Place Bridge of Orchy Station code BRO 2011/12 5,890 Number of platforms 2 Original company West Highland Railway | Grid reference NN300394 Managed by Abellio ScotRail 2012/13 5,736 | |
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Address Bridge of Orchy PA36 4AD, United Kingdom Similar Upper Tyndrum railway st, Crianlarich railway station, Ardlui railway station, Loch Eil Outward Bound rai, Locheilside railway station | ||
Bridge of Orchy railway station is a railway station in the village of Bridge of Orchy in the west of Scotland. This station is on the West Highland Line. Being an island platform, access is via a subway.
Contents
History
This station opened by the West Highland Railway on 7 August 1894.
The station was laid out with a crossing loop around an island platform and sidings on the east side of the station.
On 1 February 1987, the crossing loop was altered to right-hand running. The original Down platform has thus become the Up platform, and vice versa. The change was made in order to simplify shunting at this station, by removing the need to hand-pump the train-operated loop points to access the sidings.
Signalling
The signal box, which had 16 levers, was situated at the south end of the island platform. From the time of its opening in 1894, the West Highland Railway was worked throughout by the electric token system.
In 1967, the method of working between Crianlarich and Rannoch was changed to the Scottish Region Tokenless Block system. The Up loop at Bridge of Orchy was signalled for running in either direction and the signal box was able to 'switch out' when not required.
In August 1985, the method of working between Crianlarich and Rannoch reverted to the electric token block system. The semaphore signals were removed on 24 November 1985 in preparation for the introduction of Radio Electronic Token Block (RETB).
The RETB system was commissioned by British Rail between Upper Tyndrum and Fort William Junction on 29 May 1988. This resulted in the closure of Bridge of Orchy signal box (amongst others). The RETB is controlled from a Signalling Centre at Banavie railway station.
The Train Protection & Warning System was installed in 2003.
Station building
The station building is now used as a bunkhouse for those walking the West Highland Way.
Services
Monday to Saturday, northbound, Bridge of Orchy has three services to Mallaig and one service to Fort William (the Highland Caledonian Sleeper). Southbound, there are three services to Glasgow Queen Street and one service to London Euston (Highland Caledonian Sleeper, Saturdays excepted).
On Sundays, there is just one service northbound to Mallaig all year, with a second in the summer months only (May to late October), one service southbound to Glasgow Queen Street (two in summer) and one service (the Highland Caledonian Sleeper) to London Euston. This can also be used by regular travellers to both Glasgow Queen Street (L.L) and Edinburgh Waverley on all evenings that it runs, as it is booked to set down at both stations and carries seating coaches as far as Edinburgh.
Locality
The Bridge of Orchy Hotel is opposite the end of the road down from the station.