Lanarkshire and Ayrshire Railway

The Lanarkshire and Ayrshire Railway (L&AR) was a railway company in Scotland built in the late 19th century that provided services between Ardrossan and Glasgow, with branches to Irvine and Kilbirnie. The line was operated by the Caledonian Railway with an aim to compete with the Glasgow and South Western Railway (GSW&R). [Wham, page 62] The line was extended in 1905 from Giffen to Newton,Thomas, page 94] and in 1923 the line was merged, along with its GSW&R counterpart, into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LM&SR).

As a result of a single company now owning two lines travelling to the same locations, the L&AR lines were closed off in stages, starting with the branches to Irvine and Kilbirnie in 1930.Stansfield, page 27] Stansfield, page 28] The last section of the line to close was from Stevenston to Ardrossan in the late 1960s. Only the line north of Neilston is still open today, as part of the Cathcart Circle Lines. Although the rest of the L&AR has long since been lifted, various embankments, viaducts, former station houses and abandoned platforms mark the route on which train passengers were once carried. [Wham, page 68]

History

1883-1897: Early days

The Lanarkshire and Ayrshire Railway began life as the Barrmill and Kilwinning Railway, which was to be a 6.5 mile line running from Barrmill station on the Glasgow, Barrhead and Kilmarnock Joint Railway to a junction just north of Kilwinning station on the former Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway.Awdry, page 60] To this effect, the 'Barrmill and Kilwinning Railway Act' received Royal Assent on 20 August 1883. However a year later a heavily modified act was submitted to Parliament, including extensions to Ardrossan, Irvine, Ardeer Ironworks, Eglinton Ironworks and Kilbirnie. A change of name for the company was also approved, and so the 'Lanarkshire and Ayrshire Railway Act' received Royal Assent on 28 August 1884.Awdry, page 85] Robert McAlpine was chosen as contractor for the construction of the line.Thomas, page 92]

The opening ceremony for the railway took place on 3 September 1888 at the Ardrossan station, with a special train service running to Glasgow that day. Full passenger services began on 4 September 1888. The branch to Kilbirnie was opened on 1 November 1889 for goods traffic and opened to passengers on 2 December 1889,Thomas, page 93] and the branch to Irvine was opened the following year on 2 June 1890. Ardrossan Montgomerie Pier station opened on 30 May 1890.

Present day

Today the only operational section of the Lanarkshire and Ayrshire Railway is the line between Newton and Neilston, which was electrified in the early 1960s, and sees regular passenger services as part of the Cathcart Circle Lines. Various landmarks of the railway still exist throughout the former route, for example a large viaduct remains to the north of Kilwinning, now used as part of the National Cycle Network. Two other prominent viaducts, namely the eleven arch span Gree viaduct and the seven arch span Giffenmill viaduct were both located between the former Lugton and Giffen stations and survived into the 21st century. This was shortlived as the Giffenmill viaduct was demolished in September 2006, [http://www.beith.org/modules/news/article.php?storyid=1293 Beith Online - Giffen Viaduct] ] with the Gree viaduct demolished shortly afterwards in February 2008, over five years after permission for its demolition was granted for a second time. [citeweb|url=http://www.north-ayrshire.gov.uk/ChiefExec/comRA.nsf/e9ee67f48fbb9003802569d700533758/7b42ed43b609f0e180256e600057c35c?OpenDocument|title=North Ayrshire Council - Planning Committee Report|date=2004-04-05|accessdate=2007-08-27] Also in the area is a single track running from Lugton which follows the Glasgow, Barrhead and Kilmarnock Joint Railway line to Beith until it reaches Barrmill, where it then heads south through Giffen to DM Beith along the original route of the L&AR before the 1905 extension was built. This track, mostly relaid in the 1950s, was used for freight by DM Beith, however it fell into disuse in 1996.

Company Directors

At the time of the railway opening in 1888, the company directors were:

*G. R. Vernon, M.P. (Chairman)
*J. C. Cuninghame
*The Earl of Eglinton and Winton
*R. W. Knox
*James Neilson
*Archibald Russell
*John Watson
*John Cunninghame

Railway map

The following map illustrates the route of the Lanarkshire and Ayrshire Railway in 1906:

Connections to other lines

* Ardrossan Railway at Ardrossan Harbour and Stevenston No. 1
* Busby Railway at Williamwood
* Cathcart District Railway at the Cathcart East and West Junctions
* Clydesdale Junction Railway at Newton West Junction
* Glasgow, Barrhead and Kilmarnock Joint Railway at Barrmill and Lugton
* Glasgow Central Railway at Kirkhill Junction and Newton railway station
* Paisley and Barrhead District Railway at Lyoncross Junction between Patterton and Neilston

References

Footnotes

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