Aberdeen railway station

Aberdeen railway station is the only railway station in Aberdeen, Scotland. It is the busiest railway station in Scotland north of the major cities of Glasgow and Edinburgh. It is located on Guild Street in the city centre, next to Union Square.

For other railway stations in Aberdeen, United Kingdom, see Railway stations of Aberdeen. For other railways stations named Aberdeen, see Aberdeen station (disambiguation).

Aberdeen
Scottish Gaelic: Obar Dheathain[1]
Concourse at Aberdeen station
Location
PlaceAberdeen
Local authorityCity of Aberdeen
Coordinates57.1436°N 2.0985°W / 57.1436; -2.0985
Grid referenceNJ941058
Operations
Station codeABD
Managed byAbellio ScotRail
Number of platforms5 (numbered 3–7)
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections
from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2014/15 3.742 million
– Interchange  0.219 million
2015/16 3.460 million
– Interchange  0.204 million
2016/17 3.058 million
– Interchange  0.192 million
2017/18 2.948 million
– Interchange  0.180 million
2018/19 2.616 million
– Interchange  0.258 million
History
Original companyDenburn Valley Line
Pre-groupingCR & GNoSR
Post-groupingLMS & LNER
4 November 1867Station opened as Aberdeen Joint to replace Aberdeen Guild Street and Aberdeen Waterloo[2]
1913–1916Rebuilt
1952Renamed Aberdeen[2]
2007–2008Major refurbishment
Listed status
Listing gradeCategory A
Entry numberLB20673[3]
Added to list2 March 1990
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Aberdeen from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.

The station is managed by Abellio ScotRail. Inter-city, regional, local and sleeper train services are provided to all parts of Great Britain by Abellio ScotRail, Caledonian Sleeper, CrossCountry and London North Eastern Railway. The station is the northern terminus of the Dundee–Aberdeen line and the southern terminus of the Aberdeen–Inverness line.

History
A 1913 Railway Clearing House Junction Diagram showing railways in the vicinity of Aberdeen (present station shown here as JOINT PASS. STA.)

Pre-nationalisation

The station currently standing was built as Aberdeen Joint Station between 1913 and 1916, replacing an 1867 structure of the same name, on the same site. The station and the new Denburn Valley Line enabled the main line from the south and the commuter line from Deeside to connect with the line from the north. The lines from the south had previously terminated at the adjacent Aberdeen Guild Street. Even this had not been Aberdeen's first railway station, that distinction belonging to a previous terminus a short way south at Ferryhill. After the construction of the Joint Station, Guild Street Station became a goods station. Some of its tracks remain, but the vast majority of the site was cleared in 2005.

Prior to the construction of the Joint Station, lines from the north had terminated at Aberdeen Waterloo, a short but inconvenient distance along the edge of the harbour. This too became a goods station after the construction of the Joint Station. There is no longer a station at the site, but a goods service runs approximately weekly to industrial operations there. The Waterloo tracks join the north–south connecting Denburn Valley Line in the Kittybrewster area of the city, where the very first terminus of the lines from the north had briefly been, before extension and the building of the Waterloo Station. As far north as Inverurie, these follow the route of the Aberdeenshire Canal which had been purchased and filled in by the Great North of Scotland Railway.

Nationalisation and privatisation
The entrance to the station, seen in 2006, before redevelopment as part of Union Square. The Station Hotel can be seen in the background.

As a result of the grouping of railway companies under the Railways Act 1921, Aberdeen was shared by the London and North Eastern Railway and the London Midland and Scottish Railway, each company running the station for a year and then handing its administration to the other company. At nationalisation in 1948, it then became part of British Rail. As part of the changes during this period which saw a general contraction of railway services in the UK, some services were cut in the 1960s. These included those running north to Peterhead and Ellon as well as the Deeside Line. Suburban services were heavily reduced and the grand suburban ticket office, located on the corner of Guild Street and Bridge Street, was closed. It now houses a hair and beauty salon. The number of platforms at the station were also reduced considerably in the early 1970s, from the thirteen of the late 1950s/early 1960s down to just seven by 1973.[4] This rationalisation process saw the removal of all of the north end bay platforms to allow for redevelopment of that part of the site. However, significant improvements under British Rail included introduction of InterCity 125 high-speed service to London and other major destinations, and introduction of other new rolling stock. Other improvements included a new Travel Centre opened in 1978 and under British Rail's regional brand ScotRail, a major station renovation was completed in the 1980s. The station was also resignalled around this time, with two more bay platforms (1 & 2) taken out of use along with the former through platforms 8 & 9. This left just five platforms (3–7) in regular use – the layout that remains in operation to this day. The two former bay platforms remain in place and are used as sidings. The former double track through platforms 8 and 9 has since been singled, but the platform faces remain.

At privatisation in the mid-1990s, ownership of the station passed to Railtrack (along with all stations and other infrastructure in England, Wales and Scotland), while day-to-day management passed to the train-operating franchisee ScotRail, a division of National Express. Following the quasi-nationalisation of railway infrastructure in the early 2000s, the station is now owned by Network Rail. In 2004, the train-operating franchise and station management were taken over by First ScotRail. ScotRail continue to operate trains but the station and all signage is now branded with the "ScotRail" logo, typeface and rolling-stock livery.

Signage at Aberdeen station in May 2012, showing National Rail double-arrow logo

Listed building

Historic Environment Scotland designate the current building and road overbridge as Category A, noting that it was the last major station to be completed in Scotland in the period 1913 - 20.[3]

Redevelopment as part of Union Square

The station had gradually become run-down in the last years of British Rail. In the late 2000s, the railway station and bus station were included in the extensive Union Square development, primarily sited on an abandoned railway goods yard east of the station. As part of this, the railway station was comprehensively refurbished. The original sandstone station building became the centrepiece of a covered plaza for the new shopping and entertainment complex, while a granite-faced building was constructed to house station offices, a new Travel Centre, and other facilities. The car park at the front of the station was replaced by a public square providing pedestrian access to the station and Union Square. In addition, direct access was provided from the station concourse to Union Square and through to the bus station, creating a completely covered transport interchange. The refurbished station opened in 2009 followed by Union Square itself some months later.

Future developments

Plans to relocate the ticket office and passenger waiting room, as well as upgrades to the taxi rank and concourse, were approved by Aberdeen City Council in December 2018, with work due to start in spring 2019.[5] Under a separate scheme, the vacant Atholl House building to the north of the station is to be demolished, making way for the construction of a public square, hotel and student accommodation, and improved connections between the city's main Union Street and the station.[6] This development could allow the currently disused platforms 8 and 9 to be brought back into service.[7]

As of early 2019, the station's glass roof is undergoing replacement with polycarbonate panels as part of a £9 million upgrade.[8] In June 2020, ScotRail announced that it would proceed with the modifications to the ticket office, waiting room, and taxi rank as soon as it was safe to do so following the coronavirus pandemic. There are no plans to reinstate the platforms yet.[9]

Station services
Concourse at Aberdeen station

Passenger facilities

There is a staffed travel centre providing ticket office and information facilities (e.g. timetables), although it is not open in the late evening and closes before the last trains have departed. There are also automatic ticket machines outside this office and in the main concourse. Tickets purchased in advance (e.g. on the internet) can be collected from any of these machines. The entrance to the ScotRail first-class lounge is located inside the ticket office. Luggage trolleys are provided for travellers with baggage and a left-luggage facility is available with access from the front forecourt of the station.

A waiting room is available on the main concourse, as is a branch of WHSmith selling books, magazines, stationery and confectionery. There is also a pub and café. A wide range of other shopping and eating facilities are located in the Union Square complex which can be accessed directly through the concourse and is integrated with the station building. These include Boots, Costa Coffee, Starbucks, Marks & Spencer Simply Food and a range of other shops and restaurants. Unlike the travel centre, facilities at Union Square open late into the evening and also include ATM machines, through-access to the city's bus station, and a hotel operated by Jurys Inn. The original Station Hotel (now privately operated) as formerly operated by the Great North of Scotland Railway is open and located on Guild Street directly opposite the station.

There are toilet facilities accessible from the concourse, in addition to toilet facilities in the café (free to customers), on most trains (free to passengers) and in Union Square.

Parking and onward transport

Medium-term parking is available in the adjoining College Street Car Park (with access only from College Street) and there are also a small number of free spaces which offer parking for 20 minutes only in a separate section of the car park inside the station itself. Taxis are available from a stand within the station concourse.

Regional and national bus services (including buses to Aberdeen Airport) depart from Aberdeen bus station, which is located on the other side of the adjoining Union Square shopping and entertainment complex. It is possible to walk directly from the concourse, through Union Square and to the bus station without entering the open air. This option is useful in winter and in periods of bad weather.

Rail services and train operators

Automated ticket barriers operate at all platforms but are left open when staff are not present. All scheduled services are operated by diesel-powered rolling stock. The services from Aberdeen for the Summer 2016 timetable (from 15 May 2016) are:

ScotRail
A ScotRail service at Aberdeen, formed of a Class 170 Turbostar unit

Caledonian Sleeper

CrossCountry

London North Eastern Railway

Ferry Services

Aberdeen railway station offers interchange with Aberdeen ferry terminal, which lies approximately 450 metres (0.28 mi) away, the departure point for ferry services to the Orkney and Shetland Islands. The ferries, operated by NorthLink Ferries, include a daily direct sailing to Lerwick, Shetland lasting around 12 hours overnight. On certain days of the week, the Lerwick ferry crossing includes a call at Kirkwall on Orkney, increasing the journey time by 2 hours.

Future service improvements

Service frequencies are to be improved here from 2018 as part of a major timetable recast funded by Transport Scotland. A new Aberdeen Crossrail commuter service is to be introduced between Montrose and Inverurie, which will call here and the other intermediate stations en route once per hour in each direction.[14] The existing hourly services to Edinburgh & Glasgow will be accelerated and use refurbished HST sets rather than the existing DMUs, whilst the line as far as Inverurie will have a half-hourly frequency throughout the day. A £170 million upgrade project for the line to Inverness will see that section doubled by the end of 2019, signalling & level crossings on the route modernised and the stations at Kintore and Dalcross reopened.[15]

Railway stations around Aberdeen
Don Street
Kittybrewster Junction
(DVL)
Kittybrewster (new)
Kittybrewster (old)
(DVL)
Hutcheon Street
Waterloo
Victoria Basin: North
(HTT)
Victoria Basin: South
(HTT)
Deeside Goods
(HTT)
(DVL)
Schoolhill
Guild Street
(AR)
(DVL)
Aberdeen Joint
Deeside Goods Branch Junction
Goods Branch Junction
Aberdeen Ferryhill
(DVL)
(DR)
Holburn Street
Ferryhill Junction
Railways:
Preceding station National Rail Following station
Stonehaven   CrossCountry
Cross Country Network		   Terminus
Portlethen   Abellio ScotRail
Edinburgh to Aberdeen Line		   Dyce
Portlethen   Abellio ScotRail
Glasgow to Aberdeen Line		   Terminus
Terminus   Abellio ScotRail
Aberdeen to Inverness Line		   Dyce
Stonehaven   Caledonian Sleeper
Caledonian Sleeper		   Terminus
Stonehaven   London North Eastern Railway
East Coast Main Line		   Terminus
 Ferry services
Terminus   NorthLink Ferries
Shetland ferry service		   Lerwick
Terminus   NorthLink Ferries
Orkney ferry service		   Kirkwall
  Historical railways  
Cove Bay
Line open; Station closed		   Caledonian Railway
Aberdeen Railway		   Terminus
Holburn Street
Line and Station closed		   Great North of Scotland Railway
Deeside Railway		   Terminus
Terminus   GNoSR / CR Joint
Denburn Valley Line		   Schoolhill
Line open; Station closed
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See also

References

Notes
  1. Brailsford 2017, Gaelic/English Station Index.
  2. Butt (1995), page 12
  3. Historic Environment Scotland. "GUILD STREET ABERDEEN RAILWAY STATION AND ROAD OVERBRIDGE  (Category A) (LB20673)". Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  4. "Aberdeen – End of the Great North End" McIntrye, John; Railscot article January 2007. Retrieved 8 April 2014
  5. Merson, Adele. "Aberdeen Railway Station revamp plans approved". Evening Express. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  6. Morrice, Emma. "Plans to demolish 'eyesore' building in Aberdeen city centre approved". Evening Express. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  7. Andy McLaren. "Two disused platforms at Aberdeen train station could reopen". Evening Express. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  8. "£9m Aberdeen station investment is first glass news". Network Rail. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  9. "£8m Aberdeen station redevelopment". www.railtechnologymagazine.com. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  10. GB eNRT May 2016 Edition, Tables 229 & 240 (Network Rail)
  11. GB eNRT May 2016 Edition, Table 402 (Network Rail)
  12. GB National Rail Timetable May 2016 Edition, Tables 51 & 229
  13. GB eNRT May 2016 Edition, Table 26 (Network Rail)
  14. "‘Rail revolution’ means 200 more services and 20,000 more seats for Scots passengers" Archived 20 August 2016 at the Wayback MachineTransport Scotland press release 15 March 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2016
  15. "Aberdeen to Inverness Rail Improvement Project, Scotland"Railway-technology.com article. Retrieved 19 August 2016

Sources
  • 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.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • 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.
  • 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.
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