Place Arisaig Station code ARG 2011/12 7,530 Number of platforms 2 | Grid reference NM663867 Managed by Abellio ScotRail 2012/13 7,390 | |
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Address Arisaig PH39 4NX, United Kingdom Similar Beasdale railway station, Mallaig railway station, Morar railway station, Lochailort railway station, Loch Eil Outward Bound rai | ||
Arisaig railway station serves the village of Arisaig on the west coast of the Highland region of Scotland.
Contents
This station is on the West Highland Line, 34 miles (55 km) west of Fort William on the way to Mallaig.
The westernmost station on the National Rail network, it is the only one of the four cardinal points of the national network that is not a terminus.
History
Arisaig station opened on 1 April 1901. The station was laid out with two platforms, one on either side of a crossing loop. There is a siding on the south side of the line, east of the Down platform.
Opened by the North British Railway, it became part of the London and North Eastern Railway during the Grouping of 1923. The station then passed on to the Scottish Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948.
When sectorisation was introduced by British Rail in the 1980s, the station was served by ScotRail until the privatisation of British Rail.
Services
Monday to Saturdays currently four trains a day call at Arisaig on the way to Mallaig or Fort William, and three of the latter go on further to Glasgow. The last eastbound train of the day connects into the overnight sleeper to Glasgow, Edinburgh Waverley and London Euston at Fort William on weekdays. Sunday services are less frequent, with just one train each way in the winter and two extra in the summer.
Arisaig station is also served by "The Jacobite" steam trains in the summer for the benefit of tourists, attracted to its views of the small isles, such as Eigg and Muck.
Signalling
From the time of its opening in 1901, the Mallaig Extension Railway was worked throughout by the electric token system. Arisaig signal box was situated at the east end of the Down platform, on the south side of the line.
On 14 March 1982, the method of working on the section between Arisaig and Mallaig was changed to One Train Working (with train staff).
The crossing loop and siding at Arisaig were temporarily put out of use on 13 November 1983 and all the semaphore signals were removed. All trains then used the Down loop. The One Train Working section became Glenfinnan - Mallaig.
On 29 April 1984, the crossing loop was reinstated to cater for the steam trains, but with train-operated points at each end. Arisaig token station could be switched in or out as required. When it was switched out, the Arisaig - Mallaig train staff would be padlocked to the Glenfinnan - Arisaig key token.
The Radio Electronic Token Block (RETB) system was commissioned between Mallaig Junction (now called 'Fort William Junction') and Mallaig on 6 December 1987 by British Rail. This resulted in the closure of Arisaig signal box (amongst others). The RETB is controlled from a Signalling Centre at Banavie railway station.
The Train Protection & Warning System (TPWS) was installed in 2003.