Dundee–Aberdeen line

Railway Line in Scotland

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Dundee–Aberdeen line

A view of the line at Arbroath looking south

Overview
Status| Operational
Owner| Network Rail
Locale| Angus
Aberdeenshire
Scotland
Termini|

* Dundee
* Aberdeen

Stations| 13
Service
Type| Heavy rail
System| National Rail
Operator(s)|

* ScotRail
* Caledonian Sleeper
* CrossCountry
* London North Eastern Railway

Technical
Track gauge| 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge

Route map

(Click to expand)

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Dundee–Aberdeen line

Legend

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Aberdeen–Inverness line

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|  |

|  | Inverurie
|  |

|  | Dyce
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|  | Aberdeen

( | NorthLink ferry to

Orkney & Shetland

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|  | Portlethen
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|  | Glenury Viaduct
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|  | Stonehaven
|  |

|  | Laurencekirk
|  |

|  | Montrose
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|  |

South Esk Viaduct

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|  | Arbroath
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|  | Carnoustie
|  |

|  | Golf Street
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|  | Barry Links
|  |

|  | Monifieth
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|  | Balmossie
|  |

|  | Broughty Ferry
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|  | Dundee
|  |

|  |  |

Glasgow–Dundee line

|  |

|  |

| Tay Bridge

over River Tay

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Edinburgh–Dundee line

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Detailed diagram

|  |  |

|  |

Aberdeen–Inverness line

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|  |

|  | Aberdeen
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|  | Aberdeen Guild Street
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|  | Aberdeen Ferryhill
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|  |

Deeside Railway

|  |

|  | Cove Bay
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|  | Portlethen
|  |

|  | Newtonhill
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|  | Muchalls
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|  | Limpet Mill
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|  | Stonehaven
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|  | Carmont
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|  | Drumlithie
|  |

|  | Fordoun
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|  | Laurencekirk
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|  | Marykirk
|  |

|  | Craigo
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|  |

Aberdeen Railway

|  |

|  | Hillside
|  |

|  |

Montrose and Bervie Railway

|  |

|  | Montrose
|  |

|  | Lunan Bay
|  |

|  | Inverkeilor
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|  | Cauldcots
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|  | Letham Grange
|  |

|  |

Arbroath and Forfar Railway

|  |

|  | Arbroath Catherine Street
|  |

|  | Arbroath
|  |

|  | Arbroath Lady Loan
|  |

|  | Elliot Junction
|  |

|  |

Carmyllie Railway

|  |

|  | Easthaven
|  |

|  | Carnoustie
|  |

|  | Golf Street
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|  | Barry Links
|  |

|  | Buddon
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|  | Monifieth
|  |

|  | Balmossie
|  |

|  |

Dundee and Forfar Direct Line

|  |

|  |
|  |

|  | Broughty Ferry Pier
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|  | Broughty Ferry
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|  | West Ferry
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|  | Craigie
|  |

|  | Stannergate
|  |

|  | Roodyards
|  |

|  | Dundee East
|  |

|  | Dundee
|  |

|  |

| Edinburgh–Dundee line

& Glasgow–Dundee line

|  |  |  |  |  |

The Dundee–Aberdeen line is a railway line linking Dundee and Aberdeen in Scotland.

## History

[edit]

The present line was built by three companies. The first section to open was the line from Dundee to Arbroath in 1838, constructed by the Dundee and Arbroath Railway. From 1849 to 1850 the Aberdeen Railway opened the line between Montrose and Aberdeen. The North British, Arbroath and Montrose Railway opened the line between Arbroath and Montrose in 1883.

## Route and line

[edit]

The line runs from south to north and generally runs along the east coast, though it heads inland between Montrose and Stonehaven. The line is double-track apart from a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) single-track section south of Montrose, which includes the South Esk Viaduct.[1] Plans to dual this section were announced in 2008 and again in 2016.[2] It is not electrified.

At its northern terminus, Aberdeen railway station, the line meets the Aberdeen–Inverness line. At its southern terminus, Dundee railway station, the line meets the Dundee–Glasgow line (via Perth) and the Dundee–Edinburgh line. The five stations between Carnoustie and Dundee are close together and once had a regular stopping service, but this stopped in 1990. Since then, they have only had an infrequent parliamentary service.[3] An approximately hourly service for Broughty Ferry and Monifieth was restored with the December 2018 timetable change.[4]

### Stations

[edit]

Place  | Station  | Ordnance Survey
grid reference | Services  | Notes

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|
|
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ScotRail  | LNER  | CrossCountry  | Caledonian Sleeper
Dundee | Dundee | NO402298 | ●  | ●  | ●  | ●  | Glasgow–Aberdeen line connection.
Dundee (Broughty Ferry)  | Broughty Ferry | NO462309 | ●  |  |  |  |
Monifieth (Balmossie)  | Balmossie | NO484317 | ●  |  |  |  | limited service
Monifieth | Monifieth | NO497322 | ●  |  |  |  |
Carnoustie  | Barry Links | NO542337 | ●  |  |  |  | limited service
Carnoustie  | Golf Street | NO557342 | ●  |  |  |  | limited service
Carnoustie | Carnoustie | NO566345 | ●  |  |  | ●  |
Arbroath | Arbroath | NO638409 | ●  | ●  | ●  | ●  |
Montrose | Montrose | NO711579 | ●  | ●  | ●  | ●  |
Laurencekirk | Laurencekirk |  | ●  |  |  |  |
Stonehaven | Stonehaven | NO863861 | ●  | ●  | ●  | ●  |
Portlethen | Portlethen | NO923967 | ●  |  |  |  |
Aberdeen | Aberdeen | NJ941058 | ●  | ●  | ●  | ●  | Terminus of ECML services from London King's Cross, Caledonian Sleeper services from London Euston and Cross Country Route services from Penzance; Aberdeen to Inverness Line connection; NorthLink ferry to Orkney and Shetland.

## Incidents

[edit]

On 28 December 1906, a severe blizzard caused 22 deaths and 24 injuries after two trains collided with each other between Carnoustie and Arbroath. For more information, see Elliot Junction rail accident.

The Stonehaven derailment occurred on 12 August 2020 which killed three people and required the line to remain closed between Stonehaven and Laurencekirk until 3 November. This section was closed again after a bridge parapet collapsed on 15 January 2021.[5] The line reopened on 22 February 2021.[6][needs update]

## Future

[edit]

In the Scottish Government's National Transport Strategy, published in February 2020, it was stated that the line would be electrified with overhead lines by 2035.[7]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Strachan, Graeme. "£218m rail overhaul would only cut journeys by a few minutes". The Courier. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
2. ^ Strachan, Graeme. "£218m rail overhaul would only cut journeys by a few minutes". The Courier. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
3. ^ railwayworld53, Author (6 February 2020). "It's a fairway to Carnoustie". RailwayWorld.net. Retrieved 23 March 2021. `{{cite web}}`: `|first=` has generic name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
4. ^ "Passengers urged to check new ScotRail timetable changes". BBC News. 9 December 2018. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
5. ^ Smith, Claire (18 January 2021). "Parapet failure closes Stonehaven rail line after speed warnings issued". New Civil Engineer. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
6. ^ "Stonehaven-Montrose railway set to reopen for customers". Network Rail Media Centre. 17 February 2021. Archived from the original on 17 February 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
7. ^ Shirres, David. "Decarbonising Scotland's Railway". Rail Engineer. No. 190\. pp. 46–53. Retrieved 3 July 2021.

* v
* t
* e

Railway lines in Scotland

Cross-border lines and services|

* East Coast Main Line
* CrossCountry
* London North Eastern Railway
* West Coast Main Line
* Avanti West Coast
* Caledonian Sleeper
* TransPennine Express
* Glasgow South Western Line
* ScotRail

ScotRail intercity lines|

* Glasgow–Edinburgh (via Falkirk)
* Edinburgh–Dundee
* Glasgow–Dundee
* Dundee–Aberdeen
* Highland
* Aberdeen–Inverness

Glasgow commuter lines|

* Argyle
* Ayrshire Coast
* Carstairs
* Cathcart Circle
* Croy (and Alloa)
* Cumbernauld (and Falkirk)
* Inverclyde
* Maryhill
* Motherwell–Cumbernauld
* North Clyde
* Paisley Canal
* Shotts
* South Western
* Whifflet

Edinburgh commuter lines|

* Borders
* Carstairs
* Dunblane
* Fife Circle
* North Berwick
* North Clyde
* Shotts

Rural lines and Great Scenic Railways|

* Borders Railway
* Far North
* Glasgow South Western
* Kyle of Lochalsh
* West Highland

Current projects|

Railway electrification in Scotland

Completed projects|

* Airdrie–Bathgate
* Edinburgh to Glasgow Improvement Programme
* Stirling–Alloa–Kincardine rail link
* Borders Railway
* Levenmouth rail link

Heritage railways|

* Bo'ness and Kinneil Railway
* Caledonian Railway (Brechin)
* Fife Heritage Railway
* Keith and Dufftown Railway
* Royal Deeside Railway
* Scottish Industrial Railway Centre
* Strathspey Railway
* Waverley Route Heritage Association

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