Dalry and North Johnstone Line

[v · d · e]Dalry and North Johnstone Line

Legend - - Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway - - Paisley Canal Line Elderslie East Junction Elderslie (GPK&AR) Elderslie West & Johnstone Junctions - - Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway Cart Junction - - Bridge of Weir Railway Johnstone North (original) Johnstone North Kilbarchan Castle Semple Lochwinnoch Kilbirnie - - Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway Brownhill Junction Dalry (GPK&AR) - - Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway

The Dalry and North Johnstone Line (also known as the Lochwinnoch Loop Line or Kilbarchan Loop Line) was a branch of the Glasgow and South Western Railway (G&SWR) in Renfrewshire and Ayrshire, Scotland, connecting the stations in Elderslie and Dalry via a route running parallel to the existing line built by the Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway. This provided additional line capacity for Ayrshire Coast and Kilmarnock services. The loop line was used for passenger services until the mid 1960s, when it was closed by the Beeching Axe. The majority of the line's trackbed has since been absorbed into the Sustrans National Cycle Network.

History

The line opened on 1 June 1905,^[1] replacing a short line which had run from Cart Junction to a terminal station to the north of Johnstone. The main reason for the line was to provide a loop to relieve the pressure from the main line between Paisley and Kilwinning, where traffic was very dense.^[1] From the south the line left the G&SWR at Brownhill Junction,^[1] situated between Dalry and Glengarnock railway stations, and rejoined the main line at Cart Junction,^[1] situated between Johnstone and Elderslie railway stations.

Prior to closure the line had about twelve return passenger journeys a day, running from St Enoch to Ardrossan, Ayr, Kilmarnock and Largs.^[1] A casualty of the Beeching Axe, the line closed to regular passenger traffic on 27 June 1966.^[2] The line later closed to all traffic from Cart Junction to Kilbirnie on 3 July 1972,^[3] with the line between Kilbirnie and Brownhill Junction remaining open until 19 December 1977,^[4] primarily to serve Glengarnock Steel Works. The majority of the trackbed is now part of National Cycle Route 7, which runs from Carlisle to Inverness via Glasgow.

References

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} Stansfield, p. 16
2. ^ Hurst, p. 44
3. ^ Hurst, p. 67
4. ^ Hurst, p. 70

Sources

• 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 1-8526-0508-1. OCLC 60251199. 
• Hurst, Geoffrey (1992). Register of Closed Railways: 1948-1991. Worksop, Nottinghamshire: Milepost Publications. ISBN 0-9477-9618-5. 

• Stansfield, G. (1999). Ayrshire & Renfrewshire's Lost Railways. Ochiltree: Stenlake Publishing. ISBN 1-8403-3077-5. 

• 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 1-8526-0086-1. OCLC 22311137. 

External links

• RAILSCOT on Kilbarchan Loop Line