A History of Britain’s Railways
Paisley Canal Line
This page
Introduction
Local area
Chronology
Locations
Elderslie East Junction
? Goods
Corsebar Junction
Paisley West
Paisley Canal Street (Old)
Paisley Canal Street (New)
Old Canal Aqueduct
Hawkhead
Hawkhead Oil Depot
Crookston
Mosspark
Corkerhill
Corkerhill Depot
Bellahouston Park
Drumbreck
Bellahouston
Shields Road
This site
Glasgow
and South Western Railway
Glasgow,
Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway
Greenock
and Ayrshire Railway
Glasgow
and Paisley Joint Railway
City of Glasgow
Union Railway
Barrhead Branch (GSW)
Other sites
ScotRail
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Paisley Canal Line This line is (mostly) open - the section between Elderslie and Paisley is closed and has become a cycleway. The line follows the course of the former Glasgow and Ardrossan Canal which only reached as far as Johnstone due to lack of funds. The route was later continued from Johnstone to Ardrossan as a railway. The line became part of the Glasgow and South Western Railway. The fact the line was once a canal is clear from the many curves this line follows. |
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This line runs through a populated area between Glasgow and Paisley.
From Elderslie to Glasgow.
At this junction the Canal line branched from the route of the Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway. The Canal line is now a cycle route.
This large goods yard was not far east of Elderslie and met the line at a west facing junction.
There was a triangular junction to the west of Paisley West for a line to Barrhead. The course of the line to Barrhead is now obliterated.
There was a triangular junction to the west of Paisley West for a line to Barrhead. The course of the line to Barrhead is now obliterated.
The site of this former station is now obliterated although the trackbed is now in use as a cycleway.
The Graham Langmuir photograph shows the former Paisley Canal station on the day of the last train to Kilmacolm. The line was still open for freight and passengers as a double track trailway from Elderslie to Shields Road. The line is now mostly single track and only runs from Shields road as far west as the new Paisley Canal Street which is on the other side of the road overbridge from which this picture was taken.
In the days when the line was a canal there was a terrible accident where many people were drowned in the canal basin which was later occupied by a coal and goods yard and now a housing estate.
There is a new Paisley Canal station to the east of the previous station. The station consists of a single terminus platform. The site is pretty close to the former Saucel Goods Depot.
An old canal aqueduct, which betrays the fact the line was once the course of a canal, is crossed by the railway at a curious angle as the railway does not follow exactly the same route as the canal.
This view shows the site of the new Hawkhead station before it was built. The former station was on the other side of the road overbridge from which the photograph was taken.
This is an oil depot for Glasgow Airport.
The station building here was burnt at the time of the photograph and the line was closed to passengers. Since then the building has been re-built and the line re-opened.
Since this photograph was taken a new station has been built at this site.
The station here has been re-opened.
This is the site of the former Corkerhill steam shed and Motive Power Depot. The Glasgow and South Western Railway re-sited its main Glasgow locomotive sheds here from St Enoch station and built a village for the employees on a green field site.
Since the picture was taken the new M77 runs down the side of the shed, to the right of the picture.
This was a temporary station built for the Empire Exhibition in Bellahouston Park.
This is a new station.
This station was to the west of the Shields Road traction depot. There were a large number of carriage sidings here. The canal line is now approached from the east by a new spur which runs from the Glasgow and Paisley Gilmour Street main line.
Here the Canal line is closed. Between Bellahouston and Shields Road the route of the former line is now occupied by a mixture of dis-used land and the Shields Road traction depot. Formerly there was an east facing junction near here here; lines from west, the Paisley Gilmour Street line and the Paisley Canal line merged and ran to the east to Glasgow St Enoch station. The line from Paisley Gilmour Street to St Enoch remains in place.
