Lochore Branch (North British Railway)

Introduction

This mineral line ran north east from Kelty to serve several mines. It was extended east to Thornton by the North British Railway to form a loop on the north side of the Dunfermline-Thornton line.






Dates

  /  /1862Lochore Branch (North British Railway)
Kelty to Lochore and Kirkness opened.
  /  /1911Fife Coal Company
Westfield to Kinglassie Line (North British Railway)
Kinglassie Colliery in operation. To serve it, the Lochore Branch (North British Railway) was extended east by the Westfield to Kinglassie Line (North British Railway).
  /  /1960Lurgi Gas Plant
Lochore Branch (North British Railway)
Opened by the National Coal Board to utilise low rank coal from Westfield Opencast in a high pressure gasification process. The plant produced the base load of the central Scotland gas supply. The site was served by sidings from the nearby line, next to Kirkness Farm Siding.
  /  /1960National Coal Board
Lochore Branch (North British Railway)
Westfield Opencast opened. A new yard and loading point, Westfield Disposal Point [1st], were built to serve the opencast site.
  /  /1966Lochore and Redford Extension (North British Railway)
Westfield to Kinglassie Line (North British Railway)
Lochore Branch (North British Railway)
Line closed between Kirkness Farm Siding, Capeldrae, (excluded) and Lochore Colliery Mary Pit (excluded).
  /  /1970Lochore Branch (North British Railway)
Lochore Colliery Mary Pit to Kelty (excluded) closed.

Locations along the line

These locations are along the line.









Looking north from the 'Tay Forth Venturer' railtour, on 16 June 1984, towards the closed Lurgi Gas Plant. Opened in 1961, it produced gas from poor ...
Bill Roberton 16/06/1984
The BLS Lothian and Fife Wanderer from Waverley reaches the end of the line at the Lurgi gasification plant at Westfield, Fife, on 23 August ...
Bill Roberton 23/08/1980
View from Westfield towards Ballingray. A buffer stop in grass indicates a headshunt. ...
Brian Forbes 16/04/2007
Old line to Thornton curves to the right at Westfield Power Station. ...
Brian Forbes 27/04/2007
4 of 4 images.


Westfield open cast mine opened in 1955. The disposal point was served by the North British Railway line which was built from Kelty to Kirkness Colliery and extended by the London and North Eastern Railway to Redford Junction. On opening the site was served from both east and west.
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The 4 Counties Railtour, run by the Angus Railway Group, stands at the east end of the Westfield sidings on the BR line. The two bridges seen in the ...
Roger Geach Collection 20/04/1974
The east exit from Westfield opencast in 2005. The exist lines had been realigned to the north to allow further opencasting. Note the location of the ...
Ewan Crawford 22/04/2005
The eastern exit from the yard at Westfield in 1989. This end of the yard, and around half a mile of line to the east, were diverted to allow ...
Ewan Crawford 03/11/1989
37694 arrives at Westfield Opencast site with empty wagons. ...
Bill Roberton //1991
4 of 7 images. more


This colliery was located to the west of what later became the Westfield Opencast site. It was served by a long siding of the Lochore Branch (North British Railway).
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