Beasdale

Scottish Gaelic: Biasdail[1]
National Rail
The station seen in 2012
General information
LocationGlen Beasdale, Highland
Scotland
Coordinates56°54′00″N 5°45′50″W / 56.9001°N 5.7640°W / 56.9001; -5.7640
Grid referenceNM709850
Managed byScotRail
Platforms1
Other information
Station codeBSL[2]
History
Original companyMallaig Extension Railway of West Highland Railway
Pre-groupingNorth British Railway
Post-groupingLNER
Key dates
1 April 1901Station opened[3]
6 September 1965Opened to the public[4]
Passengers
2018/19Decrease 342
2019/20Decrease 324
2020/21Decrease 0
2021/22Increase 162
2022/23Increase 170
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Beasdale railway station is a railway station serving Glen Beasdale in the Highland region of Scotland. This station is on the West Highland Line, sited 28 miles 49 chains (46.0 km) from the former Banavie Junction, between Lochailort and Arisaig.[5] ScotRail manage the station and operate all services.

History

Longer distance view (1961)

It was originally a private station for the nearby Arisaig House,[6] and the station was thus originally opened on 1 April 1901,[7] but was fully open to the public from 6 September 1965.[8]


The former station building is now a private holiday cottage.[6]

Facilities

The station is equipped with a bench, a shelter and a help point, with a small car park adjacent to the station.[9]

Passenger volume

Beasdale was one of six railway stations in Britain to see zero passengers in the 2020/21 period, due to decreased travel throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. It is therefore Britain's joint-least-used station alongside Abererch, Llanbedr, Sampford Courtenay, Stanlow and Thornton and Sugar Loaf.

It has been noted to consistently be one of the lesser-used stations across Scotland.[10][11]

Passenger volume at Beasdale[12]
2002–03 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23
Entries and exits 489 349 264 307 213 200 272 378 376 410 506 472 366 312 418 342 324 0 162 170

The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.

Services

There are four trains per day to Mallaig on Monday to Saturday, and three trains on Sunday. In the opposite direction, there are three through trains per day to Glasgow Queen Street (via Fort William) and one train per day to Fort William with a connecting train to Glasgow, Edinburgh and London Euston. On Sunday there are two Glasgow trains and one to Fort William.[13][14]

Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Lochailort   ScotRail
West Highland Line 		  Arisaig
  Historical railways  
Lochailort
Line and Station open 		  North British Railway
Mallaig Extension Railway of West Highland Railway
   Arisaig
Line and Station open

References

  1. ^ Brailsford 2017, Gaelic/English Station Index.
  2. ^ Deaves, Phil. "Railway Codes". railwaycodes.org.uk. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  3. ^ Butt (1995)
  4. ^ Quick 2022.
  5. ^ Bridge, Mike, ed. (2017). TRACKatlas of Mainland Britain: A Comprehensive Geographic Atlas Showing the Rail Network of Great Britain (3rd ed.). Sheffield: Platform 5 Publishing Ltd. p. 89. ISBN 978-1909431-26-3.
  6. ^ a b Wills 2014, p. 305.
  7. ^ Butt 1995.
  8. ^ Quick 2022, p. 72.
  9. ^ "National Rail Enquiries -". www.nationalrail.co.uk. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  10. ^ Dubas-Fisher, David; Walker, Peter A. (24 November 2022). "The busiest and quietest train stations in Scotland revealed". businessInsider. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
  11. ^ "Renfrewshire railway station is fourth busiest in Scotland, new figures reveal". The Gazette. 25 November 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
  12. ^ "Estimates of station usage | ORR Data Portal". dataportal.orr.gov.uk. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  13. ^ eNRT May 2022 Timetable, Table 218
  14. ^ eNRT December 2021 Edition, Table 218

Bibliography

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Beasdale railway station.


Railway stations served by ScotRail
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