Achnasheen railway station is a remote railway station on the Kyle of Lochalsh Line, serving the village of Achnasheen in the north of Scotland. The station is 27 miles 72 chains (44.9 km) from Dingwall, between Achanalt and Achnashellach.[4] ScotRail, who manage the station, operate all services.
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| General information | |||||
| Location | Achnasheen, Highland Scotland | ||||
| Coordinates | 57°34′45″N 5°04′20″W / 57.5793°N 5.0723°W | ||||
| Grid reference | NH164585 | ||||
| Managed by | ScotRail | ||||
| Platforms | 2 | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Station code | ACN[2] | ||||
| Classification | DfT category F2 | ||||
| History | |||||
| Opened | 19 August 1870[3] | ||||
| Original company | Dingwall and Skye Railway | ||||
| Pre-grouping | Highland Railway | ||||
| Post-grouping | LMSR | ||||
| Passengers | |||||
| 2019/20 |  3,234 | ||||
| 2020/21 | 620 | ||||
| 2021/22 |  2,420 | ||||
| 2022/23 | 3,302 | ||||
| 2023/24 | 3,980 | ||||
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History
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The station was opened by the Dingwall and Skye Railway on 19 August 1870,[3] but operated from the outset by the Highland Railway. The station hotel was built by Alexander Ross and opened in 1871. It was extended by William Roberts in 1898[5] and again at the turn of the 21st century.
It was once an important railhead, handling passengers, mail and freight bound for parts of Wester Ross, including Gairloch and the Loch Torridon area.[citation needed]
Facilities
editFacilities here are very basic, consisting of shelters and benches on both platforms on both platforms, and a help point on platform 1, adjacent to a small car park. Unusually, for such a rural location, there are accessible toilets at the station.[6] As there are no facilities to purchase tickets, passengers must buy one in advance, or from the guard on the train.
Passenger volume
editThe main origin or destination station for journeys to or from Achnasheen in the 2022–23 period was Inverness, making up 1,936 of the 3,302 journeys (58.6%).[7]
| 2002–03 | 2004–05 | 2005–06 | 2006–07 | 2007–08 | 2008–09 | 2009–10 | 2010–11 | 2011–12 | 2012–13 | 2013–14 | 2014–15 | 2015–16 | 2016–17 | 2017–18 | 2018–19 | 2019–20 | 2020–21 | 2021–22 | 2022–23 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entries and exits | 2,147 | 2,379 | 2,471 | 2,697 | 2,974 | 3,202 | 3,614 | 3,698 | 3,998 | 3,566 | 3,972 | 3,722 | 3,700 | 3,076 | 3,310 | 3,284 | 3,234 | 620 | 2,420 | 3,302 |
The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.
Services
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There are four trains a day in each direction (one on Sundays in winter, two in summer, depending on the time of year) stopping here, connecting Achnasheen with all stations between Inverness and Kyle of Lochalsh.[8][9]
| Preceding station |  National Rail
|
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Achanalt | ScotRail Kyle of Lochalsh Line |
Achnashellach | ||
| Historical railways | ||||
| Achanalt Line and Station open |
Highland Railway Dingwall and Skye Railway |
Glencarron Platform Line open; Station closed | ||
References
edit- ^ Brailsford 2017, Gaelic/English Station Index.
- ^ Deaves, Phil. "Railway Codes". railwaycodes.org.uk. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
- ^ a b Butt (1995)
- ^ Bridge, Mike, ed. (2017). TRACKatlas of Mainland Britain: A Comprehensive Geographic Atlas Showing the Rail Network of Great Britain (3rd ed.). Sheffield: Platform 5 Publishing Ltd. p. 98. ISBN 978-1909431-26-3.
- ^ The Buildings of Scotland: Highlands: John Gifford. Yale University Press 2003. ISBN 0300096259 p.380
- ^ "National Rail Enquiries -". www.nationalrail.co.uk. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
- ^ a b "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal". dataportal.orr.gov.uk. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
- ^ GB eNRT May 2016, Table 239
- ^ eNRT December 2021 Edition, Table 219
Bibliography
edit- Brailsford, Martyn, ed. (December 2017) [1987]. Railway Track Diagrams 1: Scotland & Isle of Man (6th ed.). Frome: Trackmaps. ISBN 978-0-9549866-9-8.
- Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
- Jowett, Alan (2000). Jowett's Nationalised Railway Atlas (1st ed.). Penryn, Cornwall: Atlantic Transport Publishers. ISBN 978-0-906899-99-1. OCLC 228266687.
- Jowett, Alan (March 1989). Jowett's Railway Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland: From Pre-Grouping to the Present Day (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-086-0. OCLC 22311137.
External links
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- Train times and station information for Achnasheen railway station from National Rail
- Station on navigable O.S. map
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