WCML - Coatbridge - Highland Mainline: possibilities for passenger routes

[Gathursty]

I often think of the route from Motherwell to Whifflet, Coatbridge, Greenfaulds and beyond as a route where Intercity/sleeper trains, to my knowledge, have never been used on. I am certain I must be wrong on this however.

Looking to the future however:
Are there paths available for direct WCML- Coatbridge - Stirling/and beyond routes?
What stock would be allowed to run from the WCML to Stirling etc...?
Clearly there is demand for going overnight from England to North of the Central Belt. Would there be enough demand for a full train during the day though that skips Glasgow and Edinburgh to go further North?

 

[GusB]

The Inverness to Euston "Clansman" used this route in the 70s and early 80s. It was diesel-hauled to Mossend (open to corrections if this is wrong place) where it switched to electric traction for the rest of the journey. It was a service we used quite regularly when we visited my grandparents in Coatbridge, and missed when it was re-routed.

 

[30907]

The Inverness to Euston "Clansman" used this route in the 70s and early 80s. It was diesel-hauled to Mossend (open to corrections if this is wrong place) where it switched to electric traction for the rest of the journey. It was a service we used quite regularly when we visited my grandparents in Coatbridge, and missed when it was re-routed.

So did the Royal Highlander and Perth sleepers, and memory says in the 70s an odd late-evening Carlisle-Perth or similar which was essentially a non-passenger working. Someone please correct me!

In terms of potential, the only possibility might be for Virgin to start a Voyager back from Stirling or Perth in marginal time and attach at Carstairs to a second set coming from Glasgow or Edinburgh - but with the empty mileage and crew costs involved it probably wouldn't pay.

 

[RT4038]

The Inverness to Euston "Clansman" used this route in the 70s and early 80s. It was diesel-hauled to Mossend (open to corrections if this is wrong place) where it switched to electric traction for the rest of the journey. It was a service we used quite regularly when we visited my grandparents in Coatbridge, and missed when it was re-routed.

And earlier than that, there were other daytime long distance trains Perth-Euston, Crewe-Aberdeen etc. However, the Clansman was replaced by the 'Highland Chieftain' to give a London to north of Central Belt through service, whilst travelling through a major city (Edinburgh). I should think it unlikely that there is sufficient year round daily demand for a WCML train to avoid Glasgow.

 

[route101]

There was rumours of sort of Virgin running a service from Stirling , when the wires go up . Dont see the demand really

 

[adrock1976]

Rather than a regular traditional Intercity train to and from London at all hours of the day, I would much rather prefer a regional service running between Carlisle and Stirling (or Perth, but unsure how many platforms there will be after the station is rebuilt).

The calling pattern would be Lockerbie, Beattock for Moffat (loops could be used to allow Intercity trains to overtake) Symington Lanarkshire (for Biggar bus link. The loops could be used to allow Intercity trains to overtake), Carstairs for Lanark bus link, Motherwell, Coatbridge Central, Cumbernauld, Larbert, and Stirling.

The frequency would be every 60 minutes.

 

[Indigo Soup]

And earlier than that, there were other daytime long distance trains Perth-Euston, Crewe-Aberdeen etc. However, the Clansman was replaced by the 'Highland Chieftain' to give a London to north of Central Belt through service, whilst travelling through a major city (Edinburgh). I should think it unlikely that there is sufficient year round daily demand for a WCML train to avoid Glasgow.

The Clansman was at heart as much of an Inverness to north-west England and Birmingham service as much as it was an Inverness to London service. I believe that in its' later years it may either have terminated at Birmingham or been sent over one of the Cross-Country routes to the South Coast.

 

[backontrack]

Rather than a regular traditional Intercity train to and from London at all hours of the day, I would much rather prefer a regional service running between Carlisle and Stirling (or Perth, but unsure how many platforms there will be after the station is rebuilt).

The calling pattern would be Lockerbie, Beattock for Moffat (loops could be used to allow Intercity trains to overtake) Symington Lanarkshire (for Biggar bus link. The loops could be used to allow Intercity trains to overtake), Carstairs for Lanark bus link, Motherwell, Coatbridge Central, Cumbernauld, Larbert, and Stirling.

The frequency would be every 60 minutes.

Surely Beattock and Symington passengers would prefer a direct service to Edinburgh or Glasgow? But it's much, much better than nothing.

 

[6Gman]

So did the Royal Highlander and Perth sleepers, and memory says in the 70s an odd late-evening Carlisle-Perth or similar which was essentially a non-passenger working. Someone please correct me!

There was also a morning Perth - Manchester train (basically empty newspaper vans, but including one or two passenger vehicles) which was available for passenger use to Motherwell. On the one occasion I used it we had a 26 to Mossend, an 85 forward. Often wondered what would have happened if I'd failed to alight at Motherwell!

A colleague of mine once attended a deeply obscure football fixture (Airdrie v Derby County in the Esso Trophy or somesuch) which involved going to the match (where somebody urinated in his pocket - such a wheeze ...) then sitting on Coatbridge Sunnyside for about 3 hours to catch the Inverness overnight train back to Crewe.

He was of the view that it was the most inappropriate station name on the planet.

 

[hexagon789]

Surely Beattock and Symington passengers would prefer a direct service to Edinburgh or Glasgow? But it's much, much better than nothing.

I would say a direct service to at the very least Glasgow would be far more important than Stirling/Perth etc.

 

[Highlandspring]

A colleague of mine once attended a deeply obscure football fixture (Airdrie v Derby County in the Esso Trophy or somesuch) which involved going to the match (where somebody urinated in his pocket - such a wheeze ...) then sitting on Coatbridge Sunnyside for about 3 hours to catch the Inverness overnight train back to Crewe.

He was of the view that it was the most inappropriate station name on the planet.

It would have been Coatbridge Central rather than Sunnyside, which is on the North Electrics between Blairhill and Coatdyke. Still a dump of the first order though and a scary place to wait at night.

For a long time the Clanny was the the only train that stopped at Coatbridge Central and this led to the station becoming one of only three in Scotland that were managed by Intercity rather than Scotrail after sectorisation but before privatisation.