Largs railway station
Largs railway station is a railway station in the town of Largs, North Ayrshire, Scotland. The station is managed by ScotRail and is owned by Network Rail. It is on the Ayrshire Coast Line, 43 miles (69 km) south west of Glasgow Central.
 | |
|---|---|
 The bridge and platforms at Largs. A Class 380 is about to depart for Glasgow Central | |
| General information | |
| Location | Largs, North Ayrshire Scotland |
| Coordinates | 55.7928°N 4.8673°W |
| Grid reference | NS202592 |
| Managed by | ScotRail |
| Transit authority | SPT |
| Platforms | 2 (formerly 4) |
| Other information | |
| Station code | LAR |
| History | |
| Original company | G&SWR Largs Branch |
| Post-grouping | LMS |
| Key dates | |
| 1 June 1885 | Opened[2] |
| Passengers | |
| 2017/18 |  0.436 million |
| 2018/19 | 0.446 million |
| 2019/20 |  0.426 million |
| 2020/21 | 57,534 |
| 2021/22 | 0.255 million |
| Notes | |
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road | |
History
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The station was originally opened on 1 June 1885 by the Glasgow and South Western Railway,[2] as the terminus of the extension of the former Ardrossan Railway to Largs.
The station originally had four platforms with additional stabling lines, a glazed canopy and a footbridge spanning the platforms.
By the time the electrification project commenced only three platforms and the centre stabling line were in operation. A fire in 1985 destroyed the station signal box and shortly afterwards work was undertaken to remodel & rationalise the track layout and modernise the signalling ahead of the planned electrification (as part of the wider Ayrshire Coast scheme). Once this was completed by British Rail in 1987, only two platforms remained in use with the line southwards having been reduced to single track. The standard 25 kV A.C overhead system was used, with the signalling system supervised from Paisley signalling centre.
1995 demolition in accident
On 11 July 1995 an early morning Class 318 from Glasgow Central failed to stop. It crashed through the buffers and the back of the ticket office, severely damaging parts of the station building, and demolished two shops before coming to a stop next to the taxi rank on Main Street. An eye-witness described the noise with the station shaking as the train "was ploughing through it like a set of dominoes", then "the whole corner of the building disintegrating". Although the driver, the guard and three others suffered injuries, there was considerable relief that no-one was killed.[3][4]
Reconstruction: new station building
For several years there were discussions of redevelopment and replacement buildings, and in 2001 a small ticket office was constructed.[4] A £200,000 makeover (including a new station building) was completed in 2005, albeit much simpler than the original.
Services
There is an hourly service to and from Glasgow Central (including Sundays), with additional services during weekday peak periods. Trains usually use Platform 2, with the exception of the 0722 and 1953 services to Glasgow, which use Platform 1.[5]
| Preceding station | National Rail |
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Terminus | ScotRail Ayrshire Coast Line |
Fairlie | ||
 Ferry services |
||||
| Terminus | Caledonian MacBrayne Ferry |
Great Cumbrae | ||
| Historical railways | ||||
| Terminus | Glasgow and South Western Railway Largs Branch |
Fairlie Line and station open | ||
References
Notes
- Brailsford 2017, Gaelic/English Station Index.
- Butt (1995), page 139
- Wolmar, Christian (12 July 1995). "Thirteen hurt as trains crash through buffers - News". The Independent. Retrieved 16 October 2013.
- "125 years history of Largs Railway Station : News". Largs & Millport Weekly News. 21 July 2011. Retrieved 16 October 2013.
- Table 221 National Rail timetable, May 2016
Sources
- 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 (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.