Location type

Major station

Names and dates

Edinburgh General (1846-1866)
Edinburgh Waverley (1866-)

Station code: EDB National Rail ScotRail
Where: City of Edinburgh, Scotland
Opened on the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway.
Opened on the North British Railway.
Opened on the Borders Railway (Network Rail).
Open on the North Berwick Line.
Open on the Fife Circle.
Open on the Edinburgh to Perth.
Open on the Edinburgh to Dundee.
Open on the Carlisle to Edinburgh.
Open on the Edinburgh to Glasgow via Shotts.
Open on the Edinburgh to Glasgow via Bathgate and Airdrie.
Open on the Edinburgh to Berwick.

Description

This is the main station in Edinburgh and acts as both a terminus and through station. The larger part of the station is covered by a large glazed roof by Blyth and Cunningham and is an island platform with bays at either end. There is a smaller island platform outwith the main roof on the south side.

Services operate to every Scottish city and many long distance services to destinations in England.

Given the city location, the original construction of the station and its subsequent expansions has required purchase and demolition of many buildings (for example the Edinburgh Orphan's Hospital was demolished in 1845 to make space). Even the former Canal Street was subsumed into the station expansion.

The out of use Waverley West box, on the south side of the line, is 'B' listed.

There are tram stops nearby. Princes Street [Tram] is to the north west and St Andrew Square [Tram] to the north.

The station opened in 1846, an end-on junction between the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway to the west and North British Railway to the east. Initially there were two through platforms, five lines between the platforms. The booking office was at the west end, above the lines, on the Waverley Bridge.

To the north was Canal Street (1847) and to the north again Canal Street station. A tight curve linked the Mound Tunnels to the Scotland Street Tunnel.

To the south was the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway's goods yard.

There was a major reconstruction in advance of, and following, the opening of the Forth Bridge in 1890. The 34,000 square metres roof was added in 1897. The railway west to Saughton Junction and east to Portobello East Junction was progressively quadrupled.

Local

The North British Station Hotel was built to the north of the station, towering over it. It was sold by the British Transport Hotels in 1981. It is now the Balmoral Hotel , leading to the north side of the station being known as the Balmoral side.

The Scott Monument , commemorating Sir Walter Scott, is to the north of the station on Princes Street.

The Scottish National Gallery is on The Mount to the west of the station.

Edinburgh Castle is less than half a mile to the south west of the station.

Tags

Station terminus Klondyke

Aliases

Waverley Edinburgh Edinburgh North Bridge North Bridge

External links

NLS Collection OS map of 1892-1914
NLS Collection OS map of 1944-67
NLS Map
NLS Map

Facilities

Gaelic name: Waverley Dhun Eideann
Listing: A

Nearby stations Princes Street [1st] St Andrew Square [Tram] York Place [Tram] Picardy Place [Tram] Princes Street [Tram] Scotland Street McDonald Road [Tram] Edinburgh Princes Street Leith Walk Lothian Road St Leonards Abbeyhill Easter Road West End - Princes Street [Tram] Balfour Street [Tram]	Waterloo Place [Tram] Waterloo Place Edinburgh Signalling Centre Edinburgh Waverley Goods Edinburgh Gas Works Mound Tunnels The Mound [Tram] Tourist/other The Balmoral Hotel Scott Monument St Giles Cathedral Gladstone^s Land Scottish National Gallery Scottish National Portrait Gallery Calton Hill Camera Obscura
Location names in dark blue are on the same original line.