The residents of Laurencekirk, many of whom now commute to Aberdeen and Dyce had successfully campaigned for the station to be reopened – the official announcement being made during December 2006 that the station would open in December 2007, to be funded by Transport Scotland and the Regional Transport Partnership Nestrans.[10] The announcement of December 2007 for the re-commencement of services to and from Laurencekirk was ultimately overly ambitious and it was announced in early 2008 that the station would be finished and ready for the December 2008 timetable change.[11] However, in a New Release from Transport Scotland, the opening date was given at Spring 2009.[12] The station was reopened by the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure & Climate Change, Stewart Stevenson on 17 May 2009.[9]
The station building, which had fallen into poor overall condition was refurbished during Spring 2008, and a new car park with 70 parking spaces was built by Aberdeenshire Council and Nestrans, across the railway line from the station building, together with a small number of disabled parking spaces next to the station building.[11]First ScotRail made provisional plans for 19 trains to serve the station each day, made up of 10 northbound services and 9 southbound services, with southbound services serving both Edinburgh and Glasgow.[11] ScotRail will also be responsible for gritting and snow-clearing at the station.
On the first anniversary of the reopening of the station, it was revealed that almost double the expected number of passengers had used it – 64,000 people as opposed to a projection of 36,000.[13]
Facilities
Although the station is unstaffed, both platforms are equipped with shelters and benches. Platform 1 also has a help point and is adjacent to the car park, whilst platform 2 has a ticket machine. Both platforms have step-free access, and are connected by a footbridge, which also has a ramp.[14]
The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.
Services
As of the May 2022 timetable, Laurencekirk is served by an hourly stopping service which runs between Montrose and Inverurie. Some services also extend to Perth or Glasgow Queen Street westbound, and Inverness eastbound (although some terminate short at Aberdeen or Dyce). A limited service operates on Sundays, northbound to Aberdeen and southbound to Glasgow Queen Street, Edinburgh Waverley and Perth.[16]
Jowett, Alan (March 1989). Jowett's Railway Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland: From Pre-Grouping to the Present Day (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN978-1-85260-086-0. OCLC22311137.
86,332
88,566
