Beauly railway station

Beauly railway station serves the village of Beauly in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is the first stop after leaving Inverness station, heading north on the Kyle of Lochalsh Line and the Far North Line.

For the proposed station in Essex, see Beaulieu railway station.

Beauly
Scottish Gaelic: A' Mhanachainn[1]
Location
PlaceBeauly
Local authorityHighland
Coordinates57.4783°N 4.4699°W / 57.4783; -4.4699
Grid referenceNH520457
Operations
Station codeBEL
Managed byAbellio ScotRail
Number of platforms1
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections
from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2014/15 57,446
2015/16 59,406
2016/17 52,870
2017/18 51,522
2018/19 48,270
History
Original companyInverness and Ross-shire Railway
Pre-groupingHighland Railway
Post-groupingLondon, Midland and Scottish Railway
11 June 1862Opened
13 June 1960Closed
15 April 2002Reopened
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Beauly from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.

History
Beauly station in 1961

The Inverness and Ross-shire Railway, which was to be a line between Inverness and Invergordon, was authorised in 1860, and opened in stages.[2] The first section, that between Inverness and Dingwall, opened on 11 June 1862,[3] and one of the original stations was that at Beauly.[4] It had two platforms, a passing loop and a goods shed with sidings that was equipped with a 1½ ton crane.[5][6] The station was host to a LMS caravan from 1936 to 1939.[7]

The station closed a nearly a century later, on 13 June 1960,[4] along with most of the others between Inverness and Bonar Bridge. This was due to increasing competition from motorbuses, particularly those of Highland Omnibuses Ltd.[8]

Following a local campaign, the station was reopened in 2002. A new platform, shelter and car park were built in a £250,000 project.[9] The platform is the shortest in Great Britain, only long enough for a single carriage and measuring 15.06 metres (49.4 ft) in 2013 compared with Conon Bridge's 15.08 metres (49.5 ft).[10] Normally operated by Class 158 trains, there is only one door in operation. Announcements are made on the train as to which door this will be. The original station building is now used for offices and housing.

The reopening of the station led to 75% of local commuters switching from road to rail.[11] Beauly has therefore provided a boost to campaigns to open small basic local stations. In 2007/8 with its population of just 1,164 Beauly's usage to population ratio (36 annual journeys per head) ranked as one of the highest in Britain.

Plans to reopen nearby Conon Bridge railway station in a similar style[12] were fulfilled on 8 February 2013.[13]

The station is 10 miles 12 chains (16.3 km) from Inverness, and has a single platform which is long enough for a one-coach train.[14]

Services
Preceding station National Rail Following station
Inverness   Abellio ScotRail
Kyle of Lochalsh Line
Far North Line		   Muir of Ord
  Historical railways  
Clunes
Line open, station closed		   Highland Railway
Inverness and Ross-shire Railway		   Muir of Ord
Line and station open
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References
  1. 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.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  2. Vallance, H.A.; Clinker, C.R.; Lambert, Anthony J. (1985) [1938]. The Highland Railway (4th ed.). Newton Abbot: David & Charles. p. 31. ISBN 0-946537-24-0.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  3. Vallance, Clinker & Lambert 1985, p. 32
  4. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 30. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  5. "Beauly station on OS 25inch map Inverness-shire - Mainland X.3 (Combined)". National Library of Scotland. 1893. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  6. The Railway Clearing House (1970) [1904]. The Railway Clearing House Handbook of Railway Stations 1904 (1970 D&C Reprint ed.). Newton Abbot: David & Charles Reprints. p. 46. ISBN 0-7153-5120-6.
  7. McRae, Andrew (1997). British Railway Camping Coach Holidays: The 1930s & British Railways (London Midland Region). Scenes from the Past: 30 (Part One). Foxline. p. 22. ISBN 1-870119-48-7.
  8. Vallance, Clinker & Lambert 1985, p. 161
  9. "Full steam ahead for Beauly Station". Highland Council. 15 April 2002. Archived from the original on 26 June 2002. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
  10. Milner, Chris (August 2013). "Size matters: Beauly has the shortest platform". The Railway Magazine. 159 (1, 348): 88.
  11. "Railway link proposed for airport". BBC News. 17 July 2006. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
  12. "Inverness to Plockton". Great British Railway Journeys. Series 4. Episode 14. 24 January 2013. BBC. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  13. "Conan Bridge (sic) station open after 50 years". Rail Technology Magazine. Cognitive Publishing Ltd. 12 February 2013. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
  14. Brailsford 2017, map 18C.
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