Giffen Station

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Postby maxpower » Thu Apr 20, 2006 11:32 am

Ross,

That viaduct (the Gree viaduct) wasn't part of the Beith branch per se, but was part of the line that ran along side it. It's the light green line line on the diagram you posted, and it joined up with the other line about half way between the Barrmill junction and Giffen.

Image
(the viaduct crosses the Lugton Water just next to Gree farm off the main road)

It's been scheduled for demolition for a long time, yet it still sits there!

The line also went over the Giffenmill viaduct, just outside Barrmill, which has recently been scheduled for demolition.

Image
Gree viaduct

Image
Giffenmill viaduct

EDIT: Beaten to it! :evil: :wink:
Last edited by maxpower on Thu Apr 20, 2006 11:39 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Postby Alycidon » Thu Apr 20, 2006 11:38 am

Nice one Maxpower, I don't have access to any software to post images here at work. That map shows everything perfectly!
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Postby maxpower » Thu Apr 20, 2006 12:02 pm

I hate that map because I can waste hours pouring over the full thing! Should note that the map is from the mid 1920s.

Here's another picture of Gree (by Chris Court), this time with the north line in foreground:

Image
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Postby Renfrew Ross » Thu Apr 20, 2006 12:20 pm

That clears that one up then. Thanks.

I didn't realise there was as much rail activity in that area.

Looking at a more upto date map and earlier pictures, it would seem a full branch line still remains (above picture)to this day from Lugton to the RNAD at Beith via Giffen station. I didn't realise that line was still there. Don't think its visable from the road.

I'd imagine the need for transporting ordance via rail is no longer needed.
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Postby maxpower » Thu Apr 20, 2006 3:14 pm

Yep still there, there's a brief rundown on it on the bottom post in the first page of this thread, it is visible briefly from the A736 as the road passes over it, but it's deep down in an embankment. It also goes over the road via a bridge in the middle of Barrmill.

Giffen's the best place to see it, it's well worth a look if your interested in that sort of thing. It hasn't been used to moving anything to or from RNAD Beith in a very long time.
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Postby Renfrew Ross » Thu Apr 20, 2006 4:27 pm

It reminds me of the sidings just past Bishopton. I grew up there and use to hang about in the woods adjacent to them. The sidings opened out to at least 15 tracks off the main Inverclyde line which then converged to a single line going into the Royal Ordanance. Playing too close to there usually prompted a MOD police vehicle to appear from nowhere.

Anyway, I'm sure there used to be a weekly train that went in there very early on a Sunday morning, upto about early 1990's. Never saw it myself but I know a few folk who did. Must go down there and get some photo's.

Image

Found a photo
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Postby james73 » Thu Apr 20, 2006 4:55 pm

Alycidon wrote:Yes and no! There are two lines that crossed the Lugton Water and both went to the RNAD facility at Beith. The viaduct you are referring to carried the Caledonian Railway route to Ardrossan and Irvine, this line now stops at Neilston. The Beith Branch and the main access to the RNAD site was from the GSWR line, which crossed the valley via an embankment and smaller bridge furhter to the north. The access to the RNAD site left the GSWR branch and used the formation of the Caledonian line to reach the depot. See the OS map for the area for better detail.

Does the current branch line serve any purpose?



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Postby maxpower » Thu Apr 20, 2006 5:36 pm

james73 wrote:Does the current branch line serve any purpose?


As I mentioned, it's not been used by RNAD Beith for at least 10 years, and the last time it had a train on the tracks was 6 years ago during an emergency derail training experiment thing not long after the Paddington rail incident. See here for more info on that, and here are some pictures of the event on the Giffen line. Looks like it took place right next to the A736.

Image

So basically no purpose any more, I suspect it will be completely lifted sometime in the not too distant future.

Ross, interesting you mention that the trains stopped going to Bishopton in the early 90s, that's probably about the last time a train went to the Beith base too. Perhaps the MoD generally phased out train deliveries at that time?
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Postby yoker brian » Thu Apr 20, 2006 6:37 pm

The MOD still uses trains - IIRC there are sidings at Glen Douglas on the southern part of the West Highland line which see's regular freight trains to the near by RNAD Depot
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Postby maxpower » Thu Apr 20, 2006 6:54 pm

Ah well scrap that theory then! ::):
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Postby Alycidon » Thu Apr 20, 2006 6:59 pm

Great info and photographs Max - the derailed unit is the one currently at Summerlee, I think that this must have been it's last outing before preservation.
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Postby Alycidon » Thu Apr 20, 2006 7:43 pm

Some information on closure dates.
The line beyond Giffen was closed on 30th March 1953 and the track was removed by April 1955, Giffen station was closed in July 1932. The branch to Glengarnock was closed as far back as 1930. The short stretch between Giffen Junction and Barrmill Junction was also closed at this time and the track removed, but when the line over the viaduct from Lugton East Junction to Giffen Junction was lifted in 1950, the short stretch was reinstated to maintain access to the RNAD depot.
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Postby Sir Roger DeLodgerley » Fri Apr 21, 2006 8:54 am

Alycidon wrote: The branch to Glengarnock was closed as far back as 1930.


Not quite, Aly, Kilbirnie South station was closed and the passenger service over the branch withdrawn in 1930 but the line remained open for freight workings as far as Glengarnock until 1945. There is a picture of the closed Kilbirnie South station from 1936 in the book "Lost Railways of Ayrshire and Renfrewshire"

The Caledonian Railway timetable from 1921 shows 10 workings a day between Kilbirnie South and Giffen with 8 of those meeting connections to Glasgow Central. Someone has noted "suspended" against the first train in each direction but without a date sadly.
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Postby Alycidon » Fri Apr 21, 2006 9:17 am

I stand corrected Sir R. I based my post on the usually impeccable facts on Ewan Crawford's site and he quotes...

1/12/1930 Glengarnock High to Giffen closed to freight. This is confirmed on the tables I downloaded some time ago from the BLS but they do give a track removal date of about 1951 or later.

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Postby Renfrew Ross » Mon Apr 24, 2006 8:59 am

Image

The old 303's..... is there nothing they couldn't do.
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