Scotrail - Stranraer line closed until February

[XC90]

Similar to the problems with Lamington viaduct, there is a viaduct between Girvan and Stranraer which has suffered damage to one of the piers so is not safe to carry traffic.

Trains terminating and starting at Girvan with buses between Ayr and Stranraer.

Could this be the final nail in the coffin for the Stranraer line?

 

[Bletchleyite]

Could this be the final nail in the coffin for the Stranraer line?

Not any more so, I'd imagine, than any other flood-damaged financial basket case like the Conwy Valley.

 

[najaB]

Could this be the final nail in the coffin for the Stranraer line?

Could be, but not likely to be in the end.

 

[ainsworth74]

Could this be the final nail in the coffin for the Stranraer line?

Thirty years ago? Quite possibly. Today? No chance.

 

[Bungle965]

Could this be the final nail in the coffin for the Stranraer line?

No way, is the simple answer to your question.
Sam

 

[route:oxford]

Could this be the final nail in the coffin for the Stranraer line?

It would be political suicide for any party in Scotland to promote the closure of any station or railway line in the country.

 

[berneyarms]

It would be political suicide for any party in Scotland to promote the closure of any station or railway line in the country.

Exactly - it's not going to happen.

The railway WILL reopen.

 

[phil1960]

Exactly - it's not going to happen.

The railway WILL reopen.

Hopefully it will, but what are passenger numbers like south of Girvan? Passengers travelling on the ferry to Belfast now take a bus from Ayr straight to Cairnryan. That surely was the a bulk of the traffic taken away from the line when the ferry operation moved away from Stranraer?

Phil

 

[berneyarms]

Hopefully it will, but what are passenger numbers like south of Girvan? Passengers travelling on the ferry to Belfast now take a bus from Ayr straight to Cairnryan. That surely was the a bulk of the traffic taken away from the line when the ferry operation moved away from Stranraer?

Phil

We have just had a timetable change that increases the service to/from Stranraer by two trains a day in either direction.

If that's not a commitment to improving the service, I don't know what is.

 

[najaB]

Hopefully it will, but what are passenger numbers like south of Girvan?

Have a look towards the end of this thread where there has been discussion of the passenger numbers.

 

[scotsman]

It would be political suicide for any party in Scotland to promote the closure of any station or railway line in the country.

The incumbent Stranraer MSP is a Tory - marginally, there's less than 900 votes them and the SNP. If the line was closed, there's a real chance the SNP would actually come third.

 

[exile]

The incumbent Stranraer MSP is a Tory - marginally, there's less than 900 votes them and the SNP. If the line was closed, there's a real chance the SNP would actually come third.

150 passengers a day use the line.

 

[Altnabreac]

150 passengers a day use the line.

Using the line and being upset by it closing are two different things.

The people I know in Stranraer all use the Coach to Glasgow as it is quicker and cheaper.

However if a politician were to propose closing the railway they would be livid that Stranraer was being deprecated by the political establishment.

So it will certainly not close even if the usage remains relatively low.

 

[berneyarms]

From the Scotrail website:

Repair works are well underway and on schedule. Preliminary estimate for works to be completed and line to be reopen now Wednesday 27th January 2016.