Achnasheen railway station is a remote railway station on the Kyle of Lochalsh Line

Kyle of Lochalsh Line

The Kyle of Lochalsh Line is a primarily single track railway line in the Scottish Highlands, running from Dingwall to Kyle of Lochalsh. The population along the route is sparse in nature, but the scenery is beautiful and can be quite dramatic, the Kyle line having been likened to a symphony in...

, serving the village of Achnasheen

Achnasheen

Achnasheen is a small village in Ross-shire in the Highland council area of Scotland. Despite the size of the village, Achnasheen is also the name of a postal district which covers several much larger communities. This dates from the time when the village railway station was an important stop on...

 in the north of Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

.

It was once an important railhead, handling passengers, mail and freight bound for parts of Wester Ross, including Gairloch

Gairloch

Gairloch is a village, civil parish and community on the shores of Loch Gairloch on the northwest coast of Scotland. A popular tourist destination in the summer months, Gairloch has a golf course, a small museum, several hotels, a community centre, a leisure centre with sports facilities, a local...

 and the Loch Torridon

Loch Torridon

Loch Torridon is a sea loch on the west coast of Scotland in the Northwest Highlands. The loch was created by glacial processes and is in total around 15 miles long. It has two sections: Upper Loch Torridon to landward, east of Rubha na h-Airde Ghlaise, at which point it joins Loch Sheildaig;...

 area. All freight in this area now travels by road. The station building still serves as a postal distribution point, but the mail travels from Inverness

Inverness

Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...

 by road. There are four trains a day in each direction (two on Sundays) stopping here, connecting Achnasheen with all stations between Inverness and Kyle of Lochalsh

Kyle of Lochalsh

Kyle of Lochalsh is a village on the northwest coast of Scotland, 63 miles west of Inverness. It is located at the entrance to Loch Alsh, opposite the village of Kyleakin on the Isle of Skye...

, but these are lightly used.

History

The station was opened by the Dingwall and Skye Railway

Dingwall and Skye Railway

The Dingwall and Skye Railway was authorised on 5 July 1865 with the aim of providing a route to Skye and the Herbrides. However due to local objections, another Act of Parliament was required before work could commence. This was passed on 29 May 1868...

, but operated from the outset by the Highland Railway

Highland Railway

The Highland Railway was one of the smaller British railways before the Railways Act 1921; it operated north of Perth railway station in Scotland and served the farthest north of Britain...

. Taken into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway

London, Midland and Scottish Railway

The London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...

 during the Grouping

Railways Act 1921

The Railways Act 1921, also known as the Grouping Act, was an enactment by the British government of David Lloyd George intended to stem the losses being made by many of the country's 120 railway companies, move the railways away from internal competition, and to retain some of the benefits which...

 of 1923, the line then passed on to the Scottish Region of British Railways

Scottish Region of British Railways

The Scottish Region was one of the six regions created on British Railways and consisted of ex-London, Midland and Scottish Railway and ex-London and North Eastern Railway lines in Scotland...

 on nationalisation in 1948.

When Sectorisation

British Rail brand names

British Rail was the brand image of the nationalised railway owner and operator in Great Britain, the British Railways Board, used from 1965 until its breakup and sell-off from 1993 onwards....

 was introduced, the station became part of ScotRail

ScotRail

ScotRail was a brand name used for all Scottish regional and commuter rail services, including some cross-border services, from 1997 to 2004....

 until the Privatisation of British Rail

Privatisation of British Rail

The privatisation of British Rail was set in motion when the Conservative government enacted, on 19 January 1993, the British Coal and British Rail Act 1993 . This enabled the relevant Secretary of State to issue directions to the relevant Board...

ways.

Service