East Kilbride

Location type

Station

Name and dates

East Kilbride (1868-)

Station code: EKL National Rail ScotRail
Where: South Lanarkshire, Scotland
Opened on the Busby Railway.
Opened on the Blantyre to East Kilbride Line (Caledonian Railway).
Open on the East Kilbride Line.

Description

This station has a single platform and is a terminus. A loop at the terminus survived until 2005. To the west, the Hairmyres Loop opened in 1990.

Originally this was not a terminus, it was a single platform station with a loop on the route between Busby and Hunthill Junction.

When opened East Kilbride was a small village. It was chosen to become Scotland's first New Town in 1947 and has expanded out widely for miles beyond the station and original village.

Despite the relatively low population the line was retained as far as East Kilbride when the route east of the station closed to passengers in 1935. The line to the east of the station was retained until 1966 to serve Mavor and Coulson's works.

There was a goods yard on the north side of the line, served from the west. The signal box of 1883 was replaced in 1929, the new box being at the west end of the platform. The goods yard had some reorganisation with the addition of a large goods shed and a long siding added at the east end of the loop.

There was a East Kilbride Shed, probably associated with banking duties. This was a one road shed at the west end of the station, south side of the line, and approached from the west.

The goods yard survived until 1989, although unused for goods for several years. The goods shed survived until 1990. The yard was used by a coal merchant who continued to operate from it even after delivery by rail ceased around 1983.

The signal box closed in 1973, replaced by Glasgow Central Power Box.

Tags

Station terminus

External links

Canmore site record
NLS Collection OS map of 1892-1914
NLS Collection OS map of 1944-67




Nearby stations
Hairmyres
Calderwood Glen Platform
Thorntonhall
High Blantyre
Busby
Kirkhill
Burnside
Cambuslang
Clarkston
Croftfoot
Newton
Blantyre
Blantyre Foundry
Newton [1st]
Burnbank
East Kilbride Shed
Rolls Royce Aero Engines
Mavor and Coulson
Hairmyres Loop
Radio Times
Quarry
Dripps Quarry
Cladence Moss Peat Railway
Hartfield Quarry
Stewartfield Quarry
Earnock Quarry
Rotten Calder Viaduct
Tourist/other
National Museum of Rural Life
Dripps Quarry Signal Box
Cathin Braes
Location names in dark blue are on the same original line.


Chronology Dates

  /  /1865Busby Railway
Approval to extend line from Busby to East Kilbride. The Caledonian Railway working agreement is extended to East Kilbride.
  /  /1866Blantyre to East Kilbride Line (Caledonian Railway)
Authorisation to extend the line from East Kilbride to Blantyre.
01/09/1868Busby Railway
Opened from Busby to East Kilbride.
21/09/1883Blantyre to East Kilbride Line (Caledonian Railway)
Hunthill Junction to East Kilbride opened to goods.
01/03/1885Blantyre to East Kilbride Line (Caledonian Railway)
Line between Blantyre and East Kilbride is opened to passengers. (Alternative date in 1888.)
01/07/1888Blantyre to East Kilbride Line (Caledonian Railway)
Line between Blantyre and East Kilbride is opened to passengers. (Alternative date in 1885.)
01/10/1914Blantyre to East Kilbride Line (Caledonian Railway)
East Kilbride to Hamilton (Hunthill Junction) closed.
01/10/1923Blantyre to East Kilbride Line (Caledonian Railway)
East Kilbride to Hamilton (Hunthill Junction) re-opened.
14/07/1924Blantyre to East Kilbride Line (Caledonian Railway)
East Kilbride to Hamilton (Hunthill Junction) closed to passengers (occasional special workings until World War II).
18/11/1935Blantyre to East Kilbride Line (Caledonian Railway)
Mavor and Coulsons Siding, East Kilbride to Hunthill Junction closed to freight.
24/01/1966Blantyre to East Kilbride Line (Caledonian Railway)
Mavor and Coulsons Siding to East Kilbride closed to freight.

News items

05/01/2024ScotRail warns East Kilbride line may be 'busier than usual' [Glasgow Times]
07/12/2023Engineers begin bridge enhancement works on East Kilbride railway line [Network Rail]
23/11/2023Work begins on £61.5m enhancement project for East Kilbride and Hairmyres railway stations [Daily Record]
22/11/2023Network Rail awards contracts for East Kilbride Enhancement Project [Network Rail]
28/09/2023East Kilbride community invited to railway event on station plans [Network Rail]
11/09/2023£139m funding for East Kilbride rail improvements is given green light [Daily Record]
06/09/2023Rail decarbonisation programme moves forward [Transport Scotland]
21/06/2023Watch careful ScotRail driver slow train to reunite mother duck with ducklings in East Kilbride [STV]
19/06/2023Proposals for a new transport interchange in East Kilbride have been submitted [Daily Record]
05/06/2023Council to consult on plans for future-proofed Hairmyres railway station and Park and Ride [Daily Record]