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Edinburgh, Loanhead And Roslin Railway
All photographs of this railway in date order.
![Looking south towards the former station from the south portal of the tunnel at Glencorse.<br><br>[Ewan Crawford //]](/images/0/391.jpg "Glencorse")
![Looking north at the closed Loanhead station.<br><br>[Ewan Crawford //]](/images/0/392.jpg "Loanhead")
![Looking south away from Roslin station.<br><br>[Ewan Crawford //]](/images/0/393.jpg "Roslin")
![The former stockyard at Bilston Glen colliery.<br><br>[Ewan Crawford //]](/images/2000/2041.jpg "Bilston Glen")
![The impressive viaduct in Bilston Glen.<br><br>[Ewan Crawford //]](/images/7000/7193.jpg "Bilston Glen Viaduct")
![62471 'Glen Falloch' entering Glencorse with the Stephenson Locomotive Society tour of 28 April 1951. The tour ran from South Queensferry and visited Kirkliston, the Edinburgh suburban line and Glencorse before finishing at Edinburgh Waverley. <br><br>[G H Robin collection by courtesy of the Mitchell Library, Glasgow 28/04/1951]](/images/38000/38942.jpg "Glencorse")
![Ex-GNSR 4-4-0 no 49 <I>Gordon Highlander</I> stands alongside the Ramsay Colliery, Loanhead, with the BLS railtour of 16 October 1965. The 3-coach railtour, hauled by no 49 throughout, ran from Glasgow Central and included a trip along the Roslin branch, incorporating this stop. The train returned to Glasgow via Bathgate to terminate at St Enoch. [Ref Query 3138]<br><br>[Robin Barbour Collection (Courtesy Bruce McCartney) 16/10/1965]](/images/24000/24338.jpg "Loanhead")
![No 49 running round the Branch Line Society rail tour at Roslin on 16 October 1965, with the Pentland Hills forming the backdrop. [Ref Query 10256] [See image 24338] <br><br>[Robin Barbour Collection (Courtesy Bruce McCartney) 16/10/1965]](/images/25000/25530.jpg "Roslin")
![Scene at Bilston Glen colliery in January 1971 with an unidentified diesel shunter supervising the loading of MGR coal hoppers. The coal would almost certainly be destined for Cockenzie power station.<br><br>[John Furnevel 22/01/1971]](/images/4000/4366.jpg "Bilston Glen Colliery")
![Clayton 8528 with a short rake of wagons at Loanhead station in January 1971. The lifted sidings once served the Ramsay Colliery, which stood off to the left and was officially closed in 1965 [see image 24338]. The line continued to handle traffic from Bilston Glen Colliery until 1991.<br><br>[John Furnevel 29/01/1971]](/images/5000/5708.jpg "Loanhead")
![5309 photographed shortly after passing through Loanhead in September 1971 with coal from Bilston Glen Colliery bound for Cockenzie power station.<br><br>[John Furnevel 14/09/1971]](/images/4000/4415.jpg "Loanhead")
![The west side of Bilston Glen colliery in September 1971, with coal for Cockenzie power station being loaded in the background. The duty shunting locomotive is Barclay Class 06 0-4-0 DM D2416 of Leith Central depot. [See image 5709]<br><br>[John Furnevel 22/09/1971]](/images/3000/3299.jpg "Bilston Glen Colliery")
![D2416 of 64H, Leith Central, positioning a coal train destined for Cockenzie power station in the loading area at Bilston Glen Colliery, Loanhead, in September 1971.<br><br>[John Furnevel 22/09/1971]](/images/5000/5709.jpg "Bilston Glen Colliery")
![The panel in Loanhead signal box in March 1973, at which time the line still served Bilston Glen Colliery.<br><br>[John Furnevel 16/03/1973]](/images/2000/2639.jpg "Loanhead")
![Andrew Barclay 1996 of 1934 dumped in the headshunt at Bilston Glen Colliery, Loanhead, in 1977. The pug was subsequently moved to Pittencrieff Park, Dunfermline as a static display [see image 9387].<br><br>[Bill Roberton //1977]](/images/36000/36789.jpg "Bilston Glen Colliery")
![View north from the headshunt of Bilston Glen Colliery, Loanhead, in November 1986.<br><br>[Bill Roberton 21/11/1986]](/images/45000/45928.jpg "Bilston Glen Colliery")
![The old goods shed at Loanhead in November 1986, plus a surviving section of track and buffer stop from the former goods yard. In the right background is the remains of Ramsay Colliery, closed in 1965. View is south west with the closed station obscured by the goods shed.<br><br>[Bill Roberton 21/11/1986]](/images/45000/45942.jpg "Loanhead")
![A little to the north of Loanhead Station in November 1986, with a curious adaptation to the track (presumably for stabilisation purposes on the curve). [Ref Query 2839] <br><br>[Bill Roberton 21/11/1986]](/images/46000/46062.jpg "Loanhead")
![Locomotive 37080, in the hands of driver Alistair Robertson, nears Loanhead on 28 March 1991. The train of empty hoppers, believed to be the last, has been sent to clear remaining stocks of coal from Bilston Glen Colliery, which had been officially closed in 1989. [See image 37871] for the view twenty years later. <br><br>[Bill Roberton 28/03/1991]](/images/36000/36126.jpg "Loanhead")
![The old goods shed at Loanhead from the south east in July 2002, at which time the shed and the yard in which it stood were being used as a local council depot. The Roslin branch ran past on the far side of the building, with the station located off to the left. [See image 5708] [Ref query 532]<br><br>[John Furnevel /07/2002]](/images/57000/57859.jpg "Loanhead")
![Part of the former Loanhead station buildings in July 2002, now a private residence. The booking office sold its last passenger ticket in May 1933.<br><br>[John Furnevel 05/07/2002]](/images/3000/3780.jpg "Loanhead")
![Immediately after leaving Glencorse station the line entered a tunnel under the A701 road before emerging onto the approach to the now demolished Glencorse Viaduct. The north portal of the old tunnel is seen here in September 2002 looking south towards Penicuik, with the local primary school playground beyond the wire fence and the A701 running beyond the bridge parapet on the right. [See image 33007]<br><br>[John Furnevel 22/09/2002]](/images/30000/30622.jpg "Glencorse")
![A notable early example of steel box lattice girder construction, is the 1892 Bilston Glen viaduct on the former Glencorse branch. The viaduct, with its impressive 135m span, is seen here looking north towards Loanhead in 2003. The structure was restored during the 1990s. <br><br>[John Furnevel 25/10/2003]](/images/45000/45880.jpg "Bilston Glen Viaduct")
![Remains of Loanhead station in April 2004, following opening of the walkway along part of the trackbed behind the camera.<br><br>[John Furnevel 08/04/2004]](/images/2000/2331.jpg "Loanhead")
![The former goods yard and shed at Loanhead, viewed looking north in December 2004. The old station is behind the camera to the left.<br><br>[John Furnevel 08/12/2004]](/images/2000/2647.jpg "Loanhead")
![View to compare with the more recent shot [see image 32922]. There was a short siding (new in 1878) to the left of the line seen here and former cabin which stood to the left. This may have been for 'cripples'. Off to the right of the Straiton Branch exchange sidings was a rail served tip, accessed from the branch. At the time of the photograph the track a short distance behind the camera and up to the City Bypass overbridge was lifted.<br><br>[Ewan Crawford 23/12/2004]](/images/32000/32989.jpg "Straiton Sidings")
![This short tunnel carried the railway under the A701 at Milton Bridge before emerging at Glencorse station. Behind the camera was the Glencorse Viaduct demolished on the first of May 1987. [See image 30622]<br><br>[Ewan Crawford 24/12/2004]](/images/33000/33007.jpg "Glencorse")
![Looking east along the remains of the former Roslin branch at the south west corner of Millerhill yard in January 2007. The route was latterly used by trains serving Bilston Glen Colliery. The last train over the branch ran in 1991 [see image 36126]. <br><br>[John Furnevel 19/01/2007]](/images/13000/13299.jpg "Kaim Points")
![Looking west over the former Roslin branch as it leaves Millerhill in January 2007. Bridge no 2 in the middle distance marks the current limit of Railtrack property. [See image 50526]<br><br>[John Furnevel 19/01/2007]](/images/13000/13344.jpg "Kaim Points")
![The old goods yard at Loanhead in February 2007 looking southwest, with the station house visible beyond the goods shed. The buildings in the right background were part of the long closed Ramsay Colliery. Photographed through a gap in the fence of what is now a council depot.<br><br>[John Furnevel 12/02/2007]](/images/13000/13631.jpg "Loanhead")
![Remains of Loanhead station on 12 February looking northeast towards Millerhill. The old goods shed stands in the background.<br><br>[John Furnevel 12/02/2007]](/images/13000/13632.jpg "Loanhead")
![Like some kind of lost civilisation: Loanhead.<br><br>[Ewan Crawford 09/06/2007]](/images/15000/15391.jpg "Loanhead")
![Part of the remains of the once extensive yards of Bilston Glen Colliery, closed in 1988. At its peak the pit employed 2,300 men and topped Scottish coal production figures, with the majority of the annual tonnage supplied by rail to Cockenzie power station. The Roslin branch entered centre picture (near the new housing) and continued via the gap in the trees on the right onto Bilston Glen viaduct and on towards Roslin. No trace of the colliery itself remains today with the site now occupied by industrial and commercial premises including the Lothian and Borders Police Communications Centre.<br><br>[John Furnevel 03/10/2007]](/images/16000/16808.jpg "Bilston Glen Colliery")
![Looking south towards Roslin across the 1892 Bilston Glen viaduct in October 2007. The viaduct is one of the earliest examples of steel box lattice girder construction, with a 135m span. The category A listed structure underwent major restoration during the 1990s and is now part of a walkway. [See image 33123]<br><br>[John Furnevel 04/10/2007]](/images/16000/16772.jpg "Bilston Glen Viaduct")
![A surviving section of platform at the former Glencorse station (closed 1933) seen here looking east on 14 February 2011. On the far side of the platform were the station buildings and main entrance, with the goods yard to the right. Nowadays, just beyond the wooden posts, stand tall metal supports for a high mesh fence that surrounds what is now a secure MoD vehicle park. Some of the buildings of Glencorse Barracks can be seen in the background on the east side of the A701 road. The area behind the camera is now a large housing development. [See image 32804]<br>
<br><br>[John Furnevel 14/02/2011]](/images/32000/32792.jpg "Glencorse")
![The surviving crane pivot on the site of the old goods yard at Glencorse, an area now criss-crossed by pathways linking the local housing development with shops, schools etc in the neighbouring town of Penicuik. The street 'theme' here soon becomes apparent after passing Hawkins Terrace, Stevenson Road, Shaws Court, Red Fox Crescent, Trelawney etc..etc... alas no Admiral Benbow at which to partake of a tankard of warm grog and a bowl of crunchy nut cornflakes at the end of a brisk walk on this cold and frosty February morning, and... what's this? ... I seem to have developed a strange Black Spot on my..... <I>AARRRRGGGGHH, JIM LAD!!!</I><br>
<br><br>[John Furnevel 17/02/2011]](/images/32000/32804.jpg "Glencorse")
![View north along the trackbed of the Edinburgh, Loanhead and Roslin Railway in February 2011 between Loanhead and Gilmerton. The substantial modern bridge spanning the abandoned route carries Edinburgh's A720 City Bypass and was brought into use with the new road in late 1988. Final closure of the railway route, latterly serving Bilston Glen Colliery, occurred 6 months later, following closure of the colliery itself. [See image 32922]<br>
<br><br>[John Furnevel 21/02/2011]](/images/32000/32891.jpg "Straiton Sidings")
![View south along the Glencorse branch on 21 February with the bridge carrying the Edinburgh City Bypass behind the camera [see image 32891]. On the left the 'main line' continued south past what is now Edgefield industrial estate towards Loanhead station and the site of the former Ramsay and later Bilston Glen Collieries. A mineral line on the right ran past Straiton Sidings (now a nature reserve) and on to provide links to the once thriving shale and limestone operations in the area, including oil works at Pentland and Straiton (the latter now a large retail park) and lime works at Burdiehouse.<br>
<br><br>[John Furnevel 21/02/2011]](/images/32000/32922.jpg "Straiton Sidings")
![The trackbed of the mineral line running south from Straiton Sidings on the Glencorse branch [see image 32922] now ends at the site of the level crossing over the B702 that once gave access to Straiton Oil Works. The oil works site is today occupied by a large retail park - which includes the inevitable McDonalds. View south on 21 February 2011.<br>
<br><br>[John Furnevel 21/02/2011]](/images/32000/32985.jpg "Straiton Sidings")
![View north over the site of the level crossing linking the mineral line that ran down from Straiton sidings (now a nature reserve) to access Straiton Oil Works (now a retail park) on 21 February 2011. (McDonalds stands immediately behind the camera.) [see image 32985]. <br><br>[John Furnevel 21/02/2011]](/images/33000/33023.jpg "Straiton Sidings")
![Looking towards Roslin from the trackbed of the EL&RR on 28 February along the section running under the centre of Loanhead. This stretch of the line from Millerhill remained open until 1989 to serve Bilston Glen Colliery, located approximately half a mile further on. <br><br>[John Furnevel 28/02/2011]](/images/33000/33045.jpg "Loanhead")
![The buildings around Loanhead station, now a private residence, seen from the entrance on Station Road on 28 February 2011. The date above the door to the station house is 1874. The buildings on the other side of the trackbed which can be seen above the roof of the old booking office were part of the former Ramsay Colliery [see image 24338].<br><br>[John Furnevel 28/02/2011]](/images/33000/33138.jpg "Loanhead")
![View south west along the route of the EL&RR on 28 February showing the trackbed passing below the crossroads in the centre of Loanhead on its way towards Roslin. Loanhead station is 100m behind the camera. Top left on Station Road stands 'Man boy and Horse', a work by local sculptor Alan Herriot featuring a coal miner, a boy and a pit pony. The closure of Bilston Glen Colliery in 1989 brought to an end a long history of mining in the area.<br>
<br><br>[John Furnevel 28/02/2011]](/images/33000/33156.jpg "Loanhead")
![The slightly mis-shapen 137 year old road bridge still spanning the trackbed just north of the site of Roslin station on 28 February 2011. [See image 37223] <br><br>[John Furnevel 28/02/2011]](/images/33000/33195.jpg "Roslin")
![Looking south west towards the site of Roslin station (now a housing development) along the overgrown EL&RR trackbed on 28 February 2011. The rail route and public walkway from Loanhead have parted company by this time with the latter now crossing the heavily overgrown formation via the skew-arch overbridge and continuing towards the centre of the village just over quarter of a mile away to the left.<br>
<br><br>[John Furnevel 28/02/2011]](/images/33000/33231.jpg "Roslin")
![The converted goods yard at Loanhead on 28 February 2001 now in use as a council depot/store. Note the surviving buffer stops below the trees on the right. View north with the old station behind the camera. <br><br>[John Furnevel 28/02/2011]](/images/33000/33243.jpg "Loanhead")
![The overgrown trackbed shortly after leaving Roslin station looking towards Loanhead in February 2011, approximately 45 years after this section of the line was closed. The old overbridge seen here is still in use [see image 33195].<br><br>[John Furnevel 28/02/2011]](/images/37000/37223.jpg "Roslin")
![About to head north across Bilston Glen Viaduct on the trackbed between Loanhead and Roslin on 1 March 2011. [See image 16772]<br><br>[John Furnevel 01/03/2011]](/images/33000/33123.jpg "Bilston Glen Viaduct")
![Scene on the Edinburgh, Loanhead and Roslin route approximately 2 miles south west of Millerhill Yard on 2 March 2011. The trackbed here is now clear with recently lifted rails lying alongside. Behind the camera two teams are currently engaged in the recovery of concrete sleepers. View is east from a farm overbridge looking towards the site of the former Gilmerton station. [See image 36048]<br><br>[John Furnevel 02/03/2011]](/images/32000/32996.jpg "Gilmerton")
![The former Glencorse branch on 16 October 2011. The left picture shows the view west from the A6106 towards Gilmerton along the last stub of track, with the remains of the branch having been lifted earlier this year [see image 32996]. The picture on the right shows the view in the opposite direction towards the south end of Millerhill Yard. This area was latterly refurbished and resignalled in connection with rounding manoeuvres for a short-lived car service to/from Bathgate. The plan is for the Borders Railway to cross the former branch in this area. No need for a bridge then...<br>
<br><br>[Bill Roberton 16/10/2011]](/images/36000/36048.jpg "Kaim Points")
![Looking north east along the trackbed back towards the site of Roslin station (now a housing development) beyond the bridge carrying the B7006 road through the village. The bridge has been <I>'modified'</I> since closure of the line, presumably for strengthening purposes. <br><br>[John Furnevel 13/02/2012]](/images/37000/37610.jpg "Roslin")
![<I>'The human cannonball'</I> must have experienced a similar view just before some joker shouted <I>'FIRE!'</I> Looking south west along the the trackbed of the EL&R under the 'modified' bridge carrying the B7006 at Roslin on 13 February 2012. The route is heading towards the last passenger station on the branch at Glencorse [see image 32792] and the freight only extension to Penicuik. The Pentland Hills stand on the horizon. <br><br>[John Furnevel 13/02/2012]](/images/37000/37619.jpg "Roslin")
![View north from Edgefield Road bridge, Loanhead, on 5 March 2012 showing the trackbed of the Roslin branch looking back towards Millerhill. After many years as an impassible rubbish strewn undergrowth the route has been cleaned up and turned into a walkway/cycle path. [See image 36126] for the view twenty years earlier showing the last train over the line.<br><br>[John Furnevel 05/03/2012]](/images/37000/37871.jpg "Loanhead")
![Looking south along the trackbed of the former Roslin Branch through Edgefield Road bridge on 5 March 2012 on the approach to Loanhead. [See image 37871]<br><br>[John Furnevel 05/03/2012]](/images/37000/37895.jpg "Loanhead")
![Looking across the 135m span of Bilston Glen Viaduct in July 2013.<br><br>[John Yellowlees 08/07/2013]](/images/43000/43827.jpg "Bilston Glen Viaduct")
![View east over the stub of the former Roslin branch looking towards the south end of Millerhill yard on 1 March 2015. The line closed following the last train from Bilston Glen Colliery in 1991 and the trackbed has now been severed by the new Borders Railway which runs north-south directly behind the camera. The recent addition in the foreground looks like an old chest freezer (?)... or possibly redundant point heating apparatus?<br><br>[Ewan Crawford 01/03/2015]](/images/50000/50522.jpg "Kaim Points")
![Looking west along the route of the former Roslin branch at the point where the trackbed has now been breached by the Borders Railway between Shawfair station and the Edinburgh City Bypass. The south end of Millerhill Yard is behind the camera [see image 50522]. The modern building in the left background is a private hospital, part of the new Shawfair development. <br><br>[John Furnevel 01/03/2015]](/images/50000/50526.jpg "Kaim Points")
![Surviving abutment of a former railway bridge that once spanned an access road just south of Glencorse, photographed in March 2016. The freight only single line ran from Glencorse goods yard to reach coal workings and a gasworks in the the Penicuik area. View north west from the footpath alongside the A701 on 13 March 2016. [See image 32818] <br><br>[John Furnevel 13/03/2016]](/images/62000/62120.jpg "Glencorse")
![Standing below Bilston Glen Viaduct on 14 March 2016 looking north across the deep valley of the Bilston Burn towards Loanhead [see image 16772].<br><br>[John Furnevel 14/03/2016]](/images/54000/54514.jpg "Bilston Glen Viaduct")
![Northbound from Roslin along the trackbed of EL&R approaching Loanhead on 14 March 2016. The line dropped down here to pass below the town centre at the crossroads of the B702 and A768. View is north east, showing the substantial 'enhanced road bridge', with Loanhead station standing 100m beyond [see image 5708]. The last rail traffic used the route in 1991, when coal stocks were being cleared from the closed Bilston Glen Colliery.<br><br>[John Furnevel 14/03/2016]](/images/54000/54575.jpg "Loanhead")
![After passing south through Loanhead the EL&R route veered left, before crossing the valley of the Bilston Burn on Bilston Glen Viaduct, part of which can be seen in the left background. The last train crossed the viaduct (from Roslin Colliery) in the 1960s with the route south closed in 1966. The flat area to the right housed some of the extensive sidings serving Bilston Glen Colliery, which ceased production in 1988. The last train from here ran in 1991, some two years after the line had been 'officially' closed. Much of the area is now an industrial estate. [See image 3299]<br><br>[John Furnevel 14/03/2016]](/images/54000/54620.jpg "Bilston Glen Colliery")
![After leaving Loanhead station and passing below the crossroads in Loanhead town centre the EL&R climbed sharply towards Roslin. This scene on 14 March 2016, more than 25 years after the last train ran on the surviving section to Bilston Glen Colliery [see image 36126], shows the walkway that now occupies the trackbed. <br><br>[John Furnevel 14/03/2016]](/images/55000/55607.jpg "Loanhead")
![View towards Loanhead from the south end of Bilston Glen Viaduct on 14 March 2016. The twin bearings supporting the south end of the structure stand on their concrete plinth, with the girders of the 135m span fading into the haze. [See image 33123]<br><br>[John Furnevel 14/03/2016]](/images/55000/55799.jpg "Bilston Glen Viaduct")
![After leaving Roslin station the EL&R passed below the B7006, which carried the village's Main Street over the formation. Passenger services on the branch ceased in 1933 although freight operations continued for many years, including links to Roslin Colliery and brickworks located beyond the bridge. The line was cut back to Bilston Glen Colliery in 1966. Since closure the old bridge has been the subject of major 'modifications', presumably for strengthening purposes. View south west towards Glencorse on 14 March 2016, with housing now occupying the site of Roslin station behind the camera.[See image 37619]<br><br>[John Furnevel 14/03/2016]](/images/62000/62687.jpg "Roslin")
![When Bilston Glen Viaduct was restored in the 1990s the four bearings which supported the 1.500 tonne structure were replaced [see image 55799]. Two of the old bearings now stand at the north side of the bridge with information plaques attached. The words along the bottom of this one, seen here on 24 August 2017, read 'Glencorse – Roslin – Loanhead – Gilmerton – Millerhill'.<br><br>[John Furnevel 24/08/2017]](/images/60000/60627.jpg "Bilston Glen Viaduct")
![The route of the former Edinburgh, Loanhead & Roslin Railway passing below the crossroads in Loanhead at the start of the climb south towards Roslin in August 2017. The last section of the route, serving Bilston Glen Colliery, was officially closed in 1989 (although it was used intermittently until early 1991 for the removal of materials and coal stocks). The approaching cyclist is enjoying the downhill run towards the former Loanhead station, located 100m behind the camera.<br><br>[John Furnevel 24/08/2017]](/images/60000/60636.jpg "Loanhead")
![Following closure of Loanhead station in 1965 the old goods yard was taken over as a works compound by Midlothian Council. As part of recent changes within the yard the original wooden goods shed [see image 13631] has been replaced by a larger, more modern structure, seen here on 24 August 2017. The pleasant surprise is that the short length of surviving track terminating at a buffer stop within the compound has been left in situ.<br><br>[John Furnevel 24/08/2017]](/images/60000/60654.jpg "Loanhead")
![The Glencorse branch is undergoing conversion by Sustrans to a cycleway near the Lasswade road.<br><br>[John Yellowlees 30/10/2017]](/images/62000/62315.jpg "Gilmerton")
![The latest stretch of the Rosslyn Chapel Trail (Glencorse branch, to you and me) takes it through Gilmerton station. Nothing to see at platform level, but the station house is visible through the trees in this view, looking south west. The station was rather isolated when it closed in 1930, but the village had grown southwards since, with the latest housing being built across the road. If only they could have foreseen this 88 years ago ...<br><br>[David Panton 12/03/2018]](/images/63000/63269.jpg "Gilmerton")
