Place Largs Station code LAR 2011/12 0.472 million Number of platforms 2 | Grid reference NS202592 Managed by Abellio ScotRail 2012/13 0.486 million | |
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Address Crawford St, Largs KA30 8DH, UK Pte Strathclyde Partnership for Transport Similar Ardrossan South Beach rai, Kilwinning railway station, Fairlie railway station, Paisley Gilmour Street rail, Glengarnock railway station | ||
Largs railway station is a railway station in the town of Largs, North Ayrshire, Scotland. The station is managed by Abellio ScotRail and is on the Ayrshire Coast Line, 43 miles (69 km) south west of Glasgow Central.
Contents
History
The station was originally opened on 1 June 1885 by the Glasgow and South Western Railway, 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 25kV 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 train 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.
Reconstruction: new station building
For several years there were discussions of redevelopment and replacement buildings, and in 2001 a small ticket office was constructed. A £200,000 makeover (including a new station building) was completed in 2005, albeit much simpler than the original.
Services
There is a basic hourly service to and from Glasgow Central (including Sundays), with additional services during weekday peak periods.
At the time of initial electric services in 1987, Class 318s with occasional Class 303s operated the service. Upon withdrawal of the Class 303s, introduction of the Class 334s and the redeployment of the Strathclyde electric fleet, the major class on the route became the Class 334, with support from the Class 318. In 2011, a new fleet of Class 380 units was being introduced to the line. By June 2011, the former classes became rare, with Class 380 having sole responsibility for the line by the end of 2011.