Location type

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Note: text in square brackets is added for clarity and was not part of the location's name.

Description

This is a double track viaduct which crosses the River Forth to the north of Stirling station (and Stirling North Junction). The viaduct carries the line from Stirling to Alloa, Kincardine and Dunfermline Town.

In order that the Stirling and Dunfermline Railway receive support from the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway the latter insisted upon a second independent route into Stirling over a parallel bridge to the Scottish Central Railway. The SCR's bridge was to the immediate west. (Interestingly the 1863 OS map shows an abandoned approach to the north end of the original bridge, still with a double track disconnected at either end. Perhaps a temporary initial arrangement. Certainly the earthworks survive and were even later re-used for some short NB sidings.)

During repairs to the viaduct in 1906-7 there was a temporary Shore Road North Signal Box to the north of the viaduct.

The railway closed to passengers in 1968. It was reduced to a single track, starting from the south end of the viaduct and going east to Manor Powis, in 1972. In 1980 the main line to Dunfermline Upper closed and in 1981 the secondary route to Kincardine closed, being cut back to Alloa West Junction, and further cut back to Cambus in 1987. Final use was to Glenochil Yeast at Menstrie.

The bridge was out of use from 1994, when the Menstrie branch closed to freight, and 2008 when the SAK project re-opened the railway between Stirling, Alloa and Kincardine.

The line is double over the viaduct, reducing to single at Causewayhead Junction, an example of the modern naming approach where a double line drops to single or vice versa.

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