Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway

Introduction

This line is open. The line was originally associated with shipyards which re-located, in 1871, from Govan (on the south bank of the Clyde) to Clydebank (formerly Barns of the Clyde on the north bank of the Clyde). The workers remained living in Govan and to get to work at the new shipyards used a ferry, the Stobcross Railway and the Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway. Initially single track.

The line was upgraded as the competing Lanarkshire and Dumbartonshire Railway of the Caledonian Railway was being completed. It was doubled, junctions altered at Whiteinch and a triangular junction created at Jordanhill and extended west to Dalmuir to become a through route. Sidings were added a stations and works. The extension was a challenging line to build as it pass under both the Forth and Clyde Canal and the Glasgow, Dumbarton and Helensburgh Railway.

Service

From 1882 a self contained passenger service operated from Partick to Clydebank [1st]. Passengers from Govan took the ferry over the Clyde and the train to reach the Clyde Bank Iron Shipyard [2nd]. This yard had relocated from Govan taking the name 'Clydebank' with it to what had been 'Barns 'O Clyde'.





Dates

  /  /1878Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway
Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway authorised.
01/12/1882Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway
Opened from Yoker Junction, Hyndland, to Clydebank [1st] (later Clydebank East). This line was used in conjunction with a ferry over the Clyde and the Stobcross Railway station at Partick for shipyard workers who lived in Govan to travel to the Clyde Bank Iron Shipyard [2nd] which had re-located from Govan. A line ran west from Clydebank [1st] into the shipyard over the Forth and Cart Canal. With the opening of the railway the Forth and Cart lost most of its business.
01/08/1887Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway
Jordanhill station opened.
  /  /1893Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway
Extension to Dalmuir authorised, along with deviation of a portion of the Forth and Clyde Canal.
  /  /1897Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway North British Railway
Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway absorbed by North British Railway.
01/01/1897Whiteinch Railway
Opened to passengers. A new connection was made to the line from the west of Crow Road. This replaced an earlier line which crossed under Crow road and joined at Whiteinch Junction which was further east (to the south of Gartnavel Royal Hospital). The route of this earlier line is now built over, but was slightly further south than the existing line. The North British Railway also built a spur from a west facing junction on the Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway to a north facing junction on the Stobcross Railway.
08/05/1897Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway Clydebank to Dalmuir (North British Railway)
Extended from Clydebank Junction to Dalmuir. The original terminus, Clydebank [1st], is left on a short branch with a east facing junction, Clydebank Junction, and is re-named Clydebank East. Dalmuir [1st] is replaced by Dalmuir.
25/04/1907Lanarkshire and Dumbartonshire RailwayGlasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway
Rothesay Dock Branch (North British Railway and Caledonian Railway) opened. The line was joint North British Railway and Caledonian Railway.
14/09/1959Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway
Clydebank East to Yoker (Clydebank Junction) closed to all traffic.

Locations along the line

These locations are along the line.

This is the junction between the lines to Anniesland and Jordanhill west of Hyndland. The former is the older line, the 1874 Stobcross Railway and the latter is the Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway of 1882. Both lines are double track.
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Stobcross Railway
A Larkhall service between Anniesland and Hyndland stations rounds the curve to Hyndland East Junction on 17 November 2018. ...
David Panton 17/11/2018
Approaching Hyndland East Junction. ...
Ewan Crawford //2001
Gresley V1 2-6-2T 67603 takes a train for Drumry through Whiteinch East Junction (now Hyndland East) on 17 April 1957 [ref query 1039]. ...
G H Robin collection by courtesy of the Mitchell Library, Glasgow 17/04/1957
Safety 365. Impressive artwork at Jordanhill in the 'v' of Hyndland East Junction. ...
John Yellowlees 08/04/2016
4 of 5 images. more


This is a two platform station.
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320306 departs from Jordanhill on 12 August 2021 with a Dalmuir to Cumbernauld via Motherwell service. ...
John McIntyre 12/08/2021
A Dalmuir service at Jordanhill on 7 July 2018. Busy Hyndland East Junction is in the background; some trains apparently heading this way will swing ...
David Panton 07/07/2018
320417 arrives at Jordanhill with a train for (all together now, and spoken a la Karen) Scotstounhill, Garscadden, Yoker, Clydebank, and Dalmuir. ...
David Panton 23/06/2021
An Edinburgh service passes through Jordanhill on 7 July 2018, not quite brought to a stop by the Hyndland East signal.
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David Panton 07/07/2018
4 of 15 images. more


This junction opened in 1897, the southern end of a curve from Whiteinch North Junction. It was opened as part of the improvements to the Clydebank line which was doubled throughout and extended to Dalmuir to create a new through route. The curve, in particular, gave the North British Railway direct access to several north bank of the Clyde sites from the [[Edinburgh and Glasgow ...

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Clydebank to Dalmuir (North British Railway)
V3 67619 with a stopping train destined for Helensburgh runs through Whiteinch West Junction (now Hyndland West Junction) on 23 May 1957. [Ref query ...
G H Robin collection by courtesy of the Mitchell Library, Glasgow 23/05/1957
1 of 1 images.


This was a two platform station just east of Scotstounhill station for the nearby Glasgow Agricultural Society Show Ground.
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This is a two platform station with the main building on the eastbound platform.
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318263 on a Whifflet to Dalmuir service departs from Scotstounhill on 12 August 2021 as 320315 heads the other way with a Dalmuir to Whifflet service. ...
John McIntyre 12/08/2021
A Whifflet service calls at Scotstounhill on 23 June 2021. The retreating stopper is for Dalmuir as, during the day anyway, they invariably are. ...
David Panton 23/06/2021
The platforms of the Glasgow suburban network must have seemed like a building site in the 1970s as original buildings were demolished to make way for ...
David Panton 23/06/2021
A through service crawls into Scotstounhill, a signal (nearly) stops fooling people into thinking that this is Dumbarton Central service indicated. ...
David Panton 05/08/2017
4 of 14 images. more


This is a relatively modern island platform station dating from 1960, the electrification of the line. The approach to the Yoker Depot starts from this station.
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A Juniper amid the junipers. Class 334 on its way through Garscadden ECS on 23 June 2021. ...
David Panton 23/06/2021
A Class 303 blue train at Garscadden in the autumn of 1965. Unfortunately no explanation was recorded as to the apparent absence of a driver at the ...
Brian Haslehust //1965
334s at Garscadden will either be passing through with a service to or from Edinburgh, or will be stopping Springburn to Dumbarton Central workings. ...
David Panton 24/08/2019
There is only one way in and one way out at Garscadden and this is it. A view east from the top of the steps to the island platform in August 2021. ...
John McIntyre 12/08/2021
4 of 14 images. more


This junction was to the west of Scotstounhill, it led to the Rothesay Dock Branch (North British Railway and Caledonian Railway) which ran west to the Rothesay Dock on the north bank of the River Clyde. There was a large yard next to the main line by the junction. The signal box was on the south side of the main line and north side of the yard.
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Rothesay Dock Branch (North British Railway and Caledonian Railway)
Clydebank Dock signalbox which controlled Yoker Yard (later depot) and the Rothesay Dock Branch. Abolished with the Yoker resignaling scheme. ...
Ewan Crawford //1987
V1 2-6-2T 67622 passing Clydebank Dock Junction with and up Helensburgh Express on Saturday 3rd May 1958. ...
G H Robin collection by courtesy of the Mitchell Library, Glasgow 03/05/1958
2 of 2 images.


This is a train servicing depot west of Garscadden station on the south side of the line. It replaced depots at Hyndland [1st] (Hyndland Depot where EMU maintenance was carried out) and Bridgeton Central (Bridgeton Depot which was a stabling and train cleaning site). It is built on the site of Yoker Yard and accessed, to the east, by the former [[Clydebank Dock East ...

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Rothesay Dock Branch (North British Railway and Caledonian Railway)
Freightliner 66613 at the Yoker Depot entrance with engineering wagons during a possession on New Year's Day 2022. ...
Veronica Clibbery 01/01/2022
Yoker Depot from the air in 2000. Beyond is Yarrow's Shipyard. A lone Class 320 stands in the western sidings. ...
Ewan Crawford //2000
A New Year's Day engineering possession at the entrance to Yoker TMD.
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Veronica Clibbery 01/01/2022
The trainwasher at Yoker Depot. To the right is the announcement of the new Yoker Signalling Centre and Yoker Depot - now a remarkable 30 years old. ...
Beth Crawford 22/05/2017
4 of 27 images. more


A Bridgeton - Clydebank train about to pass the Yoker Castle sewage facility on 4 September 1958 behind Parkhead V1 2-6-2T no 67616. ...
G H Robin collection by courtesy of the Mitchell Library, Glasgow 04/09/1958
V3 2-6-2T 67646 is about to pass the 'Yoker Castle' valve house shortly after leaving Yoker station in September 1958 with a Helensburgh - ...
G H Robin collection by courtesy of the Mitchell Library, Glasgow 04/09/1958
2 of 2 images.


This is a two platform station. The booking office was at street level on the bridge over the line to the east of the station, on Mill Road. Each platform had a waiting room. No buildings survive.
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A Helensburgh to Edinburgh service passes Yoker on 12 August 2021. Unusual for these services, 334020 was solo on this run and not paired with another ...
John McIntyre 12/08/2021
New cycle hoops at Yoker. ...
First ScotRail //2006
A Dumbarton Central to Cumbernauld service pulls into Yoker on 7 July 2018. Why 'via Yoker' has long been established as the term for this route is ...
David Panton 07/07/2018
Westbound at Yoker. ...
Ewan Crawford //1987
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In 1877 Napier, Shanks & Bell opened the Yoker Old Shipyard. In 1898 the company was reformed as Napier & Miller Ltd. Amongst other vessels, the works built PS Neptune and PS Mercury in 1892 for the Glasgow and South Western Railway. It closed in 1906 to make way for the Rothesay Dock, with the company relocating to a new works Old Kilpatrick Shipyard.
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This junction was east of Clydebank East, the terminus of the Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway. This line was extended west to Dalmuir in 1897 leaving the terminus on a short branch. Both lines were double track. The newer line remains open while the original terminus is closed. The newer line gently curved away to the north of the terminal lines, the kink can still be discerned ...

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See also
Clydebank to Dalmuir (North British Railway)


This was a small brick built single road shed at the east end of Clydebank East station, originally a terminus. Approach was from the east over the shed's turntable. The shed was on the south side of the line.
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This was a two platform terminus. This was the original terminus of the line from Yoker Junction (now Hyndland East Junction) before it was extended west via Clydebank Central to Dalmuir. The station was left as the terminus of a short branch.
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A train from Springburn arriving at Clydebank East on 18 April 1957 behind a V1 2-6-2T. ...
G H Robin collection by courtesy of the Mitchell Library, Glasgow 18/04/1957
N2 0-6-2T 69565 pulls away from Clydebank East on 18 April 1957 with a train for Springburn. Clydebank East station closed in September 1959. ...
G H Robin collection by courtesy of the Mitchell Library, Glasgow 18/04/1957
Looking west along the platform at Clydebank East terminus in September 1958 towards the station building on Whitecrook Street. The station closed in ...
G H Robin collection by courtesy of the Mitchell Library, Glasgow 04/09/1958
A westbound train heading for Clydebank Central passes the site of Clydebank East, the original terminus of the line from Jordanhill. From the old ...
Ewan Crawford //
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This was the shipyard which built the Queens (RMS Queen Mary, RMS Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elizabeth 2) and many other famous ships such as the HMS Hood, RMS Lusitania and RMS Aquitania. It is the yard which lent its name to Clydebank itself and, along with the Singer Works to the north, defined Clydebank. For many, the works was John Brown Engineering.
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John Brown & Co Ltd
A large crowd at John Brown's shipyard in Clydebank for the launch of the QE2 in September 1967. ...
Robin McGregor 20/09/1967
John Brown's yard at Clydebank, seen in dramatic evening light from a downriver cruise. The QE2 is under construction on the slipway. Judging by the ...
Brian Haslehust //1966
The crowd begins to disperse after enjoying the magnificent sight of the launch of Cunard's QE2 from John Brown's shipyard in Clydebank. ...
Robin McGregor 20/09/1967
The Cunard liner QE2 takes to the water for the first time, on her launch from the slipway of John Brown's in Clydebank, after being named by Her ...
Robin McGregor 20/09/1967
4 of 6 images. more