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General information | |
Location | Galashiels, Scottish Borders Scotland |
Coordinates | 55°37′04″N2°48′20″W / 55.6178113°N 2.8054719°W Coordinates: 55°37′04″N2°48′20″W / 55.6178113°N 2.8054719°W |
Grid reference | NT493361 |
Owned by | Network Rail |
Managed by | ScotRail |
Platforms | 1 |
Tracks | 1 |
Other information | |
Station code | GAL |
History | |
Original company | Edinburgh and Hawick Railway |
Pre-grouping | North British Railway |
Post-grouping | |
Key dates | |
1 November 1849 | Opened |
5 January 1969 | Closed |
6 September 2015 | Resited and reopened |
Passengers | |
2017/18 | ![]() |
2018/19 | ![]() |
2019/20 | ![]() |
2020/21 | ![]() |
2021/22 | ![]() |
Location | |
Location in Scottish Borders, Scotland | |
Notes | |
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road |
Galashiels is a railway station on the Borders Railway, which runs between Edinburgh Waverley and Tweedbank. The station, situated 33 miles 22 chains (54 km) south-east of Edinburgh Waverley, serves the town of Galashiels in Scottish Borders, Scotland. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by ScotRail.
The station was opened on 20 February 1849 by the Edinburgh and Hawick Railway, [1] which later became known as the Waverley Route. The line was nicknamed after the popular Waverley Novels , written by Sir Walter Scott. [2] [3] [4]
Upon completion on 1 July 1862, the line ran from Carlisle to Edinburgh Waverley via Hawick, covering a distance of 98+1⁄4 miles (158 km). The station, along with the line, was closed by British Rail on 5 January 1969. [1]
Following the opening of the Borders Railway on 6 September 2015, the line was extended 30 miles 60 chains (49 km) south-east from Newcraighall to Tweedbank. The current station is located slightly to the north of the original. [5]
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As of the May 2021 timetable change, the station is served by an hourly service between Edinburgh Waverley and Tweedbank, with a half-hourly service operating at peak times (Monday to Saturday). Some peak time trains continue to Glenrothes with Thornton. All services are operated by ScotRail. [6]
Rolling stock used: Class 158 Express Sprinter and Class 170 Turbostar
Preceding station | ![]() | Following station | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Stow | ScotRail Borders Railway | Tweedbank | ||
Historical railways | ||||
Bowland | North British Railway Waverley Route | Melrose | ||
Disused railways | ||||
Clovenfords | North British Railway Peebles Railway | Terminus | ||
Terminus | North British Railway Selkirk and Galashiels Railway | Abbotsford Ferry |
Galashiels is a town in the Scottish Borders with a population of around 12,600. Its name is often colloquially shortened to "Gala". The town is a major commercial centre for the Borders region with extensive history in the textile industry. Galashiels is the location of Heriot-Watt University's School of Textiles and Design.
The Waverley Route was a railway line that ran south from Edinburgh, through Midlothian and the Scottish Borders, to Carlisle. The line was built by the North British Railway; the stretch from Edinburgh to Hawick opened in 1849 and the remainder to Carlisle opened in 1862. The line was nicknamed after the immensely popular Waverley Novels, written by Sir Walter Scott.
Brunstane is a railway station on the Borders Railway, which runs between Edinburgh Waverley and Tweedbank. The station, situated 3 miles 72 chains (6 km) south-east of Edinburgh Waverley, serves the suburbs of Brunstane and Portobello in the City of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by ScotRail.
Newcraighall is a railway station on the Borders Railway, which runs between Edinburgh Waverley and Tweedbank. The station, situated 4 miles 54 chains (8 km) south-east of Edinburgh Waverley, serves the suburbs of Craigmillar and Newcraighall in the City of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by ScotRail.
Kinghorn railway station is a railway station in the town of Kinghorn, Fife, Scotland. The station is managed by ScotRail and is on the Fife Circle Line, 22+3⁄4 miles (36.6 km) north east of Edinburgh Waverley.
Carnoustie railway station is a railway station which serves the town of Carnoustie, Angus, Scotland. It is sited 10 miles 33 chains (16.8 km) east of the former Dundee East station, on the Dundee to Aberdeen line, between Golf Street and Arbroath. There is a crossover at the south end of the station, which can be used to facilitate trains turning back if the line north to Arbroath is blocked. ScotRail manage the station and provide almost all services.
The Edinburgh Suburban and Southside Junction Railway was a railway company that built an east-west railway on the southern margin of Edinburgh, Scotland, primarily to facilitate the operation of heavy goods and mineral traffic across the city. The line opened in 1884. Although its route was rural at the time, suburban development quickly caught up and passenger carryings on the line were buoyant; the passenger service operated on a circular basis through Edinburgh Waverley railway station.
Shawfair is a railway station on the Borders Railway, which runs between Edinburgh Waverley and Tweedbank. The station, situated 5 miles 64 chains (9 km) south-east of Edinburgh Waverley, serves the villages of Danderhall and Shawfair in Midlothian, Scotland. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by ScotRail.
Eskbank is a railway station on the Borders Railway, which runs between Edinburgh Waverley and Tweedbank. The station, situated 8 miles 25 chains (13 km) south-east of Edinburgh Waverley, serves the towns of Bonnyrigg and Dalkeith in Midlothian, Scotland. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by ScotRail.
Newtongrange is a railway station on the Borders Railway, which runs between Edinburgh Waverley and Tweedbank. The station, situated 11 miles 77 chains (19 km) south-east of Edinburgh Waverley, serves the town of Newtongrange in Midlothian, Scotland. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by ScotRail.
Gorebridge is a railway station on the Borders Railway, which runs between Edinburgh Waverley and Tweedbank. The station, situated 11 miles 77 chains (19 km) south-east of Edinburgh Waverley, serves the town of Gorebridge in Midlothian, Scotland. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by ScotRail.
Stow is a railway station on the Borders Railway, which runs between Edinburgh Waverley and Tweedbank. The station, situated 26 miles 45 chains (43 km) south-east of Edinburgh Waverley, serves the town of Lauder and village of Stow of Wedale in Scottish Borders, Scotland. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by ScotRail.
Tweedbank is a railway station on the Borders Railway, which runs between Edinburgh Waverley and Tweedbank. The station, situated 35 miles 34 chains (57 km) south-east of Edinburgh Waverley, serves the village of Tweedbank in Scottish Borders, Scotland. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by ScotRail.
The North Berwick Branch is a short railway branch line built by the North British Railway to connect North Berwick, in East Lothian, Scotland to the East Coast Main Line. It was built as a tactical means of excluding competitors from the area, and when it opened in 1850 it was loss making. The later development of North Berwick as a resort and a golfing centre transformed the branch line.
The Waverley Railway (Scotland) Act 2006 is an Act of the Scottish Parliament. It authorises the construction of the Borders Railway from a point in Midlothian immediately south of Newcraighall in the City of Edinburgh to Tweedbank in the Scottish Borders, including stations at Shawfair, Eskbank, Newtongrange, Gorebridge, Stow of Wedale, Galashiels and Tweedbank. It makes provision concerning planning agreements and developer contributions relating to the railway.
The Peebles Railway was a railway company that built a line connecting the town of Peebles in Peeblesshire, Scotland, with Edinburgh. It opened on 4 July 1855, and it worked its own trains.
The Selkirk and Galashiels Railway was a railway company that built a branch line connecting Selkirk, Scottish Borders, with the mainline network at Galashiels. The 5-mile (8.0 km) line opened in 1856 and was well used in the period down to 1914. Road transport from about 1923 became a serious competitor and the usage of the line declined steeply. Economy measures did little to retrieve the situation and the passenger service was withdrawn in 1951. Goods traffic continued for a period, but in 1964 that too was withdrawn. There is no railway use of the line now.
The Lauder Light Railway was a railway line opened in 1901 to connect the remote agricultural settlement of Lauder in Berwickshire with the main line of the Waverley Route railway at Fountainhall. Traffic was never heavy and bus competition led to closure to passengers in 1932. Goods traffic might not have survived but a Food Buffer Depot was established at Lauder during World War II and the rail-borne traffic sustained the line for some years. It closed finally in 1958 and little now remains, though bits of the formation, including embankments and cuttings, are visible at Middletoun.
The Borders Railway connects the city of Edinburgh with Galashiels and Tweedbank in the Scottish Borders. The railway follows most of the alignment of the northern part of the Waverley Route, a former double-track line in southern Scotland and northern England that ran between Edinburgh and Carlisle. That line was controversially closed in 1969, as part of the Beeching cuts, leaving the Borders region without any access to the National Rail network. Following the closure, a campaign to revive the Waverley Route emerged. Discussion on reopening the northern part of the line came to a head during the early 2000s. Following deliberations in the Scottish Parliament, the Waverley Railway (Scotland) Act 2006 received royal assent in June 2006. The project was renamed the "Borders Railway" in August 2008, and building works began in November 2012. Passenger service on the line began on 6 September 2015, whilst an official opening by Queen Elizabeth II took place on 9 September.
The Railway of Kelso and Jedburgh branch lines was a 'network' of three distinct railway services serving Kelso in the Scottish Borders.
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