed on 9 January 1956.

Opening

Blackridge was originally excluded from the Airdrie–Bathgate rail link project, but after a three-year campaign by the local community, funding was approved by the Scottish Government at a cost of £5 million. Private housing developer Manorlane agreed to fund 40% of the costs. However, it closed and the funding promise expired. West Lothian Council agreed to take on the burden and expects to recoup the cost from additional expansion in the area.[2] The station opened on 12 December 2010 on a new site, some 600 metres closer to Edinburgh than the previous Westcraigs station.[3]

Services

The station has a basic half-hourly off-peak service Mondays to Sundays, westbound to, Queen St Low Level and and eastbound to Bathgate and Edinburgh Waverley. In the evenings and on Sundays the westbound terminus is rather than Milngavie.

References

Sources

Notes and References

  1. Butt (1995), p. 245
  2. December 2008. Ian Allan Publishings. 65. 723. Modern Railways. Blackridge station go-ahead.
  3. News: New £300m Airdrie-Bathgate rail link re-opens. BBC News. 12 December 2010. 12 December 2010.