Altnabreac railway station

Altnabreac railway station is a rural railway station n the Highland council area of Scotland. It serves the area of Altnabreac – a settlement in which the station itself is the main component – in the historic county of Caithness. It is on a private dirt road between Loch More and Forsinain, marked as a cycle trail on Ordnance Survey maps.

Altnabreac Scottish Gaelic: Allt nam Breac[1]
Altnabreac railway station
Location	Altnabreac, Highland Scotland
Coordinates	58.3882°N 3.7059°W
Grid reference	ND003456
Managed by	Abellio ScotRail
Platforms	1
Other information
Station code	ABC
History
Original company	Sutherland and Caithness Railway
Pre-grouping	Highland Railway
Post-grouping	LMSR
Key dates
28 July 1874	Opened[2]
Passengers
2015/16	312
2016/17	356
2017/18	658
2018/19	408
2019/20	232
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

The station is on the Far North Line, 133 miles 76 chains (215.6 km) down the line from Inverness[3] and approximately 27.5 miles (44.3 km) from Wick.[4] It has a single platform long enough to accommodate a four-carriage train.[3]

Being about 6.8 miles (11 km) from the nearest paved road and 11 miles (18 km) from the nearest village, Altnabreac is often listed as one of Britain's most geographically isolated railway stations, alongside Corrour elsewhere in Scotland, Dovey Junction in west Wales and Berney Arms in Norfolk.[5] The nearest village is Westerdale, which itself is in fact closer to Scotscalder station. Nevertheless, despite its isolation, the station is used by walkers and off-road cyclists, as well as railway enthusiasts and those who enjoy visiting remote locations. In the 2018–19 financial year the station saw 408 passengers, making it the 28th least-used station in the United Kingdom, although four other stations on the Far North Line had even fewer passengers, including neighbouring Scotscalder.[6]

The station is managed by Abellio ScotRail, which also operates all trains serving it.

History

The station was opened by the Sutherland and Caithness Railway on 28 July 1874[2] and later absorbed by the Highland Railway.[7]

The reason for the station's construction is a mystery. At the time of construction it was 8 miles (13 km) from the nearest settlement and 10 miles (16 km) from the nearest road.[8] The only source of traffic at the station, Lochdhu Lodge, approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to the south, was not built until 1895 and the Altnabreac School was not built until 1930. However, it had a passing loop with a water tank so may have been established for purely operational reasons.

Taken into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway during the Grouping of 1923, the line then passed on to the Scottish Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948. When Sectorisation was introduced by British Rail, the station became part of ScotRail until the Privatisation of British Rail.

Services

Train approaching the station.

On weekdays and Saturdays, the service pattern from the station consists of four trains per day northbound to Wick via Thurso and three trains per day southbound to Inverness via Helmsdale, Golspie, Lairg, Tain and Dingwall. (There is a fourth train bound for Inverness but it is not scheduled to call at Altnabreac.) On Sundays there is just one train per day each way.[9]

This station is designated as a request stop. This means that passengers intending to alight must inform the guard in advance, and any passengers wishing to board must ensure they are in view of the train driver, and are required to use a hand signal to stop the train.

References

Notes

1. Brailsford 2017, Gaelic/English Station Index.
2. Butt (1995), page 15
3. Brailsford 2017, map 20D.
4. British Rail Passenger Timetable, summer 1992, p1342
5. Caton, Peter (28 August 2018). Remote Stations. p. 268. ISBN 978-1-78901-408-2.
6. Office of Rail Regulation: Station Usage
7. "The Sunderland and Caithness Railway". The Scotsman. British Newspaper Archive. 27 July 1874. Retrieved 14 August 2016 – via British Newspaper Archive.
8. "They're just loco - Britain's most bizarre train stations". The Express. 31 March 2014.
9. Table 239 National Rail timetable, May 2017

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. (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.
• 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.

External links

• RAILSCOT article on Sutherland and Caithness Railway
• RAILSCOT page on Altnabreac