Duncraig railway station

57°20′13″N 5°38′14″W / 57.3369°N 5.6372°W / 57.3369; -5.6372Grid referenceNG812332Managed byScotRailPlatforms1Other informationStation codeDCG^[2]HistoryOriginal companyHighland RailwayPre-groupingHighland RailwayPost-groupingLMSRKey dates1897^[3]Opened as private station Duncraig Platform23 May 1949^[3]Opened to the public10 September 1962^[3]Renamed7 December 1964^[3]Closed5 January 1976^[3]ReopenedPassengers2018/19 4842019/20 5002020/21 302021/22 3762022/23 462

Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Duncraig railway station is a remote railway station by the shore of Loch Carron on the Kyle of Lochalsh Line, originally (privately) serving Duncraig Castle, a mansion near Plockton, in the Highland council area of northern Scotland. The station is 57 miles 9 chains (91.9 km) from Dingwall, between Stromeferry and Plockton.^[4] ScotRail, who manage the station, operate all services at the station.

History

The station was built as a private station for Duncraig Castle^[5] by the Kyle of Lochalsh Extension (Highland Railway), opening on 2 November 1897.^[6]

It became a public station in 1949. Duncraig was closed between 7 December 1964 and 5 January 1976;^[3] it was reopened after local train drivers refused to acknowledge the station's closure for the intervening 11 years.^[7] One of the drivers is quoted as saying:^[8]

"We thought that if the English wanted to close a railway station they should pick on Euston or King's Cross"

The station is a Category B listed building.^[9]

Facilities

The only facilities at the station are a small waiting room, a bench and a help point. The station, however, has step-free access.^[10] As there are no facilities to purchase tickets, passengers must buy one in advance, or from the guard on the train.

Passenger volume

Passenger Volume at Duncraig^[11]

	2002–03	2004–05	2005–06	2006–07	2007–08	2008–09	2009–10	2010–11	2011–12	2012–13	2013–14	2014–15	2015–16	2016–17	2017–18	2018–19	2019–20	2020–21	2021–22	2022–23
Entries and exits	288	463	391	342	485	388	394	602	722	784	534	448	494	348	408	484	500	30	376	462

The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.

Services

Four trains each way call (on request) on weekdays and Saturdays. On Sundays, there is only one train each way, plus a second from May to late September only.^[12][13]

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Stromeferry		ScotRail Kyle of Lochalsh Line		Plockton
	Historical railways
Stromeferry Line and station open		Highland Railway Dingwall and Skye Railway		Plockton Line and station open

References

Bibliography

• Brailsford, Martyn, ed. (December 2017) [1987]. Railway Track Diagrams 1: Scotland & Isle of Man (6th ed.). Frome: Trackmaps. ISBN 978-0-9549866-9-8.
• Vallance, H.A.; Clinker, C.R.; Lambert, Anthony J. (1985). The Highland Railway : The History of the Railways of the Scottish Highlands - Vol 2 (4th ed.). David St John Thomas. ISBN 0946537232.
• Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.

External links