Colinton

Location type

Station

Name and dates

Colinton (1874-1943)

Opened on the Balerno Branch (Caledonian Railway).

Description

This was a single platform station with a typical Caledonian Railway small station timber building. The station was immediately west of Colinton Tunnel.

The station was at a fairly cramped location and featured an interesting road bridge, with several arches, crossing the goods lines, passenger line and the Water of Leith at the west end. To the west of this was the signal box (on the west side south of the station and which opened with the line) and a short branch over the river to the West Mills.

The goods yard was served form the west and the mills from the east.

The box here closed in 1889, replaced with a ground frame. The station closed to passengers in 1943. Being down at a lower level to the village it suffered from competition from Colinton [Tram] actually in the village and at street level.

The station building survived closure to passengers and was only demolished immediately before the line's closure. The line remained open until 1967 for goods.

The goods platform still remains, the passenger platform is a low overgrown mound. Since 1981 the station area has been a car park, the trackbed of the line being a foot and cycle path.

Tags

Station footpath

External links

Canmore site record
NLS Collection OS map of 1892-1914
NLS Collection OS map of 1944-67
06/07/2019


Chronology Dates

01/08/1874Balerno Branch (Caledonian Railway)
Loop opened along with Balerno Goods. Stations opened at Colinton, Juniper Green, Currie [2nd] and Balerno.
  /  /1890Balerno Branch (Caledonian Railway)
Villa building starts around Colinton.

News items

24/02/2023Bid to mimic top Edinburgh attraction at Ayrshire railway tunnel project [Daily Record]
25/12/2021A trip on the Balerno branch [Railscot]
16/12/2020Scottish Water donates Cherry Picker to Colinton Tunnel Community art project [Edinburgh News]
12/11/2019Abandoned Colinton railway tunnel in Edinburgh transformed by mural [BBC News]

Books

The Balerno Branch and the Caley in Edinburgh (Oakwood Library of Railway History)