Dumfries to Stranraer
We’re campaigning to reopen the 73-mile rail link between Dumfries and Stranraer, closed in 1965.
A 21st CENTURY RAILWAY NETWORK TO SERVICE 21st CENTURY PORTS
When considering Dumfries – Stranraer, reopening the Kirkcudbright branch, with shared use of the deep sea port (part used by the Royal Navy), would bring freight into Northern England. It would optimise rail paths and free up Southampton to Manchester corridors for expansion of freight by rail.
Our vision includes a west-to-north curve at Stranraer for direct running to Cairnryan and the Ayrshire Coast.
At Dumfries, north and south curves are needed to connect with the main line for direct running to Glasgow and Edinburgh, and south to Carlisle and beyond.
Castle Douglas and Newton Stewart are principal towns which could benefit from a relinked railway, reducing traffic on the busy A75 corridor. There is currently no rail competition.
The success of Borders Railway shows what may be done and achieved.
Rebuilding this strategic rail link would:
- Boost employment and regeneration
- Bring sustainable visitorship and serve many supply chains sustainably
- Cut the volumes of traffic – people and goods along the A75 corridor and give a direct rail alternative
- Help save land for other uses including farming, conservation, employment, housing and retain open spaces.
BRTA calls on councils, agencies, the Scottish Government and public-at-large to get behind this idea and support it all the way to delivery. In particular we call for pooling of resources for:
- Studying the proposition, working it up and making the robust case it deserves
- BRTA calls for the whole railway route, corridor and deviation spaces to be protected and safeguarded for keeping this vital strategic rail link option ‘open’ for the short to medium term.
Alignment Study
Kirkcudbright – the old station site and the trackbed between it and the northern edge of the town are now completely built-over, mainly with residential properties. A new station would have to be built at the northern edge of the town. There never was a Royal Navy Deep Sea Portal, as Kirkcudbright was only a fishing port during the railway’s lifetime.
Cairnryan – a rail link to serve the 2 ferry ports there could easily be built from Stranraer by reusing the mostly intact and largely unobstructed trackbed of the former World War Two military railway.
Castle Douglas – only part of the Kirkcudbright branch trackbed is blocked by houses, and would be impossible to reuse without the demolition of at least 11 properties. The Dumfries – Stranraer main line route is obstructed by an industrial estate (on the old station site); a Tesco’s supermarket, one short row of houses: the A75 Castle Douglas bypass, and another industrial estate just north of the bypass. To clear the main-line route through Castle Douglas, the following steps would need to be taken:
- Clear the main-line tracks alignment through the old station site (by removing part of the industrial estate, and the Tesco’s supermarket). The new station could then be on the site of the original one.
- Unblock the infilled railway bridge beneath the A745.
- Rebuild the landscaped trackbed across the public park.
- Clear, and widen the cutting beyond the park.
- Realign the railway to avoid the short row of houses, pass beneath the A75 bypass further east of the existing A713 overpass, and to avoid the industrial estate just north of the bypass. The line would then swing back onto its original trackbed just north of the Stewartry Rugby Club, which currently straddles the trackbed.
Freight
Timber transport by rail, to remove as much of it as possible from the local road network, should be the top freight priority.
Sustainable Nature and Tourism
The railway would offer a much faster way to cross Dumfries and Galloway than will ever be possible by road. A direct link with the Borders Railway at Mossband Junction – by reinstating the dismantled North-East chord there, and by using the existing Carlisle – Kilmarnock – Glasgow line between Gretna Junction and Dumfries – would create a direct Edinburgh – Borders – Galloway – Stranraer/Cairnryan rail route. This has never existed before, and would effectively be the Edinburgh – Belfast/Dublin main line (via the Cairnryan – Northern Ireland ferries).
The highly scenic nature of the Port Road (as the Dumfries – Stranraer route is commonly known), its fame for this before closure, plus the fact that it would have been resuscitated , would likely attract railtours to it, especially from Carlisle which is very frequently visited by such trains. This would boost the region’s image, and make it more widely known, even internationally. The former engine shed site at Stranraer is now just abandoned, not built-over, and if the original turntable pit still exists underneath infill, then it could be cleared out, and returned to use with a new turntable. This would allow visiting steam locomotives to be turned at Stranraer, greatly increasing its attractiveness to railtour operators.
Scottish Parliament Support
BRTA understands that both the local SNP and Green politicians are in favour.
SWestrans (South West of Scotland Transport Partnership) have made a funding application for a feasibility study into reopening the Dumfries – Stranraer line. The idea of reopening the railway is growing at Holyrood.
Sister Links
A direct, northward link between the Glasgow – Kilmarnock – Carlisle line and the West Coast Main Line could be built between Annan and Kirtlebridge, by reusing the mostly intact trackbed of the Solway Junction Railway (SJR). A new section in Annan; three new overbridges to replace demolished originals; the removal of the redundant pipeline from Chapelcross power station (which helped preserve the SJR route through Annan); a new bridge under the A75 Annan bypass; the digging-out of a blocked cutting, and a slight realignment of the route to join the WCML just south of the existing A74(M) overpass (as the original Kirtlebridge junction site is now directly beneath the overpass) at Kirtlebridge would be all that is needed to create that link.
Get Involved
Could you lead this campaign with BRTA? We’re looking to recruit a local rep. to work towards reopening this vital rail link. Contact ceo@brtarail.com
Our thanks to Christopher Rosindale for contributions to this page.
HOW TO ADD YOUR VOICE
Write in support of these reopenings to your local councillors and MP:
members.parliament.uk/members/commons
or www.writetothem.com
It’s powerful to write to your MP or councillor in your own words, telling your representative about your own beliefs and experiences and how they relate to rerailing Devon. See below.
Join BRTA as a member to support this and other reopening campaigns
Volunteer with BRTA if you share our vision and want to help bring it about.
Donate to BRTA to help us advocate for Devon rail links fit for the 21st century!
OR Email MP Geoffrey Cox directly
tellgeoffrey@geoffreycox.co.uk
Think about the following questions when composing your letter to MPs / councillors:
- What journeys do you make? Work? Leisure? Appointments / visits?
What could improve the journeys you make? - Do you actively choose road over rail or bus? Why?
- Do you consider where you live to be well served by public transport?
- Do you have experience of new areas of housing and public transport?
- What are your experiences of the road journeys you make in the region?
- Have you made employment, school or relocation decisions based on journey times or access to public transport? Or on the lack of access to public transport?
- What are your thoughts on the environmental impact of your journeys?
- Do you have accessibility needs that affect journey decisions you make?
- What do you think about air pollution in your area?
- What are the most important connectivity-related issues to you? Why? Journey times? Road congestion reduction? Pollution reduction? Accessibility? Taking freight off the roads in your area? A better connected region?
- What should be done next to make relinking happen?
Our tips: - Even if your MP is not in the region, your letter provides them with an opportunity to learn about the issue and take action themselves.
- Aim for your letter to be no longer than one and a half sides of A4.
- Engage. Get your representative’s attention with a dramatic fact or short statement.
- State the problem. Present the causes of the problem you just introduced. How widespread or serious is the problem?
- Inform them about the solutions that rerailing would bring.
- Call to Action. Let them know what you want them to do about it.
- Ask for a response.