Abbeyhill railway station

Abbeyhill railway station was a railway station located in the Abbeyhill area of Edinburgh. It was served by trains on several Edinburgh local rail services. The station was on the line that branched off the East Coast Main Line at Abbeyhill Junction.

Abbeyhill
Abbeyhill Station, closed in 1964, is now derelict.
General information
LocationEdinburgh, City of Edinburgh
Scotland
Coordinates55°57′24″N 3°10′01″W / 55.95658°N 3.16702°W / 55.95658; -3.16702
Platforms2
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companyNorth British Railway
Pre-groupingNorth British Railway
Post-groupingLondon and North Eastern Railway
Key dates
1 May 1869[1]Opened
7 September 1964[1]Closed
Location
Abbeyhill is located in the City of Edinburgh council area
Abbeyhill
Abbeyhill
Location within the City of Edinburgh council area

History

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Opened by the North British Railway on 1 May 1869,[2] it became part of the London and North Eastern Railway during the Grouping of 1923. The line then passed on to the Scottish Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948. The station was closed by the British Railways Board in 1964 along with Piershill, Portobello, Joppa and Musselburgh stations when the Musselburgh branch service was withdrawn. One station platform still exists but is covered by overgrown weeds and shrubs.

Abbeyhill Junction

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Abbeyhill Junction connected the East Coast Main Line towards Abbeyhill railway station.[3] Passenger services stopped using this line in the 1960s but briefly reopened in 1986 as a shuttle service was set up from Waverley station and Meadowbank Stadium railway station for the Commonwealth Games. Abbeyhill Junction signal box closed on 6 November 1938, when an old box at Waverley East took over control of the junction.

The junction closed in 1986 as the line was not being used any more, even for freight. In 1988, the tracks were disconnected at both ends of the line. The tracks remained, overgrown, for over 18 years until 2007 when the lines were dismantled and the area where the lines were was concreted over.

References

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  1. ^ a b Butt 1995, p. 11.
  2. ^ "Edinburgh, Abbeyhill Station". canmore.org.uk. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
  3. ^ Wham, Alasdair (2006). Edinburgh and Lothians : exploring the lost railways. Wigtown: G.C. Books Ltd. pp. 88, 99. ISBN 9781872350141. OCLC 1256461963.

Sources

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Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Waverley
Line closed, station open
  North British Railway
Edinburgh Suburban Line
  Piershill
Line disused, station closed
  North British Railway
Edinburgh, Leith and Granton Line
  Easter Road
Line disused, station closed
  North British Railway
Leith Central Branch
  Leith Central
Line and station closed
  British Rail
Leith Central Branch
  Easter Road Park Halt
Matchday special trains only
or
Leith Central
Line and station closed