Location type

Name and dates

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

Description

These sidings served a tank farm and distribution depot owned by Regent Oil / Texaco above Granton Harbour and north east of Granton Gasworks. Oil was supplied by sea, through West Wharf [Grantion] on the western breakwater, and oil distributed by rail and road. The depot closed when the wharf was closed on health and safety grounds.

The sidings were an adaptation of earlier sidings which connected to the uphill end of the line down to the Western Breakwater. They were located on the west side of the line, on a level gradient, and made a connection, at their southern end, to the northbound line with a crossover to the southbound line.

When this tank farm was built there was already a Shell tank farm on the east side of the breakwater line see Asiatic Petroleum Siding [Granton] and the breakwater line had been lifted - pipes were laid along the trackbed rising from the harbour to the tank farm. The new pair of sidings were looped and were between the Texaco tank farm (west) and breakwater line (east). To the west of the tank farm was the twisting line to Granton Gasworks, still open. A second smaller tank farm, the Regent Oil Depot (built 1960-62 for part of Texaco), was close to Shore Road and also on the west side of the breakwater line.

The depot supplied oil for Prestwick. There was a shunter.

Closure was in 1981, although the sidings survived until 1986 when the railway was dismantled between Granton Gasworks and Powderhall (excluded).

The shunter can now be found at Lathalmond.

Tags