Kyle of Lochalsh line

The Kyle of Lochalsh line runs east-west and links the town of Dingwall, on the east coast of the Highlands at the tip of the Cromarty Firth, with the village of Kyle of Lochalsh on the west coast, close to the Isle of Skye. The line lies entirely within the former county of Ross and Cromarty, part of the modern-day Highland council area.

Dingwall–Achnasheen: Easter Ross

Dingwall railway station

Lochluichart railway station

The route begins at Dingwall station,[upper-alpha 1] – a junction station with the Far North Line, which runs (mostly) along the Moray Firth and links Inverness with Wick and Thurso.[3] Almost immediately north of Dingwall, the two lines diverge at Dingwall Junction[upper-alpha 2] and the line to Kyle of Lochalsh takes a sharp left turn to head west.

Initially, the single-track line briefly follows the course of the A834 road until it abruptly curves off to the north, crossing over the River Peffery, only to turn west again. There used to be a short branch line here that went straight on towards Strathpeffer; this branch closed to passengers in 1946 and closed completely in 1951.[4][5] The line to Kyle, meanwhile, bypasses the town about 1 mile (1.6 km) to the north; Achterneed station[upper-alpha 3] existed along this stretch and also served Strathpeffer until it too closed in 1964.[6] Achterneed is one of only three stations on the main line to have been closed, and one of two that were never reopened.

The line then continues west, climbing at gradients as steep as 1 in 50, until it passes close to the summit of Raven Rock where it starts descending. It eventually meets the Black Water – a tributary of the River Conon – and follows it upstream alongside the A832 road. The railway and the road both skirt the southern edge of Loch Garve and then turn northwest, approaching the first open station on the line – Garve.[upper-alpha 4] This was supposed to be site of a junction with the Garve and Ullapool Railway to the port village of Ullapool but, despite securing government approval, this line was never built.[7]

Beyond Garve, the railway and the A832 continue westwards, away from the Black Water whose source lies to the north. Soon, the line meets Loch Luichart – the source of the River Conon itself – and follows its northern edge; Lochluichart station[upper-alpha 5] is located at the northwestern tip of the loch. This station was moved to this location from its original site in 1954 as a result of a hydroelectric scheme, which raised the water level of the loch.[8][9] From here, the line continues to follow several of the Conon's tributaries, passing by Loch a' Chuilinn and Loch Achanalt until it reaches Achanalt station[upper-alpha 6] near the mouth of the River Bran. The track then follows the course of this river for about six miles (9.7 km) until the village of Achnasheen, near the eastern end of Loch a' Chroisg. The station at Achnasheen[upper-alpha 7], like Garve, was to be the site of a junction: the proposed Loch Maree and Aultbea Railway was to run between Achnasheen and the small fishing village of Aultbea, but the line never received government approval.[10]

Down the line from Achnasheen the line turns southwest, parting ways with the A832 which continues westwards; the railway now parallels the A890 road instead.

Achnasheen–Kyle of Lochalsh: Wester Ross

Achnashellach railway station

The avalanche shelter southwest of Attadale

Stromeferry railway station

Plockton railway station

The terminus at Kyle of Lochalsh station, with the Isle of Skye in the background

A few miles southwest of Achnasheen the track reaches its highest point above sea level, as it leaves the drainage basin of the River Conon (which flows to the Cromarty Firth on the east coast) and enters the basin of the River Carron (whose estuary is on the west coast). The line meets the River Carron itself at Loch Scaven near its source, and then follows the course of the river downstream.

Close to the point where the Carron is joined by the Alltan na Feola stream lies the site of the former Glencarron station;[upper-alpha 8] this small halt closed in 1964, although some drivers continued to stop at the station unofficially, refusing to acknowledge the station's closure, until as late as the 1990s.[11][12] The next open station on the line is Achnashellach,[upper-alpha 9] some 12 miles 42 chains (20.2 km) down the line from Achnasheen; this is the longest distance between two existing consecutive stations on the line.[2] The line then skirts the northwestern edge of Loch Dùghaill and continues to follow the River Carron until reaching Strathcarron station,[upper-alpha 10] where the river ends as it flows into Loch Carron, a sea inlet. From here, the railway runs along the southern coastline of Loch Carron, and continues to hug the coast all the way until the terminus at Kyle of Lochalsh (except briefly near Plockton).

A short distance from Strathcarron the line reaches another station, Attadale,[upper-alpha 11] located near the mouth of the river of the same name. Just southwest of the station, the line passes through an avalanche shelter – an unusual tunnel-like structure, approximately 270 yd (250 m), which also carries the A890 and is partially open on the loch-side; it was built in 1978 to prevent rocks from falling onto the road and track. The line then continues for nearly five more miles (8 km) until it reaches Stromeferry station,[upper-alpha 12] adjacent to a former ferry port which linked the area with North Strome on the opposite side of the loch. Occasionally the ferry link reopens on a temporary basis, when the A890 is closed due to landslips.[13][14] At Stromeferry the A890 turns south; from here, the railway does not parallel any major roads, instead simply following the coast.

The next station on the line is Duncraig,[upper-alpha 13] which was built as a private, single-platform halt to serve Duncraig Castle; it was not made available for the public until 1949, more than 50 years after opening.[15] Similarly to Glencarron, the station closed in 1965 but continued to be served unofficially, as drivers refused to acknowledge the station's closure;[16] however, unlike Glencarron, Duncraig eventually reopened officially, in 1976.[15] From here it is just over 1 mile (1.6 km) until the next station at Plockton;[upper-alpha 14] this is the shortest distance between any two stations on the line.[2] Plockton station is actually located about 0.6 miles (1.0 km) south of the main part of the village itself, although it lies adjacent to both the Plockton High School and the Plockton Airstrip.

The penultimate station en route is Duirinish,[upper-alpha 15] which is also a short distance away from Plockton; the station primarily serves the villages of Duirinish and Drumbuie. From here, the line runs in a generally southerly direction, although the exact heading varies significantly as the track closely follows the jagged coast. The railway leaves the coast of Loch Carron just before entering the village of Kyle of Lochalsh; it terminates at Kyle of Lochalsh station,[upper-alpha 16] built on a pier right on the edge of Loch Alsh, just 750 metres (2,460 ft) away from the Isle of Skye which can be seen across the loch.

Two Class 158s passing each other at Garve station, one of the passing loops on the line.

The full line between Dingwall and Kyle of Lochalsh is 63 miles 64 chains (102.7 km).[2] It is almost entirely single-track, except for four double-track passing loops at Dingwall, Garve, Achnasheen and Strathcarron, and the two platforms and two sidings at Kyle of Lochalsh.[2] The entire line is unelectrified.[2]

The whole line, together with the Far North Line, is signalled using the Radio Electronic Token Block system, which is very cost-effective in both implementation and maintenance, but significantly limits the capacity of the lines.[17]

Along the route there are 29 bridges, 31 cuttings, and a single tunnel.

The route was built in two parts: the Dingwall and Skye Railway, between Dingwall and Stromeferry, opened on 19 August 1870,[18] while the Kyle of Lochalsh Extension (Highland Railway) took the line beyond Stromeferry to Kyle of Lochalsh on 2 November 1897.[19] Dingwall station itself had been open since 1862, as an intermediate station on the Inverness and Ross-shire Railway (part of the modern-day Far North Line).

The Strathpeffer Branch operated between 1885 and 1951.[20]

In 1933, the London, Midland and Scottish Railway introduced two named trains on the line, The Hebridean and The Lewisman.[21]

In July 1939 a landslide between Attadale and Stomeferry derailed an engine and six freight vans. The landslide was caused by recent heavy rains.[22]

In 1949 it was planned to relocate Lochluichart station to allow the flooding of the area by the Glascarnoch-Luichart-Torr Achilty hydroelectric scheme.[23] On 3 May 1954 a new station was opened as Lochluichart.[24] The deviation required about two miles (three kilometres) on stone-pitched embankments and in rock cuttings, a 100-foot (30 m) bridge over the River Conon and a 36-foot (11 m) bridge.[25]

In the 1960s the line was listed to be closed under the Reshaping of British Railways report; however it was reprieved and services continued.[26]

In 1970, British Rail wanted to close the line when Ross and Cromarty council voted to create a new £460,000 (equivalent to £7,600,000 in 2021)[27] ferry terminal at Ullapool (43 nmi or 80 km from Stornoway) replacing that at Kyle of Lochalsh (71 nmi or 131 km from Stornoway).[28] In December 1971 it was reported that the costs of operating the line were £318,000 per annum (equivalent to £4,780,000 in 2021),[27] with revenue of £51,000 per annum (equivalent to £770,000 in 2021),[27] and the Secretary of State for Transport agreed that the line should close,[29] but a spirited local campaign again succeeded in reversing this decision and keeping it open.

In February 1989 the bridge over the River Ness in Inverness was washed away, leaving both the Kyle line and the Far North Line stranded, but new Class 156 "Sprinter" trains were brought over by road, and a temporary yard was built to service them at Muir of Ord. The line reopened in May 1990.[30]

A Class 158 at Achnasheen station

Attadale station is a request stop.

As of April 2022, the Monday−Saturday service pattern on the line consists of four trains per day running eastbound from Kyle of Lochalsh to Inverness (via Dingwall and the Far North Line), and four trains per day westbound from Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh. On Sundays there is just one train per day each way, increasing to two per day during the summer months.[31] ScotRail operates all services on the line[31] with its Class 158/7 "Express Sprinter" diesel multiple units.

All services call at every intermediate station en route,[31] although Lochluichart, Achanalt, Achnashellach, Attadale, Duncraig and Duirinish stations are request stops: passengers wishing to board the train at these stations must flag the train by raising their arm, while those wishing to alight must inform the on-board train supervisor to arrange for the train to stop. If there are no passengers wishing to get on or off the train at a request stop, it will pass through without stopping.[31]

Services between Inverness and Kyle of Lochalsh typically have a journey time of about 2 hours 40 minutes end-to-end.[31]

• Stations between Inverness and Dingwall are also included for reference, as all trains on the line also call there
• Stations in italics are request stops
• The statistics cover twelve-month periods that start in April

In the Scottish Government's National Transport Strategy, published in February 2020, it was stated that the line would not be electrified with overhead lines, but rather, an alternative to diesel traction will be used for the route.[33]

The line near Duirinish station; the Isle of Skye can be seen in the background with a covering of snow.

The Kyle of Lochalsh line was featured in Eddie McConnell's lyrical documentary The Line to Skye (1973) with commentary by Scottish writer William McIlvanney, commissioned as part of Ross & Cromarty's campaign to keep the line open at a time when it was threatened with closure. The film follows the train from Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh, describing the communities, landscape and wildlife along its route, while contrasting the frustration of motorists with the relaxation of the journey by rail.[34]

In Stephen Durrell's 1939 documentary West of Inverness, the importance of the Kyle of Lochalsh line to the crofters of the West Highlands is demonstrated through its role of transporting passengers, mail, parcels, food and livestock to and from their communities. The film shows the LMS steam locomotives that operated the line at this time.[35]

In the episode of Great Railway Journeys of the World "Confessions of a Trainspotter" (1980), Michael Palin travels from London to the Kyle of Lochalsh and returns with the railway station's sign.

Video 125 Ltd. produced a driver's eye view documentary of the line in 1987, when the service was still operated using loco-hauled trains, in this case motive power being provided by Class 37 no. 37262 named Dounreay after the nuclear power station. Narration was by Paul Coia.

Nicholas Whittaker travelled the line both ways during the summer of 1973, an experience he wrote about in his 1995 book Platform Souls.[36]

As with the other railway lines of the western Highlands (the West Highland Railway and the Callander and Oban Railway), John Thomas wrote a comprehensive and highly readable history, The Skye Railway.

• Thomas, John (1977). The Skye Railway. David and Charles. ISBN 0-7153-7383-8.
• Kelly, Peter (September 1983). "Pearls beyond price". Rail Enthusiast. EMAP National Publications. pp. 23–33. ISSN 0262-561X. OCLC 49957965.
• Dunn, Pip (22 October – 4 November 1997). "The Skye survivor". RAIL. No. 316. EMAP Apex Publications. pp. 40–41. ISSN 0953-4563. OCLC 49953699.
• Vallance, H.A. (November 1966). "The Northern Highland Lines Today: Part One – Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh". Railway Magazine. Vol. 112, no. 787. pp. 612–616.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kyle of Lochalsh Line.

• RailScot - Dingwall and Skye Railway
• RailScot - Kyle of Lochalsh Extension Railway
• RailScot - Strathpeffer Branch
• Route on OpenStreetMap (Dingwall–Kyle of Lochalsh)
• Timetable World - Historical timetables for this line Archived 26 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine
• Kyle of Lochalsh Station in 2018
• Views of the stations in 1970