Longniddry railway station
Encyclopedia
Longniddry railway station is located at the southeast corner of the village of Longniddry
, East Lothian
, Scotland
. The station is on the East Coast Main Line
21 km (13¼ miles) east of Edinburgh Waverley
, and is served by stopping passenger trains on the North Berwick Line
.
on 22 June 1846, with Longniddry station and the branch line to Haddington
opening on the same date. Longniddry's importance as a junction station increased in 1898 with the opening of the Gullane branch
.
There were originally three platforms, the up (eastbound) platform with the main station building, and an island platform serving the down (westbound) main line and the Haddington branch, which diverged immediately to the east of the station and ran parallel to the main lines for some distance before curving off to the south on an embankment. The branch was originally built as double track, but was singled in 1856. Between the down line and the Haddington branch east of the station were two long trailing sidings known as Blawearie Sidings which were used for storing rolling stock. On the south side of the branch was a two road engine shed and the Harelaw Lime Works siding. On the up side, east of the station, was the goods yard containing a goods shed and three trailing sidings. At the west end of the station the branch platform line continued as a 160 yard siding (headshunt) on the down side, whilst further west was a short trailing siding on the up side, known as Longniddry West Siding. The latter was also known as 'Manure Siding' or 'the dung lye', as it was used to receive wagons loaded with horse dung collected from the streets of Edinburgh and sent to Longniddry for sale as agricultural fertiliser. Longniddry signal box was located at the east end of the down platform. The junction of the Gullane branch was at Spittal (Aberlady Junction), 1.5 miles to the east.
Retrenchment during the Twentieth Century saw passenger services withdrawn from the Gullane and Haddington branch lines on 12 September 1932 and 5 December 1949 respectively. On 15 June 1964 the Gullane branch closed to all traffic, followed by closure of Longniddry goods yard on 28 December 1964 and the Haddington branch on 30 March 1968. The locomotive shed had closed in 1964, and following the demise of the Haddington branch the signalbox was closed on 8 September 1968 and all sidings removed. The former goods yard site was redeveloped as the new station car park, while the waiting rooms and canopy on the down platform were removed in the late 1960s and replaced with bus-stop type shelters. Closure of the North Berwick branch and of Drem, Longniddry and Prestonpans stations was proposed in 1969, but not approved by the Minister of Transport. Nonetheless, stopping passenger services were drastically reduced from 1970, and their future was again in doubt following the publication of the Serpell Report
in 1982. However, the number of local trains had gradually recovered from the low of the 1970s, and by the end of the 1980s the service was once again hourly.
'Pay train' operation began east of Edinburgh on 27 May 1985, at which point the station became unstaffed. The main station building and ticket office (a single storey stone building with a flat-roofed extension) was demolished in 1986/87, at which time the platforms were extended to the east and cut back at the western ends, and the station footbridge was replaced. This work was a prelude to electrification of the East Coast Main Line, with most North Berwick line trains being electrically powered from 8 July 1991.
One minor landmark of which little is known save for its ingenuity and efficiency was a mailbag switch device still in use in the 1970s. It was located on the trackside some 150 metres west of the station, and mailbags previously loaded on the device's arm could be captured at speed by a matching mechanism on passing southbound express trains which therefore did not need to stop.
. Long distance passenger trains operated by National Express East Coast
and CrossCountry
pass through Longniddry non-stop, as do freight trains.
points which were lying on the up main line at the west end of the station. The train was travelling at approximately 60 mph, and derailed immediately. The locomotive (Peppercorn A2 4-6-2
no. 60530 Sayajirao) was thrown across the up platform, and ended up lying upside down in the road below the station, facing back towards Edinburgh. The locomotive tender and the leading vans piled up between the platforms. Fireman Robert McKenzie was killed and Driver
D. Drummond was badly injured.
The Decauville points had fallen from a wagon on the 9.45pm 'Class D' (express goods, partially fitted with continuous brake) train from Heaton, which had passed through the station moments earlier. The wagon had originated at Gildersome West, near Leeds, and its oversized load of narrow gauge track for an industrial railway had not been adequately secured. The guard
of the goods train had noticed sparks as the train passed under the road bridge west of Aberlady Junction, and realised that the load had come loose. He attempted to attract his driver's attention by applying and releasing the handbrake in his van
, but this was not noticed. He therefore displayed a red light to the signalman at Longniddry box as he passed. The signalman immediately threw his up line signals to danger and sent the 'stop and examine' bell code to Prestonpans signalbox. Unfortunately, the overhanging points struck the locomotive water column at the west end of the down platform and rebounded, falling off the wagon onto the up main line. Meanwhile the parcels train had already passed the Longniddry up distant signal at all clear, so its crew received no warning of the danger ahead.
The site where the derailed locomotive ended up can still be identified by a blue brick retaining wall adjacent to the bus stop at the entrance to the station. This was built to stabilise the embankment after the locomotive was removed.
Longniddry
Longniddry is a village in East Lothian, Scotland, with a population of 2,613 .Longniddry is primarily a dormitory village for commuters to Edinburgh, with good transport links by road and rail to the capital...
, East Lothian
East Lothian
East Lothian is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and a lieutenancy Area. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Scottish Borders and Midlothian. Its administrative centre is Haddington, although its largest town is Musselburgh....
, 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 on the East Coast Main Line
East Coast Main Line
The East Coast Main Line is a long electrified high-speed railway link between London, Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield, Leeds, York, Darlington, Newcastle and Edinburgh...
21 km (13¼ miles) east of Edinburgh Waverley
Edinburgh Waverley railway station
Edinburgh Waverley railway station is the main railway station in the Scottish capital Edinburgh. Covering an area of over 25 acres in the centre of the city, it is the second-largest main line railway station in the United Kingdom in terms of area, the largest being...
, and is served by stopping passenger trains on the North Berwick Line
North Berwick Line
The North Berwick Line is a railway line linking Edinburgh with North Berwick in Scotland. The route follows the East Coast Main Line as far as Drem where it then branches to the north....
.
History
The main line between Edinburgh and Berwick-upon-Tweed was opened by the North British RailwayNorth British Railway
The North British Railway was a Scottish railway company that was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923.-History:...
on 22 June 1846, with Longniddry station and the branch line to Haddington
Haddington, East Lothian
The Royal Burgh of Haddington is a town in East Lothian, Scotland. It is the main administrative, cultural and geographical centre for East Lothian, which was known officially as Haddingtonshire before 1921. It lies about east of Edinburgh. The name Haddington is Anglo-Saxon, dating from the 6th...
opening on the same date. Longniddry's importance as a junction station increased in 1898 with the opening of the Gullane branch
Aberlady, Gullane and North Berwick Railway
The Aberlady, Gullane and North Berwick Railway was incorporated on 24 August 1893 as a route to promote North Berwick as a resort. It was connected to the Main Line at Longniddry.-History:...
.
There were originally three platforms, the up (eastbound) platform with the main station building, and an island platform serving the down (westbound) main line and the Haddington branch, which diverged immediately to the east of the station and ran parallel to the main lines for some distance before curving off to the south on an embankment. The branch was originally built as double track, but was singled in 1856. Between the down line and the Haddington branch east of the station were two long trailing sidings known as Blawearie Sidings which were used for storing rolling stock. On the south side of the branch was a two road engine shed and the Harelaw Lime Works siding. On the up side, east of the station, was the goods yard containing a goods shed and three trailing sidings. At the west end of the station the branch platform line continued as a 160 yard siding (headshunt) on the down side, whilst further west was a short trailing siding on the up side, known as Longniddry West Siding. The latter was also known as 'Manure Siding' or 'the dung lye', as it was used to receive wagons loaded with horse dung collected from the streets of Edinburgh and sent to Longniddry for sale as agricultural fertiliser. Longniddry signal box was located at the east end of the down platform. The junction of the Gullane branch was at Spittal (Aberlady Junction), 1.5 miles to the east.
Retrenchment during the Twentieth Century saw passenger services withdrawn from the Gullane and Haddington branch lines on 12 September 1932 and 5 December 1949 respectively. On 15 June 1964 the Gullane branch closed to all traffic, followed by closure of Longniddry goods yard on 28 December 1964 and the Haddington branch on 30 March 1968. The locomotive shed had closed in 1964, and following the demise of the Haddington branch the signalbox was closed on 8 September 1968 and all sidings removed. The former goods yard site was redeveloped as the new station car park, while the waiting rooms and canopy on the down platform were removed in the late 1960s and replaced with bus-stop type shelters. Closure of the North Berwick branch and of Drem, Longniddry and Prestonpans stations was proposed in 1969, but not approved by the Minister of Transport. Nonetheless, stopping passenger services were drastically reduced from 1970, and their future was again in doubt following the publication of the Serpell Report
Serpell Report
The Serpell Report was produced by a committee chaired by Sir David Serpell, a senior civil servant. It was commissioned by the government of Margaret Thatcher to examine the state and long-term prospects of Great Britain's railway system. There were two main parts to the report. The first part...
in 1982. However, the number of local trains had gradually recovered from the low of the 1970s, and by the end of the 1980s the service was once again hourly.
'Pay train' operation began east of Edinburgh on 27 May 1985, at which point the station became unstaffed. The main station building and ticket office (a single storey stone building with a flat-roofed extension) was demolished in 1986/87, at which time the platforms were extended to the east and cut back at the western ends, and the station footbridge was replaced. This work was a prelude to electrification of the East Coast Main Line, with most North Berwick line trains being electrically powered from 8 July 1991.
One minor landmark of which little is known save for its ingenuity and efficiency was a mailbag switch device still in use in the 1970s. It was located on the trackside some 150 metres west of the station, and mailbags previously loaded on the device's arm could be captured at speed by a matching mechanism on passing southbound express trains which therefore did not need to stop.
Services
All trains calling at Longniddry are operated by First ScotRailFirst ScotRail
ScotRail Railways Ltd. is the FirstGroup-owned train operating company running domestic passenger trains within Scotland, northern England and the cross-border Caledonian Sleeper service to London using the brand ScotRail which is the property of the Scottish Government...
. Long distance passenger trains operated by National Express East Coast
National Express East Coast
National Express East Coast was a train operating company in the United Kingdom, running high speed passenger services on the East Coast Main Line between London and Scotland, as part of the East Coast passenger franchise...
and CrossCountry
CrossCountry
CrossCountry is the brand name of XC Trains Ltd., a British train operating company owned by Arriva...
pass through Longniddry non-stop, as do freight trains.
2007/08
- Monday - Friday - Hourly from Edinburgh to North Berwick and return, with a half-hour frequency at peak times. Certain trains continued beyond Edinburgh to Glasgow Central.
- Saturdays - Half-hourly throughout the day until early evening, reducing to hourly.
- Sundays - Hourly
2008/09
- Monday - Friday - Hourly from Edinburgh to North Berwick and return, with a half-hour frequency at peak times. Certain trains continue beyond Edinburgh to Glasgow Central via Carstairs.
- Saturdays - Half-hourly throughout the day until early evening, reducing to hourly.
- Sundays - Hourly
Routings
1953 Accident
A serious accident occurred at Longniddry in the early hours of 17 December 1953. The 12.41am Edinburgh Waverley to London Kings Cross special parcels train, carrying Christmas mail, struck a set of narrow-gauge DecauvilleDecauville
The Decauville manufacturing company was founded by Paul Decauville , a French pioneer in industrial railways. Decauville's major innovation was the use of ready-made sections of light, narrow gauge track fastened to steel sleepers; this track was portable and could be disassembled and transported...
points which were lying on the up main line at the west end of the station. The train was travelling at approximately 60 mph, and derailed immediately. The locomotive (Peppercorn A2 4-6-2
LNER Peppercorn Class A2
The London and North Eastern Railway Peppercorn Class A2 is a class of steam locomotive designed for express passenger work by Arthur Peppercorn, the chief designer of the LNER after Edward Thompson...
no. 60530 Sayajirao) was thrown across the up platform, and ended up lying upside down in the road below the station, facing back towards Edinburgh. The locomotive tender and the leading vans piled up between the platforms. Fireman Robert McKenzie was killed and Driver
Railroad engineer
A railroad engineer, locomotive engineer, train operator, train driver or engine driver is a person who drives a train on a railroad...
D. Drummond was badly injured.
The Decauville points had fallen from a wagon on the 9.45pm 'Class D' (express goods, partially fitted with continuous brake) train from Heaton, which had passed through the station moments earlier. The wagon had originated at Gildersome West, near Leeds, and its oversized load of narrow gauge track for an industrial railway had not been adequately secured. The guard
Conductor (transportation)
A conductor is a member of a railway train's crew that is responsible for operational and safety duties that do not involve the actual operation of the train. The title of conductor is most associated with railway operations in North America, but the role of conductor is common to railways...
of the goods train had noticed sparks as the train passed under the road bridge west of Aberlady Junction, and realised that the load had come loose. He attempted to attract his driver's attention by applying and releasing the handbrake in his van
Caboose
A caboose is a manned North American rail transport vehicle coupled at the end of a freight train. Although cabooses were once used on nearly every freight train, their use has declined and they are seldom seen on trains, except on locals and smaller railroads.-Function:The caboose provided the...
, but this was not noticed. He therefore displayed a red light to the signalman at Longniddry box as he passed. The signalman immediately threw his up line signals to danger and sent the 'stop and examine' bell code to Prestonpans signalbox. Unfortunately, the overhanging points struck the locomotive water column at the west end of the down platform and rebounded, falling off the wagon onto the up main line. Meanwhile the parcels train had already passed the Longniddry up distant signal at all clear, so its crew received no warning of the danger ahead.
The site where the derailed locomotive ended up can still be identified by a blue brick retaining wall adjacent to the bus stop at the entrance to the station. This was built to stabilise the embankment after the locomotive was removed.
Sources
- Hajducki, Andrew M. (1992) The North Berwick and Gullane Branch Lines, Headington, Oakwood Press, ISBN 085361427X
- Hajducki, Andrew M. (1994) The Haddington, Macmerry and Gifford Branch Lines, Headington, Oakwood Press, ISBN 0853614563
- RAILSCOT on North British Railway
- RAILSCOT on Aberlady, Gullane and North Berwick Railway
- Official report on 1953 accident