Lanark

Location type

Station

Name and dates

Lanark (1854-)

Station code: LNK National Rail ScotRail
Where: South Lanarkshire, Scotland
Opened on the Lanark Branch (Caledonian Railway).
Open on the Glasgow to Lanark.

Description

This is the terminus of a a short branch. The station has two platforms and two station buildings. The larger of the buildings is sandstone and of two storeys, presenting one storey to the platform with a small canopy, it dates from 1867 and is 'B' listed. The second building is timber and has a glazed canopy. This building is similar to other Caledonian Railway buildings built around 1900.

The original station had a single platform, today the platform by the stone building. To the east was a loop and small goods yard on the south side. A market was to the south of the goods station. The station was, and is, approached from the east. Originally the line to Lanark was single track. Trains came from the Motherwell and Glasgow direction.

The station was rebuilt in 1867, just after the Douglas Branch (Caledonian Railway) opened from a triangular junction east of the station in 1864. Passenger trains to Douglas via Lanark had to reverse in the station. A curve was put in at Silvermuir to allow trains to approach from the Carstairs and Edinburgh direction. The branch was doubled.

The enlarged station had two platforms, with three lines between (the central line being a release road for locomotives). This is the present station. The goods yard was expanded and a nearby road was diverted south to provide the space. The signal box, in timber, was opposite the goods yard on the north side of the line at the station throat.

In 1873 the Douglas branch reached Muirkirk [1st] and this Ayr via the Glasgow and South Western Railway.

A second station opened at Lanark Racecourse in 1920.

The Muirkirk [2nd] branch was closed to passengers in 1964 and the line was cut back to Ponfeigh for coal traffic. The west to south curve just east of Lanark was taken out. The Muirkirk [2nd] branch was closed completely in 1968, the Edinburgh curve onto the main line was taken out and the Lanark branch reverted to single track in 1971.

Despite the run down the branch was electrified allowing electric commuter trains to run from Glasgow. The signal box closed in 1973, replaced by the Motherwell Signalling Centre. The goods yard was cut back and finally closed in November 1983. A disused loading bank remains.

The station remains in a good state of preservation.

Tags

Terminus station

External links

Canmore site record
NLS Collection OS map of 1892-1914
NLS Collection OS map of 1944-67
NLS Map
NLS Map
NLS Map
NLS Map

Facilities

Listing: B



Chronology Dates

  /  /1847Lanark Branch (Caledonian Railway)
Lanark branch authorised to Cleghorn.
  /  /1860Douglas Branch (Caledonian Railway)
Line authorised: Smyllum Junction (Lanark) to Douglas. Smyllum Curve (Douglas Junction East to Douglas Junction South) and Silvermuir Curve (Silvermuir Junction to Silvermuir South Junction) also authorised.
01/04/1864Douglas Branch (Caledonian Railway)
Lanark (Smyllum Junction) to Douglas opened. In Lanark a triangular junction is created by opening Douglas Junction South to Douglas Junction East.
01/06/1874Muirkirk Branch (Caledonian Railway)
Opened to passenger traffic to Muirkirk [1st]. (Later a second Caledonian Railway line was built from Coalburn to a new Muirkirk [2nd] but the line was not used as the Glasgow and South Western Railway threatened to apply for running powers through to Lanark - however Muirkirk [2nd] did open).
05/10/1964Muirkirk Branch (Caledonian Railway)Douglas Branch (Caledonian Railway)
Muirkirk [2nd] to Lanark (Smyllum West Junction) closed to passengers.
18/04/1966Lanark Branch (Caledonian Railway)
Lanark to Carstairs (Lanark Junction South Curve) closed to passengers.
07/10/1968Lanark Branch (Caledonian Railway)
Lanark to Carstairs (Lanark Junction South Curve) closed to freight. (Alternative date 20/10/1968).

News items

20/05/2023ScotRail services between Glasgow and Lanark disrupted after train becomes tangled in power cables [STV]
12/04/2022Community projects benefit from £4m investment [ScotRail]
21/01/2022Lanark station has suffered many cuts [Glasgow World]
07/12/2021Hedgehog Highway solves a prickly issue at Lanark station [Network Rail]
19/10/2021Scottish terminal sold to rail ballast aggregates quarry owners [RailFreight.com]
08/04/2021History of Lanark Railway Station [Carluke Gazette]
09/02/2021Snow causes 'major disruption' at main Glasgow stations [Glasgow Live]
03/12/20202020 National Railway Heritage Awards [NRHA]
04/06/2020Wild boar on the loose at Wishaw causes train disruption [BBC News]
05/05/2019Has capital raillink plan finally hit the buffers? [Carluke Gazette]