drb61
Member
The usefulness of Newton as an interchange station between the Kirkhill line and the Hamilton Circle has greatly diminished with various changes to service patterns and track layouts over the last 60 years or so to the extent that it is almost useless as an interchange nowadays.
At one time it had four platforms - two on the main line and two serving the Kirkhill and Hamilton lines. The main line platforms are long gone possibly around the time of the Kirkhill line electrification if not before then. At that time the wires were extended through to Motherwell (via Uddingston and the direct main line) allowing the (diesel) Hamilton Circle, Lanark and Shotts services to be supplemented by a half-hourly electric service to Motherwell via Mount Florida. This was in many ways ideal as it provided connections from the south side of Glasgow to Hamilton, Lanark, Edinburgh and Anglo-Scottish services with a single change of train either at Newton, Uddingston or Motherwell.
The thin end of the wedge came when the Hamilton Circle and Lanark lines were electrified in 1974 as a spin-off of the WCML electrification. The Motherwell via Mount Florida services were then cut back to Newton (except for a handful of peak hour services). However good connections to Motherwell (via Bellshill) were still maintained at Newton, although two changes were now required to connect with Shotts and Lanark services - both of which no longer called at Newton (not sure if they ever did regularly).
When the Argyle Line opened in 1979 the through services from the south side to Motherwell ceased completely but still with good connections at Newton.
A major blow came at the end of the 80s though when plans emerged to rationalise the track layout at Newton. The reduction in capacity resulting from the singling the connections between the main line and the platforms saw all Uddingston-bound services bypass Newton on the main line. So, the only connections to Motherwell available were via Hamilton with an increased connection time at Newton. although you could still reach Bellshill or Uddingston the 'long way round' via the Hamilton Circle.
Since then, the Hamilton Circle services have essentially disappeared in favour of extensions to Coatbridge Central, Lanark and more recently Cumbernauld.
The most recent Argyle Line timetable recast has completely messed things up at Newton with services ex. Kirkhill (platform 1) and Motherwell bound (platform 2) timed to arrive almost simultaneously (you might be lucky to make the connection if the latter is running late). If travelling from the south side of Glasgow to Lanarkshire, it is now more practical to simply change at Glasgow Central even if more of a dogleg.
Some possible solutions to this lack of connectivity at Newton might include the following: -
Other thoughts / ideas on this welcome!
At one time it had four platforms - two on the main line and two serving the Kirkhill and Hamilton lines. The main line platforms are long gone possibly around the time of the Kirkhill line electrification if not before then. At that time the wires were extended through to Motherwell (via Uddingston and the direct main line) allowing the (diesel) Hamilton Circle, Lanark and Shotts services to be supplemented by a half-hourly electric service to Motherwell via Mount Florida. This was in many ways ideal as it provided connections from the south side of Glasgow to Hamilton, Lanark, Edinburgh and Anglo-Scottish services with a single change of train either at Newton, Uddingston or Motherwell.
The thin end of the wedge came when the Hamilton Circle and Lanark lines were electrified in 1974 as a spin-off of the WCML electrification. The Motherwell via Mount Florida services were then cut back to Newton (except for a handful of peak hour services). However good connections to Motherwell (via Bellshill) were still maintained at Newton, although two changes were now required to connect with Shotts and Lanark services - both of which no longer called at Newton (not sure if they ever did regularly).
When the Argyle Line opened in 1979 the through services from the south side to Motherwell ceased completely but still with good connections at Newton.
A major blow came at the end of the 80s though when plans emerged to rationalise the track layout at Newton. The reduction in capacity resulting from the singling the connections between the main line and the platforms saw all Uddingston-bound services bypass Newton on the main line. So, the only connections to Motherwell available were via Hamilton with an increased connection time at Newton. although you could still reach Bellshill or Uddingston the 'long way round' via the Hamilton Circle.
Since then, the Hamilton Circle services have essentially disappeared in favour of extensions to Coatbridge Central, Lanark and more recently Cumbernauld.
The most recent Argyle Line timetable recast has completely messed things up at Newton with services ex. Kirkhill (platform 1) and Motherwell bound (platform 2) timed to arrive almost simultaneously (you might be lucky to make the connection if the latter is running late). If travelling from the south side of Glasgow to Lanarkshire, it is now more practical to simply change at Glasgow Central even if more of a dogleg.
Some possible solutions to this lack of connectivity at Newton might include the following: -
- Reinstate the main line platforms to allow Lanark and Shotts services to call at Newton without using the crossovers at both ends of the station. An expensive option requiring an extended footbridge and extra lift on the up main platform. Additional calls at Newton might cause pathing issues on the main line with longer-distance services though.
- Route the Lanark and / or Shotts services via the existing platforms at Newton. With the recent redoubling of the connection at Newton West junction and 'slack' in the Shotts diagrams post electrification this might be more feasible than previously - although the connection at Newton East junction is still single and of course there is still the possibility of conflicts with main line traffic. This would however restore the long-missing direct connection between Newton and Uddingston.
- Recast the Kirkhill line timetable to optimise connectional margins at Newton. Easier said than done as the Newton services have to dovetail with Cathcart Circle services (if they are ever restored) not to mention the other services in the Muirhouse corridor (Neilston, East Kilbride, Barrhead and Kilmarnock).
- Extend the Newton terminators to Motherwell via Bellshill. This would also restore the missing Newton - Uddingston connection. Again, this introduces potential conflicts with longer distance services and platform capacity issues at Motherwell. I wonder if adding a Haymarket-style platform 0 at Motherwell might be practical for use by terminating services from the Mossend direction to reduce conflicts with the main line?
- Extend the Newton terminators to Motherwell / Cumbernauld via Hamilton replacing the corresponding Argyle Line services. Reroute the Lanark services to Dalmuir using the spare paths on the Argyle Line. Not sure that this would be popular with Hamilton commuters, even less so for Airbles!
- Convert the Cathcart Circle lines to light rail, which I understand is a long-term aspiration. Not sure how exactly this might interface with the heavy rail services at Newton. It may require an extensive rebuild of the station with additional dedicated LRT platform(s) or an element of street running (via a flyover) to a terminus alongside the station. Either way, decoupling of the light and heavy rail services should afford the opportunity to double the frequency of services on the Kirkhill line and improve the connectivity at Newton without the conflicts that constrict the current service pattern.
Other thoughts / ideas on this welcome!
