Edinburgh Waverley railway station

View of the station from the Scott Monument

Waverley station is situated in a steep, narrow valley between the medieval Old Town and the 18th century New Town. Princes Street, the premier shopping street, runs close to its north side. The valley is bridged by the North Bridge, rebuilt in 1897 as a three-span iron and steel bridge, on huge sandstone piers. This passes high above the station's central section, with the greater half of the station being west of North Bridge.

The central booking hall is just west of the northern massive stone pier of the bridge and cleverly hides it within its bulk. Waverley Bridge lies at the western end of the station (though platforms extend below it) and it is this road which, by means of ramps, formerly afforded vehicular access to the station and still provides two of the six pedestrian entrances to the station.

The valley to the west of the station, formerly the site of the Nor Loch, is the public parkland of Princes Street Gardens. Directly east of the station are St Andrew's House, which accommodates part of the Scottish Government and Governor's House.

Location of Waverley and (former) lines emanating from the station

Edinburgh's Old Town, perched on a steep-sided sloping ridge, was bounded on the north by a valley in which the Nor Loch had been formed. In the 1750s overcrowding led to proposals to link across this valley to allow development to the north. The "noxious lake" was to be narrowed into "a canal of running water", with a bridge formed across the east end of the loch adjacent to the physic garden. This link was built from 1766 as the North Bridge and at the same time plans for the New Town began development to the north, with Princes Street to get unobstructed views south over sloping gardens and the proposed canal. The loch was drained as work on the bridge proceeded. In 1770 a coachbuilder began work on properties feued at the corner between the bridge and Princes Street, and feuers on the other side of the street strongly objected to this construction blocking their views to the south. A series of court cases ended with the decision that the buildings nearing completion could stay, immediately to the west of that some workshops would be allowed below the level of Princes Street, and further west a park would be "kept and preserved in perpetuity as pleasure ground" in what became Princes Street Gardens.[6]

In the mid 1830s proposals for a railway from Glasgow running along the gardens to a station at the North Bridge were set out in a prospectus with assurances that the trains would be concealed from view, and smoke from them "would scarcely be seen". An association of "Princes Street Proprietors" who had feued houses in the street, and had spent large sums turning the "filthy and offensive bog" of the Nor Loch into quiet gardens, strongly opposed the railway and in late 1836 put forward their case against the Act of Parliament for the railway. The Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway opened in 1842 with its terminus at Haymarket railway station, stopping short of Princes Street. In the Railway Mania of the 1840s, the railway sought another Act of Parliament allowing access along the gardens, and at the same time two other railways proposed terminus stations at the North Bridge site. By then several of the Princes Street properties were shops or hotels with an interest in development, and agreement was reached in 1844 on walls and embankments to conceal the Edinburgh and Glasgow railway line in a cutting, with compensation of almost £2,000 for the proprietors.[7]

The North Bridge station was opened on 22 June 1846 by the North British Railway as the terminus for its line from Berwick-upon-Tweed. The Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway's General station opened on 17 May 1847, on the same day as the Canal Street station of the Edinburgh, Leith and Newhaven Railway, serving Leith and Granton via a long rope-hauled tunnel under the New Town. The collective name "Waverley", after the Waverley Novels by Sir Walter Scott, was used for the three from around 1854 when the through "Waverley" route to Carlisle opened. Canal Street station was also known as Edinburgh Princes Street,[1] not to be confused with the Caledonian Railway railway station later built at the West End which was named Princes Street station from 1870.

From 1866-1868, the North British Railway acquired the stations of its rivals, demolished all three and closed the Scotland Street tunnel to Canal Street. The present Victorian station was built on the site. Along the tracks of this first station, Hanna, Donald & Wilson built some very impressive roofs. The station was extended in the late 19th century. In 1897, the impressive glass dome was added.[8] Waverley has been in continual use since, under the auspices of the North British, the LNER, British Railways (rebranded as British Rail after 1965), Railtrack and latterly Network Rail. From its opening in its current form by the eastward tunnelled extension from Haymarket, Waverley has been the principal railway station in Edinburgh. From 1870 to 1965, the city had a second major station, Princes Street, operated by the rival Caledonian Railway, but this was never as important as Waverley.

Aberdeen express leaving Edinburgh Waverley in 1957

British Rail brought railway electrification in 1991 with electric trains on the East Coast Main Line to Glasgow Central and via York to London King's Cross.

The station's large size and the unusual topography of its surroundings mean that it contains a large amount of valuable, centrally located land. The station's successive owners, British Rail, Railtrack and its current owner Network Rail have been criticised for underusing the valuable city-centre spaces available within, there being a legal covenant preventing any upwards extension, which would obstruct the view of Arthur's Seat from Princes Street. The elevated walkway linking the Waverley Steps (from Princes Street to Market Street) has been upgraded with the recommissioning of the suburban platforms (at the south) and provision of additional through platforms to the north to serve the increased proportion of through rail traffic.

Waverley Station roof from the north-east

During 2006 and 2007, parts of Waverley were extensively refurbished, including two new through platforms and the electrification of platforms 12 to 18 in preparation for electric trains from the Airdrie-Bathgate Rail Link and future lines in Scotland to be electrified by the EGIP (Edinburgh/Glasgow Improvement Project).[9]

From 2010 to 2012, the glazing of the roof of Waverley station was entirely replaced with new strengthened clear glass panels, replacing the old 34,000 m² (370,000 sq ft) of mixed surfaces including felt, cloudy wired glass and plastic sheet. Part of a £130 million upgrade, this has greatly increased the amount of natural light in the station.[10][11][12]

Adjacent buildings

Former North British Hotel above the station

As at other large railway stations of the Victorian and Edwardian eras, the railway company constructed a grand station hotel beside their station. The North British Hotel, adjacent to the station at the corner between Princes Street and North Bridge (on the site of the coachworks[6]), opened in 1902. In 1983, British Rail sold it to the Forte hotel group. In 1988, Forte closed the hotel for a year to extensively remodel and update what had become something of a faded jewel. When it reopened, it was rechristened The New Balmoral Hotel, maintaining the NB initials in what has proved to be an astute marketing move, despite the hotel being 115 miles (185 km) from Balmoral Castle; subsequently, New was dropped from the name. The hotel enjoys commanding views over central Edinburgh and is one of the most luxurious and expensive hotels in the UK. There is no longer a direct entrance from the station.

Waverley Market is a shopping centre which occupies the space between Waverley Station, Waverley Bridge, Princes Street and the Balmoral hotel. It was formerly known as Waverley Market, Waverley Shopping Centre and Princes Mall; it opened in 1985. The mall has benefited from the installation of escalators on the Waverley Steps to Princes Street in 2011. From 1844 to 1938, the site was home to a fruit and vegetable market which gained an iron roof in the 1870s.

Waverley concourse in 2010

• Caledonian Sleeper operates sleeper train services to London Euston and the Highlands.
• CrossCountry operates Plymouth via Birmingham New Street. They operate an hourly service and a two-hourly service to/from Glasgow Central, with few limited extras to Dundee and Aberdeen.
• ScotRail Trains operate the majority of the services from Edinburgh, including five routes to Glasgow, the Fife Circle, the reopened Borders Railway to Tweedbank and services to Stirling, Dunblane, Aberdeen, Dundee, Perth, North Berwick and Dunbar.
• TransPennine Express operates a two-hourly service to Manchester Airport via Manchester Piccadilly on the West Coast Main Line and, since December 2019, also operate services to Liverpool Lime Street via Newcastle, York, Leeds and Manchester Victoria.
• Avanti West Coast operates a two-hourly service to London Euston via Birmingham New Street.
• London North Eastern Railway operates regular services (every 30 minutes) to London King's Cross on the East Coast Main Line.
• Lumo started operating services from London King's Cross to Edinburgh Waverley via Stevenage, Newcastle and Morpeth in October 2021.[17][18]

Routes – present and past

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Terminus		London North Eastern Railway Flying Scotsman / London-Edinburgh (fast)		Newcastle
Terminus		London North Eastern Railway London-Edinburgh semi-fast		Newcastle, Dunbar or Alnmouth
Haymarket or Terminus		London North Eastern Railway London-Edinburgh / Scotland express services		Berwick-upon-Tweed
Terminus		TransPennine Express TransPennine North West		Haymarket
Terminus		TransPennine Express North TransPennine		Dunbar or Morpeth
Haymarket or Terminus		CrossCountry Cross Country Network		Dunbar or Berwick-upon-Tweed
Terminus		Avanti West Coast West Coast Main Line		Haymarket
Terminus		ScotRail Glasgow to Edinburgh via Falkirk Line		Haymarket
Terminus		ScotRail North Clyde Line		Haymarket
Haymarket or Terminus		ScotRail Borders Railway		Brunstane
Terminus		ScotRail Edinburgh to Dunblane Line		Haymarket
Brunstane or Terminus		ScotRail Fife Circle Line		Haymarket
Terminus		ScotRail Shotts Line		Haymarket
Haymarket or Terminus		ScotRail North Berwick Line		Musselburgh
Terminus		ScotRail Edinburgh to Dunbar		Musselburgh
Terminus		Caledonian Sleeper Lowland Caledonian Sleeper		Carstairs
Glasgow Queen Street		Caledonian Sleeper Highland Caledonian Sleeper Fort-William—London		Preston
Falkirk Grahamston southbound only no pick-up/setdown		Caledonian Sleeper Highland Caledonian Sleeper Inverness to London
Inverkeithing no pick-up/setdown		Caledonian Sleeper Highland Caledonian Sleeper Aberdeen—London
Preston		Caledonian Sleeper Highland Caledonian Sleeper London to Inverness		Stirling northbound only no pick-up/setdown
Terminus		Lumo Edinburgh to London		Morpeth
	Historical railways
Terminus		North British Railway NBR Main Line		Jock's Lodge Line open, station closed
Terminus		North British Railway Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway		Haymarket Line and station open
	Disused railways
Terminus as Canal Street Station		North British Railway Edinburgh, Leith and Newhaven Railway		Scotland Street Line and station closed
Terminus		North British Railway Edinburgh, Leith and Granton Railway		Abbeyhill Line and station closed
Haymarket Line and station open		North British Railway Edinburgh Suburban Line

Layout map of Waverley station

The main station facilities are located in the middle of what is essentially a large island platform which is surrounded by platforms on all four sides. There are 20 numbered platforms. There are three pairs of platforms which share the same tracks.

• There are two tracks on the north side. The northernmost track is split between Platform 20 (west) and Platform 1 (east) and the other is split between Platform 19 (west) and Platform 2 (east).
• There are four east-facing bay platforms, Platforms 3–6.
• There are four tracks on the south side. From north to south, these are:
  • A track which is split between Platform 11 (west) and Platform 7 (east).
  • Platform 10.
  • Platform 9, which is subdivided into "9w" (west) and "9e" (east) sections.
  • Platform 8, which is subdivided likewise.
• There are seven west-facing bay platforms, Platforms 12–18.

In March 2019, Network Rail announced proposals to redevelop Waverley station in order to meet an anticipated increase in passenger demand by 2048. The Waverley Masterplan drawn up by engineering firm Arup Group envisages the creation of a new mezzanine level concourse above the main platforms to facilitate passenger circulation within the station, with a link through to the neighbouring Waverley Mall shopping centre. As part of the redevelopment, the entrance ramps from Waverley Bridge into the station would be removed and the new concourse would be enclosed in plate glass to provide panoramic views over the Old Town. The plans also make reference to a "transport hub", although an interchange with Edinburgh Trams is not specified.[19][20]

• Railtrack (Waverley Station) Order Confirmation Act 2000

• Brailsford, Martyn, ed. (December 2017) [1987]. Railway Track Diagrams 1: Scotland & Isle of Man (6th ed.). Frome: Trackmaps. ISBN 978-0-9549866-9-8.
• Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
• 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. ISBN 978-1-85260-086-0. OCLC 22311137.
• Jowett, Alan (2000). Jowett's Nationalised Railway Atlas (1st ed.). Penryn, Cornwall: Atlantic Transport Publishers. ISBN 978-0-906899-99-1. OCLC 228266687.

• Glen, Ann (2013). Edinburgh Waverley. Lily Publications Ltd. (UK). ISBN 9781907945250. OCLC 858090434.
• Meighan, Michael (2014). Edinburgh Waverley Station Through Time. Amberley Publishing. ISBN 9781445622163. OCLC 883514283.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Edinburgh Waverley railway station.

• Official website