Blackford Hill railway station

Blackford Hill railway station was a railway station in the Blackford area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was located at the foot of Blackford Hill on the Edinburgh Suburban and Southside Junction Railway (ESSJR). It was opened on 1 December 1884.

Blackford Hill
Blackford Hill Station in 1962
Location	Newington, Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh Scotland
Coordinates	55.927232°N 3.1882577°W
Grid reference	NT258711
Platforms	2
Other information
Status	Disused
History
Pre-grouping	North British Railway
Post-grouping	LNER Scottish Region of British Railways
Key dates
1 December 1884	Opened
1 January 1917	closed
1 February 1919	Opened
10 September 1962	Closed

Blackford Hill station closed in 1962, when passenger rail services were withdrawn from the Edinburgh Suburban line although the line itself was retained for rail freight use. The route continues to be used for freight services to this day, so freight trains avoid Edinburgh's main stations of Edinburgh Waverley and Haymarket, and occasionally diverted passenger trains also pass along this line.

A 1905 Railway Clearing House diagram of Edinburgh railways, with the SSJR (in blue along the bottom)

Future

A local campaigning group, the Capital Rail Action Group (CRAG), is running a campaign for the SSJR line to be re-opened to passenger services, and proposes that it should be operated either as a commuter rail service or as a light rail system to form an extension of the forthcoming Edinburgh Tram Network.[1] Following a petition submitted to the Scottish Parliament in 2007, the proposal was rejected in 2009 by transport planners due to anticipated cost.[2]

Preceding station	Historical railways			Following station
Morningside Road		Edinburgh Suburban and Southside Junction Railway North British Railway		Newington

Edinburgh Suburban and Southside Junction Railway
East Coast Main Line Portobello (NBR) Portobello East Junction Brunstane Niddrie South Junction Newcraighall North British Railway to Leith East Coast Main Line Waverley Route (Borders Railway) Innocent Railway Duddingston & Craigmillar Edinburgh Waverley Newington Blackford Hill Morningside Road Haymarket Craiglockhart Haymarket East Junction Myreside Aqueduct (Union Canal) Gorgie East Craiglockhart Junction Slateford Junction Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway Caledonian Main Line

References

1. "Reopening the South Sub" (PDF). Transform Scotland. March 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 8 January 2010.
2. "Public Petitions Committee Official Report". Scottish Parliament. 27 January 2009. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 8 January 2010.