Far North Line - Thurso branch

[najaB]

Never understood why they just dont run through to Wick first, before then reversing and going to Thurso. Would eliminate one reversal. Then again the staff are Wick based.

Asked and answered in one! Indeed, the diagrams start/finish at Wick.

 

[bradders1983]

Asked and answered in one! Indeed, the diagrams start/finish at Wick.

The staff dont have to necessarily have to live in Wick though do they?

They may drive in from the surrounding villages..and Thurso

 

[Altnabreac]

Are there any local populations who use Georgemas Junction though?

Yes - at Halkirk. Hence the reopening of Halkirk so the train can call there en route to Thurso rather than call at Georgemas on the way back. It's only a mile or so from Halkirk to Georgemas so 2 stations aren't needed and there is no local population at Georgemas itself.

You wouldn't necessarily need to close Scotscalder but if there were a Halkirk station that would mitigate the closure there. There is very little population / demand at Scotscalder that wouldn't be served equally well by Halkirk and removing the stop would speed up the journey slightly.

As trains have to slow for the level crossing at Halkirk anyway, the journey time penalty wouldn't be huge.

Never understood why they just dont run through to Wick first, before then reversing and going to Thurso. Would eliminate one reversal. Then again the staff are Wick based.

Remember the primary alternative to the train in Caithness is the (much faster) coach to Inverness. The coach goes down the A9 from Wick so it is much faster than the train whereas from Thurso the train is slightly more competitive (although still slower than coach).

So you are better having a faster journey time to Thurso where rail can compete better on time. Passengers from Wick - Inverness will only be using the train because they prefer it and not because of journey time.

 

[najaB]

The staff dont have to necessarily have to live in Wick though do they?

They may drive in from the surrounding villages..and Thurso

Indeed they probably do. But the diagrams start/end at Wick because that's where the depot is. There are plans to build a new chord at Georgemas that would allow trains from the south to go straight to Thurso without a reversal.

 

[Railsigns]

Never understood why they just dont run through to Wick first, before then reversing and going to Thurso. Would eliminate one reversal. Then again the staff are Wick based.

The distance from Georgemas to Wick is more than double that from Georgemas to Thurso, so having all services run twice between Georgemas and Wick would increase the overall journey time.

Also, Thurso is a larger town than Wick and generates twice as much traffic, so more passengers would be inconvenienced by the additional mileage on their journey.

 

[bradders1983]

Ah yes, forgot about the distance from the junction to each town. Fair enough.

 

[cf111]

Remember the primary alternative to the train in Caithness is the (much faster) coach to Inverness. The coach goes down the A9 from Wick so it is much faster than the train whereas from Thurso the train is slightly more competitive (although still slower than coach).

So you are better having a faster journey time to Thurso where rail can compete better on time. Passengers from Wick - Inverness will only be using the train because they prefer it and not because of journey time.

Coach passengers to and from Wick also have to change at Dunbeath.

 

[backontrack]

And then there's the ferry from Scrabster which carries lots of demand for passengers, although Stagecoach have been trying to take passengers away from the trains by diverting their Scrabster bus away from Thurso station.

There might have been some sort of free taxi service offered by First, however I'm not sure.

 

[cf111]

And then there's the ferry from Scrabster which carries lots of demand for passengers, although Stagecoach have been trying to take passengers away from the trains by diverting their Scrabster bus away from Thurso station.

There might have been some sort of free taxi service offered by First, however I'm not sure.

The current (well, starting tomorrow) timetable states:

This ferry service is operated by Serco NorthLink ferries Ltd. Please telephone 0845 6000 449 or visit www.northlinkferries.co.uk for details. Customers holding Rail & Sail tickets to / from Stromness should note that a connecting taxi service between Thurso Railway Station and Scrabster is included. Taxis can be booked by calling 01847 893 434 as soon as possible after ticket purchase, but no later than Helmsdale on northbound journeys and prior to departing Stromness on southbound journeys. Staff will assist if you do not have a mobile phone. Taxis are also available for hire by other passengers. Normal fares will apply.

 

[berneyarms]

That has been in place for ages.

 

[cf111]

That has been in place for ages.

Yes, ever since Stagecoach (or maybe Rapsons, as they were up here then) withdrew the bus connection.

 

[backontrack]

Yes, ever since Stagecoach (or maybe Rapsons, as they were up here then) withdrew the bus connection.

I don't think it was Rapsons. It happened fairly recently.

Back then nearly all the coaches from Inverness to Scrabster went via Wick and Castletown. It certainly would have made the railway more competitive, especially as they called at places like Alness, Invergordon and Culbokie down south.