Larkhall railway station serves the town of Larkhall

Larkhall

Larkhall is a town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland and is around southeast of Glasgow. It is twinned with Seclin in northern France.Larkhall sits on high ground between the River Clyde to the East and the Avon Water to the West...

, South Lanarkshire

South Lanarkshire

South Lanarkshire is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland, covering the southern part of the former county of Lanarkshire. It borders the south-east of the city of Glasgow and contains many of Glasgow's suburbs, commuter towns and smaller villages....

, 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...

. The station is the south-eastern terminus of the Argyle Line

Argyle Line

The Argyle Line is a suburban railway located in West Central Scotland. It connects the Lanarkshire towns of Lanark, Larkhall and Motherwell to West Dunbartonshire via central Glasgow using sub-surface running...

, 26 km (16¼ miles) south east of Glasgow Central railway station.

History

The station was originally opened as Larkhall Central on 1 July 1907 by the 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...

 as part of their Mid Lanark Lines which filled in various gaps around Larkhall, Stonehouse, Strathaven and Blackwood. It closed to passengers on 4 October 1965.

Re-opening

Forty years after closure, the station was officially re-opened on the 9 December 2005 by Jack McConnell

Jack McConnell

Jack Wilson McConnell, Baron McConnell of Glenscorrodale is a British Labour life peer in the House of Lords. He was third First Minister of Scotland from 2001 to 2007, making him the longest serving First Minister in the history of the Scottish Parliament...

 MSP, the then First Minister for Scotland

First Minister of Scotland

The First Minister of Scotland is the political leader of Scotland and head of the Scottish Government. The First Minister chairs the Scottish Cabinet and is primarily responsible for the formulation, development and presentation of Scottish Government policy...

. Passenger services started on 12 December 2005, with trains serving the Argyle Line

Argyle Line

The Argyle Line is a suburban railway located in West Central Scotland. It connects the Lanarkshire towns of Lanark, Larkhall and Motherwell to West Dunbartonshire via central Glasgow using sub-surface running...

.

Future improvements

In March 2007, there was speculation that the line may be extended beyond Larkhall station, to stations in Stonehouse

Stonehouse, South Lanarkshire

Stonehouse is a rural village in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is located on Avon Water in an area of natural beauty and historical interest, near to the Clyde Valley. It is also situated on the A71 trunk road between Edinburgh and Kilmarnock, close to the towns of Hamilton, Larkhall and...

 and Strathaven

Strathaven

Strathaven is a historic market town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The town was granted a Royal Charter in 1450, making the Town of Strathaven a burgh of barony. The town's principal industry was primarily weaving in the 19th and early 20th centuries, however this declined when faced by...

.

Strathclyde Partnership for Transport

Strathclyde Partnership for Transport

The Strathclyde Partnership for Transport is a public body which is responsible for planning and co-ordinating regional transport, and especially the public transport system, in the Strathclyde area of western Scotland...

 are expected to fund a feasibility study into reopening the section of line to Stonehouse at some time in 2008.

Services

From opening in December 2005, trains run every 30 minutes to and beyond to .

An hourly Sunday service started from December 2007 on a one year trial basis. This trial has been successful, and the hourly Sunday service is now a permanent feature.
Argyle Line

Argyle Line

The Argyle Line is a suburban railway located in West Central Scotland. It connects the Lanarkshire towns of Lanark, Larkhall and Motherwell to West Dunbartonshire via central Glasgow using sub-surface running...

 services are currently operated by Class 318

British Rail Class 318

The British Rail Class 318 is an electric multiple unit train, which operates exclusively in the Strathclyde Partnership for Transport network in West Central Scotland. The units were introduced fully on 29 September 1986 as part of the electrification of the Ayrshire Coast Line between and...

, Class 320s

British Rail Class 320

The British Rail Class 320 is an alternating current electric multiple unit train found on the Strathclyde Partnership for Transport rail network in Central Scotland, and is used exclusively on the North Clyde Line between Helensburgh and Airdrie, North Lanarkshire via Glasgow Queen Street...

 and, soon to be withdrawn from these services, Class 334s

British Rail Class 334

The British Rail Class 334 is a suburban electric multiple unit built by Alstom in Birmingham. They are part of the Juniper family of trains along with Classes 458 and 460. They were built for SPT/ScotRail outer suburban services in Glasgow, UK. They later became part of First ScotRail/SPT fleet...

.

External links

• SPT South East Timetable (PDF). Timetable for services to and from Larkhall.
• Larkhall to Milngavie rail link - Scottish Executive 2003
• New Link for Larkhall opens - BBC News Scotland website
• RAILSCOT on the Larkhall re-opening - for history and pictures of the station and line.
• RAILSCOT on the Mid Lanark Lines