Glasgow Central Low Level

Location type

Station

Names and dates

Glasgow Central Low Level (1896-1965)
Glasgow Central Low Level (1979-)

Station code: GCL National Rail ScotRail
Where: Glasgow City, Scotland
Opened on the Glasgow Central Railway.
Open on the Glasgow to Larkhall.
Open on the Hamilton Circle.
Open on the Argyle Line.

Description

This is an underground island platform station with two faces.

The important Glasgow Central terminus is above street level above the station and there is a lift and escalators between the stations.

The station runs out west from under the high level station almost as far as West Campbell Street below Argyle Street.

This was originally a two island platform station with four platform faces, there was also on the north side a siding, serving a terminal two faced platform served from the east. The terminal platform and northern part of the northern island platform were exposed to the sky, the rest was covered below Argyle Street. Despite this it was a smokey station in steam days.

There were two signal boxes. Both boxes opened with the line in 1896. The east box closed in 1935, taken over by the west box. This in turn closed in 1956 during resignalling.

With re-opening in 1979 only one of the two islands closed in 1964 was brought back into use (the southern). The other remains out of use and may become part of the popular Glasgow Central station tours.

The station was damaged by the floods of 1994 when water from the River Kelvin at Kelvinbridge down the disused Yorkhill Tunnel to Exhibition Centre, Anderston and Glasgow Central Low Level stations. A train at the station, unit 314212, was almost submerged. Trains were diverted via Sunnyside Junction during the repairs.

Local

Tours of the seldom seen parts of the station are available Glasgow Central Station Tours .

Tags

Station
05/08/2021




Chronology Dates

  /  /1894Glasgow Central Railway
Authorisation to widen line under Glasgow Central - allowing the four platform Glasgow Central Low Level.
10/08/1896Glasgow Central Railway
Maryhill Central to Glasgow Central Low Level to Glasgow Cross opened. Maryhill Central, Kirklee, Botanic Gardens, Kelvin Bridge, Stobcross, Anderston Cross and Glasgow Central Low Level stations opened.
01/02/1897Airdrie Branch (Caledonian Railway)
Airdrie [CR] trains begin to run from Glasgow Central Low Level on the Glasgow Central Railway (on opening of the line via Parkhead [CR]).
01/10/1897Glasgow Central Railway
Bothwell [CR] trains run through to Glasgow Central Low Level.
03/06/1956Glasgow Central Railway
Stobcross East, Anderston, Glasgow Central Low Level, Glasgow Cross, Glasgow Green, Bridgeton Cross [CR] Junction signal boxes closed during conversion to colour light signalling. The boxes were replaced by new panels in the boxes at Stobcross and Bridgeton Cross [CR] Junction.
05/10/1964Glasgow Central Railway
Partick Central to Rutherglen closed to passengers. Partick West, Glasgow Central Low Level, Glasgow Cross, Bridgeton Cross [CR], Dalmarnock and Rutherglen closed. Bridgeton Cross [CR] to Carmyle to Newton closed to passengers. Bridgeton Cross [CR], Parkhead Stadium, Tollcross and Carmyle closed. Partick Central (excluded) to Strathclyde Junction (excluded) closed to all traffic. Bridgeton Cross [CR] to Tollcross (excluded) closed to all traffic. (The Lanarkshire and Dumbartonshire Railway also closed to passengers.)
05/11/1979Glasgow Central Railway
The Argyle Line; Stobcross to Strathclyde Junction and Rutherglen Junction re-opened to passengers. Stations at; Finnieston [2nd], Anderston, Glasgow Central Low Level, Argyle Street, Dalmarnock and Rutherglen.
11/12/1994Glasgow Central Railway
The River Kelvin bursts its banks and floods the disused tunnels from Kelvin Bridge to Stobcross, where it floods the open Argyle Line railway. (Alternative date 9th.) The route through Glasgow Central Low Level is closed between Partick and Rutherglen and trains are diverted onto the Sunnyside Junction to Whifflet section of the Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway for access to Motherwell. This remains in operation for around nine months. Units 314208 and 314212 are trapped in the floodwater at Glasgow Central where the water reached half way up the sides of the carriages.

News items

06/10/2023Glasgow: ScotRail issues warning of people on tracks [The Herald]
11/08/2023Ex-Vatican guide recruited to provide Italian boost to acclaimed Glasgow Central Station tours [Scotsman]
01/09/2022Glasgow Central to have no lift access to lower platforms for eight days this month [Glasgow World]
22/05/2022Scotland's 10 best underground tours: Caves, tunnels, bunkers, mines and crypts [Herald Scotland]
10/02/2022Rutherglen residents to be without Sunday train service for nearly two months [Daily Record]
11/01/2022Glasgow low level rail route to close for major improvement works [Glasgow Times]
19/12/2021Hidden Glasgow Central platform being brought back to life as 'usable space' [GlasgowLive]
03/12/2021Key rail link for Hydro, Celtic Park and Emirates Arena in Glasgow to close for two months [Glasgow World]
03/12/2021Passenger Survey launched ahead of rail upgrade works [Network Rail]
04/08/2021Art display plays Central role in Glasgow railway stations heritage [ScotRail]