Paisley and Barrhead District Railway
Encyclopedia
The Paisley and Barrhead District Railway was a railway in Scotland
that ran between the towns of Paisley
and Barrhead
. Despite stations being built on the line, the railway was only ever open to freight services. For this reason it was known locally as "the dummy railway".
under an Act of Parliament
on 31 July 1902, and subsequently became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway
in 1923.
The plan was to form a loop (which would have included Paisley Gilmour Street
, Paisley's main station) by joining the line to the Caledonian Railway's Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway
at Paisley St. James (Walkinshaw North & South Junctions) in the west and Paisley East at a junction near Arkleston in the east. The Walkinshaw Junctions were completed but the Arkleston one was not. An embankment and a bridge were constructed and the track laid but it was deliberately stopped short of the main line.
The reason the line was not finished is that under Board of Trade
regulations the Caledonian Railway were under an obligation to run a certain minimum number of trains per day. The advent of electric trams in 1903 made a train service financially untenable.
The line was used only once by a passenger train; a rail tour operated by the Stephenson Locomotive Society
on 1 September 1951. The train started at Paisley East Goods at Cecil Street and made its way to Barrhead South returning through the west branch to Paisley Gilmour Street.
at Paisley St James
and had railway stations at Ferguslie
, Stanely
, and Glenfield
. There were also sidings to the Rootes car plant at Linwood on that branch. This section of line was used for the delivery of the Class 303 EMU
which were built at the Pressed Steel plant in Linwood. Further sidings existed at Chain Road Goods Yard and Meikleriggs Goods Yard.
The branch closed in stages. Meikleriggs Goods Yard on 6 September 1954, Ferguslie Chain Road to Barrhead South on 28 October 1963, Rootes' Siding to Ferguslie, Chain Road on 30 September 1968, Paisley St James to Linwood 21 October 1984.
This was a very costly operation which included the building of 15 bridges, an enormous wall down the length of Lacy Street, three signal boxes and two stations
at Dykebar
and Paisley East
(which was demolished in 1928). The high level Paisley East section along the wall was never used, however the branch continued into Paisley East goods (sometimes referred to as Paisley East Mineral Depot) at Cecil Street crossing Lacy Street at street level. Coal trains also ran to Dykebar Hospital, amongst other places. The train shed in Dykebar hospital is still there, as are the remains of the line going into the hospital. It is possible to follow the route of the former railway from the River Cart
crossing to Grahamston Road on the current online Ordnance Survey
map by entering grid reference NS502626 and from there to Blackbyres at NS502610 where it is labelled a 'dismantled railway'. The line from Blackbyres to Paisley East goods closed on 31 December 1960.
The two branches met at Blackbyres junction then carried on to Barrhead New station
, Barrhead South station
and Lyoncross Junction
.
The line is completely closed and sections have now disappeared under more recent developments, especially in Paisley (as noted above) and Barrhead.
Parts of the line are now a cycle track, built along the route of the trackbed from Glenburn to Barrhead. Glenfield station was at the bottom of the hill, a short distance up Glenburn Road from where the cycle track ends.
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...
that ran between the towns of Paisley
Paisley
Paisley is the largest town in the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland and serves as the administrative centre for the Renfrewshire council area...
and Barrhead
Barrhead
Barrhead is a town in East Renfrewshire, Scotland, southwest of Glasgow on the edge of the Gleniffer Braes. As of the 2001 census its population was 19,813....
. Despite stations being built on the line, the railway was only ever open to freight services. For this reason it was known locally as "the dummy railway".
History
The railway was incorporated on 6 August 1897. It was vested with the Caledonian RailwayCaledonian 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...
under an Act of Parliament
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
on 31 July 1902, and subsequently became part of 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...
in 1923.
The plan was to form a loop (which would have included Paisley Gilmour Street
Paisley Gilmour Street railway station
Paisley Gilmour Street railway station is one of four stations serving the town of Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland . The station is managed by First ScotRail and is on the Ayrshire Coast Line, 12 km west of...
, Paisley's main station) by joining the line to the Caledonian Railway's Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway
Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway
The Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway was an early railway, which merged with the Caledonian Railway. It was created to provide train services between Greenock and Glasgow.-History:...
at Paisley St. James (Walkinshaw North & South Junctions) in the west and Paisley East at a junction near Arkleston in the east. The Walkinshaw Junctions were completed but the Arkleston one was not. An embankment and a bridge were constructed and the track laid but it was deliberately stopped short of the main line.
The reason the line was not finished is that under Board of Trade
Board of Trade
The Board of Trade is a committee of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, originating as a committee of inquiry in the 17th century and evolving gradually into a government department with a diverse range of functions...
regulations the Caledonian Railway were under an obligation to run a certain minimum number of trains per day. The advent of electric trams in 1903 made a train service financially untenable.
The line was used only once by a passenger train; a rail tour operated by the Stephenson Locomotive Society
Stephenson Locomotive Society
The Stephenson Locomotive Society was founded in the UK in Autumn 1909 for the study of rail transport and locomotives.It was originally named The Stephenson Society in honour of George Stephenson. In late 1911 the professional engineers seceded from the Society to form the Junior Institution of...
on 1 September 1951. The train started at Paisley East Goods at Cecil Street and made its way to Barrhead South returning through the west branch to Paisley Gilmour Street.
West branch
This branched off the Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock RailwayGlasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway
The Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway was an early railway, which merged with the Caledonian Railway. It was created to provide train services between Greenock and Glasgow.-History:...
at Paisley St James
Paisley St James railway station
Paisley St James railway station is on the Inverclyde Line, serving a residential district of Paisley, Scotland, just west of the town centre...
and had railway stations at Ferguslie
Ferguslie railway station
Ferguslie was a railway station to the west of Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland. It was constructed as a planned extension of railway passenger services in the Paisley area by the Paisley and Barrhead District Railway, which opened in 1897, but none of the stations opened for passengers. The line...
, Stanely
Stanely railway station
Stanely was a railway station to the west of Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland.- History :The station was originally part of the Paisley and Barrhead District Railway. The line was opened in 1897 and used for freight until the 1960s but none of the stations including this one opened for passenger...
, and Glenfield
Glenfield railway station (Paisley)
Glenfield was a railway station to the south west of Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland.- History :The station was originally part of the Paisley and Barrhead District Railway. The line was opened in 1897 and used for freight until the 1960s, but none of its stations - including this one - opened for...
. There were also sidings to the Rootes car plant at Linwood on that branch. This section of line was used for the delivery of the Class 303 EMU
British Rail Class 303
The British Rail Class 303 electric multiple units, also known as "Blue Train" units, were introduced in 1960 for the electrification of the North Clyde and the Cathcart Circle lines in Strathclyde...
which were built at the Pressed Steel plant in Linwood. Further sidings existed at Chain Road Goods Yard and Meikleriggs Goods Yard.
The branch closed in stages. Meikleriggs Goods Yard on 6 September 1954, Ferguslie Chain Road to Barrhead South on 28 October 1963, Rootes' Siding to Ferguslie, Chain Road on 30 September 1968, Paisley St James to Linwood 21 October 1984.
East branch
Train station
A train station, also called a railroad station or railway station and often shortened to just station,"Station" is commonly understood to mean "train station" unless otherwise qualified. This is evident from dictionary entries e.g...
at Dykebar
Dykebar railway station
Dykebar was a railway station in the Dykebar area to the south of Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland. The station was originally part of the Paisley and Barrhead District Railway...
and Paisley East
Paisley East railway station
Paisley East was a railway station in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland.- History :The station was originally part of the Paisley and Barrhead District Railway...
(which was demolished in 1928). The high level Paisley East section along the wall was never used, however the branch continued into Paisley East goods (sometimes referred to as Paisley East Mineral Depot) at Cecil Street crossing Lacy Street at street level. Coal trains also ran to Dykebar Hospital, amongst other places. The train shed in Dykebar hospital is still there, as are the remains of the line going into the hospital. It is possible to follow the route of the former railway from the River Cart
River Cart
The River Cart is a tributary of the River Clyde, Scotland, which it joins from the west roughly midway between the towns of Erskine and Renfrew....
crossing to Grahamston Road on the current online Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey , an executive agency and non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom, is the national mapping agency for Great Britain, producing maps of Great Britain , and one of the world's largest producers of maps.The name reflects its creation together with...
map by entering grid reference NS502626 and from there to Blackbyres at NS502610 where it is labelled a 'dismantled railway'. The line from Blackbyres to Paisley East goods closed on 31 December 1960.
Central section
Barrhead (New) railway station
Barrhead was one of four railway stations in Barrhead, Renfrewshire, Scotland.- History :The station was originally part of the Paisley and Barrhead District Railway...
, Barrhead South station
Barrhead South railway station
Barrhead South was one of four railway stations in Barrhead, Renfrewshire, Scotland.- History :The station was originally part of the Paisley and Barrhead District Railway...
and Lyoncross Junction
Lyoncross railway station
Lyoncross railway station was intended to be a railway station between the towns of Newton Mearns and Barrhead, Scotland as part of the Lanarkshire and Ayrshire Railway.- History :The station was never finished or opened to passengers...
.
Connections to other lines
- Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock RailwayGlasgow, Paisley and Greenock RailwayThe Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway was an early railway, which merged with the Caledonian Railway. It was created to provide train services between Greenock and Glasgow.-History:...
at Paisley St JamesPaisley St James railway stationPaisley St James railway station is on the Inverclyde Line, serving a residential district of Paisley, Scotland, just west of the town centre... - Lanarkshire and Ayrshire RailwayLanarkshire and Ayrshire RailwayThe Lanarkshire and Ayrshire Railway was a railway company in Scotland built in the late 19th century that provided services between Ardrossan and Glasgow, with branches to Irvine and Kilbirnie. The line was operated by the Caledonian Railway with an aim to compete with the Glasgow and South...
at Lyoncross JunctionLyoncross railway stationLyoncross railway station was intended to be a railway station between the towns of Newton Mearns and Barrhead, Scotland as part of the Lanarkshire and Ayrshire Railway.- History :The station was never finished or opened to passengers... - Glasgow and Paisley Joint RailwayGlasgow and Paisley Joint RailwayThe Glasgow and Paisley Joint Railway company was formed in 1837 to provide a railway link between Glasgow and Paisley, Scotland. It was promoted jointly by the Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway and the Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway....
at Arkleston JunctionArkleston JunctionArkleston Junction is a railway junction east of the town of Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland. The junction is one mile from Paisley Gilmour Street railway station and is heavily used by both passenger and freight traffic.-Post 1967-electrification:...
- planned but never completed.
Current operations
Parts of the line are now a cycle track, built along the route of the trackbed from Glenburn to Barrhead. Glenfield station was at the bottom of the hill, a short distance up Glenburn Road from where the cycle track ends.
Media
On Saturday 6 September 2008, the centre pages of the local newspaper, the Paisley Daily Express were dedicated to the history of the railway showing numerous historical photographs. The article can be read online.Sources
- Canadian National Magazine By Canadian National Railways V. 40, no. 12 (Jan. 1955)
- Gammell, C. J. (1999). Scottish branch lines. ISBN 086093540X.
- Rowand, David (1993). Pictorial History of Paisley. Alloway Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-9075-2655-1.
- Rowand, David (2000). Paisley. Paslet Publications. ISBN 0-9539-5991-0 .
- Seller, W. S. and Stevenson, J. L. (1980). The Last Trains, Volume 2: Glasgow & Central Scotland. Edinburgh: Moorfoot Publishing. ISBN 0-906606-01-2.
- Smith, W.A.C. and Anderson, P. (1993). An illustrated history of Glasgow's railways. Irwell Press.
- The Railway Magazine, Nov 1951 issue
- Wham, Alisdair (2000). Lost Railway Lines South of Glasgow. Wigtown: GC Book Publishers Ltd. ISBN 1-8723-5008-9.