Callander and Oban Railway
Encyclopedia
The Callander and Oban Railway company was formed in 1864 with the objective of linking Callander
, Scotland
to the west coast port of Oban
over challenging terrain, particularly at Glen Ogle and the Pass of Brander at Loch Awe
. Callander had been reached in 1858 by the Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway
(soon to be absorbed into Scottish Central Railway
s and then Caledonian Railway
). Starting in 1866, the single track
line passed Killin
in 1870, reaching Tyndrum
in 1873 and Dalmally
in 1877. Following completion in 1880, Oban developed as a fashionable resort, though economically the railway was never really profitable.
In 1923, the Railway became part of LMS
.
There were also connections to the:
had opened in 1858. It was formally closed with the eastern section of the Callander and Oban Railway on 5 November 1965.
at Killin
was privately owned and funded by local landowners as the Killin Railway
required viaducts over the rivers Dochart and Lochay.
slate
quarries spanned Loch Etive
with a spectacular cantilever bridge
at Connel
, and also Loch Creran
.
) from Crieff
along Loch Earn
reached Balquhidder Junction
on 1 May 1905 with the Kendrum Viaduct over Glen Ogle at Lochearnhead.
and Crianlarich Lower Junction was opened in 20 December 1897, connecting to the West Highland Railway
, however it did not see its first regular passenger services until 23 May 1949.
was a short freight-only line that connected east of Loch Awe railway station
. It closed in 1916.
- Oban
section remains open today as a branch of the West Highland Line
.
The eastern section was scheduled for closure on 1 November 1965; however, the section between Callander and Crianlarich (along with the Killin branch) was closed following a landslide
in Glen Ogle on 27 September 1965 and never reopened. Much of the eastern section has been converted to a cycle path known as the Rob Roy Way
, with the Kendrum viaduct (on the Lochearnhead, St Fillans and Comrie Railway) restored in 2001 (the girders spanning the river having been scrapped).
Nearly all the stations on the Callander to Crianlarich section of the route have been demolished, with Callander station site now occupied by a car park and by housing. The site of is now occupied by the Crianlarich Community Centre. Balquhidder and Luib stations are now caravan parks. The island platform at Killin Junction survives, though the area is now obscured with trees and undergrowth. Only Glenoglehead station building still stands, now in use as a private house.
Most of the underbridges have been removed and/or destroyed. However, the impressive Glen Ogle viaduct still survives.
Parts of the trackbed between Killin Junction and Crianlarich have been obliterated by improvements to the A85 road
.
The Ballachulish branch closed on 28 March 1966. Connel Bridge
and Creagan (Loch Creran) Bridge are now used for road traffic, the latter following an almost complete reconstruction in 1999.
Callander
Callander is a burgh in the region of Stirling, Scotland, situated on the River Teith. The town is located in the former county of Perthshire and is a popular tourist stop to and from the Highlands....
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
to the west coast port of Oban
Oban
Oban Oban Oban ( is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. It has a total resident population of 8,120. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William and during the tourist season the town can be crowded by up to 25,000 people. Oban...
over challenging terrain, particularly at Glen Ogle and the Pass of Brander at Loch Awe
Loch Awe
Loch Awe is a large body of water in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It has also given its name to a village on its banks, variously known as Loch Awe, or Lochawe. There are islands within the loch such as Innis Chonnell and Inishail.- The loch :It is the third largest freshwater loch in Scotland with...
. Callander had been reached in 1858 by the Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway
Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway
The Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway had been incorporated in 1846, but the powers were initially unexercised. Ten years later construction commenced, with Callander being reached in 1858...
(soon to be absorbed into Scottish Central Railway
Scottish Central Railway
The Scottish Central Railway was formed in 1845 to link the Caledonian Railway near Castlecary to the Scottish Midland Junction Railway at Perth...
s and then Caledonian Railway
Caledonian Railway
The Caledonian Railway was a major Scottish railway company. It was formed in the early 19th century and it was absorbed almost a century later into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, in the 1923 railway grouping, by means of the Railways Act 1921...
). Starting in 1866, the single track
Single track (rail)
A single track railway is where trains in both directions share the same track. Single track is normally used on lesser used rail lines, often branch lines, where the traffic density is not high enough to justify the cost of building double tracks....
line passed Killin
Killin
Killin is a village situated at the western head of Loch Tay in Stirling , Scotland....
in 1870, reaching Tyndrum
Tyndrum
Tyndrum is a small village in Scotland. Its Gaelic name translates as "the house on the ridge". It lies in Strathfillan, at the southern edge of Rannoch Moor.The village is notable mainly for being at an important crossroads of transport routes...
in 1873 and Dalmally
Dalmally
Dalmally is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is located near the A85 road and is served by Dalmally railway station....
in 1877. Following completion in 1880, Oban developed as a fashionable resort, though economically the railway was never really profitable.
In 1923, the Railway became part of LMS
London, Midland and Scottish Railway
The London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
.
Branch lines and connections to other lines
Major constructions came when a branch line was built to Ballachulish.There were also connections to the:
- Dunblane, Doune and Callander RailwayDunblane, Doune and Callander RailwayThe Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway had been incorporated in 1846, but the powers were initially unexercised. Ten years later construction commenced, with Callander being reached in 1858...
at Callander and Oban Junction (CallanderCallander railway stationCallander was a railway station located in Callander, Stirling .- History :This station opened on 1 June 1870 along with the first section of the Callander and Oban Railway, between Callander and Glenoglehead...
). - Comrie, St Fillans & Lochearnhead Railway at Balquhidder JunctionBalquhidder railway stationBalquhidder was a railway station around two miles south of Lochearnhead, Stirling . It was where the Callander and Oban Railway was joined by the Comrie, St Fillans & Lochearnhead Railway from Crieff.- Opening and development :...
- Killin RailwayKillin RailwayThe Killin Railway opened to traffic on 13 March 1886, linking the Callander and Oban Railway to Killin.- History :Passenger services between and were withdrawn at the outbreak of the Second World War on 11 September 1939, and were not reinstated after the war...
- West Highland RailwayWest Highland RailwayThe West Highland Railway was one of the last main lines to be built in Scotland. It is one of the most scenic railway lines in Britain, linking Fort William on the west coast to Glasgow. It was originally operated by the North British Railway.- History :...
at CrianlarichCrianlarich railway stationCrianlarich railway station is a railway station serving the village of Crianlarich in Scotland. It is located on the West Highland Line. The routes to Fort William/Mallaig and Oban diverge after this station...
Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway
The Dunblane, Doune and Callander RailwayDunblane, Doune and Callander Railway
The Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway had been incorporated in 1846, but the powers were initially unexercised. Ten years later construction commenced, with Callander being reached in 1858...
had opened in 1858. It was formally closed with the eastern section of the Callander and Oban Railway on 5 November 1965.
Killin Railway
The five mile Killin Branch opened on 13 March 1886. The branch to Loch TayLoch Tay
Loch Tay is a freshwater loch in the central highlands of Scotland, in the district of Perthshire.It is a long narrow loch of around 14 miles long, and typically around 1 to 1½ miles wide, following the line of the valley from the south west to north east...
at Killin
Killin
Killin is a village situated at the western head of Loch Tay in Stirling , Scotland....
was privately owned and funded by local landowners as the Killin Railway
Killin Railway
The Killin Railway opened to traffic on 13 March 1886, linking the Callander and Oban Railway to Killin.- History :Passenger services between and were withdrawn at the outbreak of the Second World War on 11 September 1939, and were not reinstated after the war...
required viaducts over the rivers Dochart and Lochay.
Ballachulish Branch
The 1903 branch to the BallachulishBallachulish
The village of Ballachulish in Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, is centred around former slate quarries. The name Ballachulish was more correctly applied to the area now called North Ballachulish, to the north of Loch Leven, but was usurped for the quarry villages at East Laroch and West Laroch,...
slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
quarries spanned Loch Etive
Loch Etive
Loch Etive is a 30 km sea loch in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It reaches the sea at Connel, 5 km north of Oban. It measures 31.6 km in length and from 1.2 km to in width...
with a spectacular cantilever bridge
Cantilever bridge
A cantilever bridge is a bridge built using cantilevers, structures that project horizontally into space, supported on only one end. For small footbridges, the cantilevers may be simple beams; however, large cantilever bridges designed to handle road or rail traffic use trusses built from...
at Connel
Connel Bridge
Connel Bridge is a cantilever bridge that spans Loch Etive at Connel in Scotland. The bridge takes the A828 road across the narrowest part of the loch, at the Falls of Lora.- Construction :...
, and also Loch Creran
Loch Creran
Loch Creran is a sea loch in Argyll, on the west coast of Scotland. It is about long from its head at Invercreran to its mouth on the Lynn of Lorne, part of Loch Linnhe. The loch separates the areas of Benderloch to the south and Appin to the north. The island of Eriska lies at the mouth of the...
.
Comrie, St Fillans & Lochearnhead Railway
The Comrie, St Fillans & Lochearnhead Railway connection (following the take-over by the Caledonian RailwayCaledonian Railway
The Caledonian Railway was a major Scottish railway company. It was formed in the early 19th century and it was absorbed almost a century later into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, in the 1923 railway grouping, by means of the Railways Act 1921...
) from Crieff
Crieff
Crieff is a market town in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It lies on the A85 road between Perth and Crianlarich and also lies on the A822 between Greenloaning and Aberfeldy. The A822 joins onto the A823 which leads to Dunfermline....
along Loch Earn
Loch Earn
Loch Earn is a freshwater loch in the central highlands of Scotland, in the districts of Perth and Kinross and Stirling...
reached Balquhidder Junction
Balquhidder railway station
Balquhidder was a railway station around two miles south of Lochearnhead, Stirling . It was where the Callander and Oban Railway was joined by the Comrie, St Fillans & Lochearnhead Railway from Crieff.- Opening and development :...
on 1 May 1905 with the Kendrum Viaduct over Glen Ogle at Lochearnhead.
West Highland Railway
The chord between Crianlarich UpperCrianlarich railway station
Crianlarich railway station is a railway station serving the village of Crianlarich in Scotland. It is located on the West Highland Line. The routes to Fort William/Mallaig and Oban diverge after this station...
and Crianlarich Lower Junction was opened in 20 December 1897, connecting to the West Highland Railway
West Highland Railway
The West Highland Railway was one of the last main lines to be built in Scotland. It is one of the most scenic railway lines in Britain, linking Fort William on the west coast to Glasgow. It was originally operated by the North British Railway.- History :...
, however it did not see its first regular passenger services until 23 May 1949.
Ben Cruachan Quarry Branch
The Ben Cruachan Quarry BranchBen Cruachan Quarry Branch
The Ben Cruachan Quarry Branch was a short standard gauge branch line that was built to serve a granite quarry on Ben Cruachan in Scotland.The branch connected with the Callander and Oban Railway about one kilometre east of Loch Awe railway station...
was a short freight-only line that connected east of Loch Awe railway station
Loch Awe railway station
Loch Awe railway station is a railway station serving the village of Lochawe, on the northern bank of Loch Awe, in western Scotland. This station is on the Oban branch of the West Highland Line, originally part of the Callander and Oban Railway....
. It closed in 1916.
Closures and current operations
Only the CrianlarichCrianlarich
Crianlarich is a village in the Stirling district and registration county of Perthshire, Scotland, about six miles north-east of the head of Loch Lomond...
- Oban
Oban
Oban Oban Oban ( is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. It has a total resident population of 8,120. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William and during the tourist season the town can be crowded by up to 25,000 people. Oban...
section remains open today as a branch of the West Highland Line
West Highland Line
The West Highland Line is considered the most scenic railway line in Britain, linking the ports of Mallaig and Oban on the west coast of Scotland to Glasgow. The line was voted the top rail journey in the world by readers of independent travel magazine Wanderlust in 2009, ahead of the iconic...
.
The eastern section was scheduled for closure on 1 November 1965; however, the section between Callander and Crianlarich (along with the Killin branch) was closed following a landslide
Landslide
A landslide or landslip is a geological phenomenon which includes a wide range of ground movement, such as rockfalls, deep failure of slopes and shallow debris flows, which can occur in offshore, coastal and onshore environments...
in Glen Ogle on 27 September 1965 and never reopened. Much of the eastern section has been converted to a cycle path known as the Rob Roy Way
Rob Roy Way
The Rob Roy Way is a Scottish long distance footpath that runs from Drymen to Pitlochry. The path was created in 2002 and runs for . The route crosses the Highland Boundary Fault, a geological fault where the Highlands meet the Lowlands...
, with the Kendrum viaduct (on the Lochearnhead, St Fillans and Comrie Railway) restored in 2001 (the girders spanning the river having been scrapped).
Nearly all the stations on the Callander to Crianlarich section of the route have been demolished, with Callander station site now occupied by a car park and by housing. The site of is now occupied by the Crianlarich Community Centre. Balquhidder and Luib stations are now caravan parks. The island platform at Killin Junction survives, though the area is now obscured with trees and undergrowth. Only Glenoglehead station building still stands, now in use as a private house.
Most of the underbridges have been removed and/or destroyed. However, the impressive Glen Ogle viaduct still survives.
Parts of the trackbed between Killin Junction and Crianlarich have been obliterated by improvements to the A85 road
A85 road
The A85 is a major road in Scotland. It runs east from Oban along the south bank of Loch Etive, through Lochawe and Tyndrum, Crianlarich, Lochearnhead, St Fillans and Crieff before passing through Perth, where it crosses the River Tay via Perth Bridge. Its name between the latter two locations is...
.
The Ballachulish branch closed on 28 March 1966. Connel Bridge
Connel Bridge
Connel Bridge is a cantilever bridge that spans Loch Etive at Connel in Scotland. The bridge takes the A828 road across the narrowest part of the loch, at the Falls of Lora.- Construction :...
and Creagan (Loch Creran) Bridge are now used for road traffic, the latter following an almost complete reconstruction in 1999.