Dundee and Arbroath Railway
Encyclopedia
The Dundee and Arbroath Railway was a railway link between those two towns in Scotland.
, opened on 6 October 1838. A 1.5 miles (2.4 km) extension to Roodyards, at the east end of Dundee, opened on 3 June 1839, and the final section, of only 0.75 miles (1.2 km) from Roodyards to Trades Lane opened on 2 April 1840.
It soon became clear that the railway could not remain isolated from the rest of the network, and on 19 May 1845 a conference was held in London between representatives of the Dundee & Arbroath Railway, the Dundee & Perth Railway and the Arbroath & Forfar Railway to agree how to provide through traffic over the three railways.
This required the line to be converted to standard gauge
, which took place on 6 July 1847. Then, on 23 December 1847, a connecting line at Arbroath was opened, which linked it to the Arbroath & Forfar Railway.
In May 1848 the short branch from Broughty Ferry
to Broughty Ferry Pier opened. This formed the northern terminal of the ferry service across the Firth of Tay
from Ferryport-on-Craig, which was operated by the Edinburgh and Northern Railway
. This branch closed when the Tay Bridge
opened.
On 31 August 1848 the Dundee and Perth Railway was authorised by Act of Parliament to lease the company, with the latter being renamed as Dundee and Perth and Aberdeen Railway Junction Company. Although the Dundee & Perth Railway operated the Dundee & Arbroath line, and paid rental to the Dundee & Arbroath company, the lease was never executed, and the arrangement was dissolved on 9 March 1850. The Dundee & Arbroath worked its own undertaking again from that date.
The original terminus station in Dundee, Trades Lane station, was replaced by the new Dundee East station on 14 December 1857.
On January 31, 1862 it was absorbed into the Scottish North Eastern Railway
. On 1 February 1880 (as a result of an Act of Parliament on 21 July 1879), the line passed jointly to the Caledonian Railway
and North British Railway
, which in turn became part of the London Midland and Scottish Railway and London and North Eastern Railway
respectively as a result of the 1923 grouping.
and East Coast
.
History
The railway company received its Parliamentary Act on 19 May 1836. It was planned as a gauge railway, because, at that time, it was expected to be a purely local railway with no connection to the national network. The main part of the line, some 14.5 miles (23.3 km) from Arbroath to a temporary terminus at CraigieCraigie
-Places:Australia*Craigie, Western Australia, a suburb of PerthScotland*Craigie, Ayrshire, a small village in East Ayrshire,*Craigie Castle, Ayrshire*Scottish feudal Barony of Craigie, a feudal barony in Dundee-People:...
, opened on 6 October 1838. A 1.5 miles (2.4 km) extension to Roodyards, at the east end of Dundee, opened on 3 June 1839, and the final section, of only 0.75 miles (1.2 km) from Roodyards to Trades Lane opened on 2 April 1840.
It soon became clear that the railway could not remain isolated from the rest of the network, and on 19 May 1845 a conference was held in London between representatives of the Dundee & Arbroath Railway, the Dundee & Perth Railway and the Arbroath & Forfar Railway to agree how to provide through traffic over the three railways.
This required the line to be converted to standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
, which took place on 6 July 1847. Then, on 23 December 1847, a connecting line at Arbroath was opened, which linked it to the Arbroath & Forfar Railway.
In May 1848 the short branch from Broughty Ferry
Broughty Ferry
Broughty Ferry is a suburb on the eastern side of the City of Dundee, on the shore of the Firth of Tay in eastern Scotland...
to Broughty Ferry Pier opened. This formed the northern terminal of the ferry service across the Firth of Tay
Firth of Tay
The Firth of Tay is a firth in Scotland between the council areas of Fife, Perth and Kinross, the City of Dundee and Angus, into which Scotland's largest river in terms of flow, the River Tay, empties....
from Ferryport-on-Craig, which was operated by the Edinburgh and Northern Railway
Edinburgh and Northern Railway
The Edinburgh and Northern Railway was a Scottish railway company. It was authorised by Act of Parliament in 1845. It operated services between Burntisland, on the northern shore of the Firth of Forth, Perth and Tayport, with a junction at Ladybank...
. This branch closed when the Tay Bridge
Tay Rail Bridge
The Tay Bridge is a railway bridge approximately two and a quarter miles long that spans the Firth of Tay in Scotland, between the city of Dundee and the suburb of Wormit in Fife ....
opened.
On 31 August 1848 the Dundee and Perth Railway was authorised by Act of Parliament to lease the company, with the latter being renamed as Dundee and Perth and Aberdeen Railway Junction Company. Although the Dundee & Perth Railway operated the Dundee & Arbroath line, and paid rental to the Dundee & Arbroath company, the lease was never executed, and the arrangement was dissolved on 9 March 1850. The Dundee & Arbroath worked its own undertaking again from that date.
The original terminus station in Dundee, Trades Lane station, was replaced by the new Dundee East station on 14 December 1857.
On January 31, 1862 it was absorbed into the Scottish North Eastern Railway
Scottish North Eastern Railway
The Scottish North Eastern Railway was a railway company in Scotland created when the Aberdeen Railway amalgamated with the Scottish Midland Junction Railway on 29 July 1856...
. On 1 February 1880 (as a result of an Act of Parliament on 21 July 1879), the line passed jointly to the Caledonian Railway
Caledonian Railway
The Caledonian Railway was a major Scottish railway company. It was formed in the early 19th century and it was absorbed almost a century later into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, in the 1923 railway grouping, by means of the Railways Act 1921...
and North British Railway
North British Railway
The North British Railway was a Scottish railway company that was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923.-History:...
, which in turn became part of the London Midland and Scottish Railway and London and North Eastern Railway
London and North Eastern Railway
The London and North Eastern Railway was the second-largest of the "Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain...
respectively as a result of the 1923 grouping.
Current operations
With the exception of the short spurs for the stations at Dundee East, Broughty Ferry Pier and Arbroath West, the line is still open, with passenger services operated by First ScotRailFirst ScotRail
ScotRail Railways Ltd. is the FirstGroup-owned train operating company running domestic passenger trains within Scotland, northern England and the cross-border Caledonian Sleeper service to London using the brand ScotRail which is the property of the Scottish Government...
and East Coast
East Coast (train operating company)
East Coast is a British train operating company running high-speed passenger services on the East Coast Main Line between London, Yorkshire, the North East and Scotland...
.