Location type

Sidings

Name and dates

Castlecary Curve

Opened on the Caledonian Railway.
Opened on the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway.

Description

This Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway curve never opened but the earthworks still partly remain.

Jim McEwan wrote about this link in Caledonian Railway Association 's 'The True Line' No.10 August 1985. He said:

The abandoned link between the CR and the E&G at Castlecary was an E&G promotion done at the time when it appeared possible for the CR and E&G to come to agree to joint purse working. The abandoned line was to enable E&G trains to use Buchanan Street station, and when negotiations for the joint purse fell through, the CR interdicted the E&G against completing the spur.

It probably belongs to the period around 1865 when the larger Scottish railway companies were jostling to take over each other. There were quite a few short lived alliances, some successfully entered into and some not.

The E&G may have been interested in gaining access to Buchanan Street as the Cowlairs Incline was an ongoing burden (expensive, time consuming, dangerous, a bottleneck with a constantly in use incline engine requiring coal and with a rope which needed replaced annually). Not only that but at the time Glasgow Queen Street High Level had very short platforms (not that Buchanan Street was much better, but the approach was more level).

Interestingly the Hayhill Branch (Caledonian Railway), (Gartcosh Junction to Garnqueen North Junction), was opened in 1866 (authorised 1846, lapsed, then re-authorised 1854). Before this a reversal would be needed in Coatbridge. Perhaps it was already under construction, the aborted link and Hayhill Branch being related.

There was a similar situation around the same time at Sighthill West Junction [1st] with the same companies planning and then disagreeing on a connection. The E&G could have used this to enter Buchanan Street, reaching Glasgow without having to descend the Cowlairs Incline.

Tags

Curve junction abortive
05/02/2020

Nearby stations Castlecary Dennyloanhead Banknock Upper Greenhill Greenhill Lower Greenhill Bonnybridge Canal Goods Bonnybridge Central Bonnybridge Dullator Denny Cumbernauld Colzium Greenfaulds Croy	Castlecary Viaduct Fireclay and Limeworks Castlecary Fireclay Works Abronhill Tunnel Banknock Colliery Cannerton Pit Cannerton Brickworks Knowehead Colliery Banknock Colliery Livingstone Pit Coneypark Colliery Pit No 4 Greenhill Upper Junction New Bonnyrigg Pit Upper Bonnyrigg Pit Tourist/other Castlecary Roman Fort Bankier Quay Bankier Distillery
Location names in dark blue are on the same original line.