Highland Main Line

Railway line in Scotland

Not to be confused with the West Highland Line.

Highland Main Line

An Abellio ScotRail train to Glasgow Queen Street approaching Pitlochry in July 2018

Overview
Status| Operational
Owner| Network Rail
Locale| Perth and Kinross
Highland
Scotland
Termini|

* Perth
* Inverness

Stations| 10
Service
Type| Heavy rail
System| National Rail
Operator(s)| ScotRail
London North Eastern Railway
Caledonian Sleeper
Rolling stock| Class 43 "HST"
Class 158 "Express Sprinter"
Class 170 "Turbostar"
Class 73
Class 66
Mark 5 Sleeping Cars
Class 800 "Azuma"
Technical
Line length| Perth to Inverness: 118 miles 9 chains (190.1 km)
Track gauge| 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)

Route map

(Click to expand)

* v
* t
* e

Highland Main Line

Legend

|  |  |

|  |

| Kyle of Lochalsh line

& Far North Line

|  |

|  |
|  |

|  | Inverness
|  |

|  |
|  |

|  |

Aberdeen–Inverness line

|  |

|  | Culloden Moor
|  |

|  | Daviot
|  |

|  | Moy
|  |

|  | Tomatin
|  |

|  | Carrbridge
|  |

|  |

Inverness and Perth Junction Railway

|  |

|  | Aviemore |
|  |

|  |
|  |

|  | Kincraig
|  |

|  | Kingussie
|  |

|  | Newtonmore
|  |

|  | Dalwhinnie
|  |

|  | Dalnaspidal
|  |

|  | Struan
|  |

|  | Black Island Platform
|  |

|  | Blair Atholl
|  |

|  | Killiecrankie
|  |

|  | Pitlochry
|  |

|  |
|  |

|  |

Aberfeldy Branch

|  |

|  | Ballinluig
|  |

|  | Guay
|  |

|  | Dalguise
|  |

|  | Dunkeld & Birnam
|  |

|  | Rohallion
|  |

|  | Murthly
|  |

|  |
|  |

|  |

Scottish Midland Junction Railway

|  |

|  | Stanley Junction
|  |

|  | Stanley
|  |

|  |

Bankfoot Railway

|  |

|  | Strathord
|  |

|  | Luncarty
|  |

|  |

Perth, Almond Valley and Methven Railway

|  |

|  | Perth New Yard
|  |

|  |
|  |

|  | Muirton
|  |

|  |

Glasgow–Dundee line

|  |

|  | Perth
|  |

|  |
|  |

|  |

| Glasgow–Dundee line

& Edinburgh–Dundee line

|  |  |  |  |  |

The Highland Main Line is a railway line in Scotland. It is 118 mi (190 km) long and runs through the central Scottish Highlands, mainly following the route of the A9, and linking a series of small towns and villages with Perth at one end and Inverness at the other. Today, services between Inverness and Edinburgh, Glasgow and London use the line. At Inverness the line connects with the Far North Line, the Aberdeen-Inverness Line and the Kyle of Lochalsh Line.

Much of the Highland Main Line is single track, and trains coming in opposite directions are often timed to arrive at stations at the same time, where crossing loops permit them to pass. Journey times between Inverness and Edinburgh or Glasgow are approximately three and a half hours.[1]

## History

[edit]

Highland Main Line and A9 next to each other in Perthshire, September 2000 The line crosses the Dalguise Viaduct

The vast majority of the line was built and operated by the Highland Railway, with a small section of the line between Perth and Stanley built by the Scottish Midland Junction Railway, amalgamated with the Aberdeen Railway to become the Scottish North Eastern Railway in 1856, and then absorbed by the Caledonian Railway in 1866, which itself amalgamated with the Highland Railway and several others to create the LMS at the grouping in 1923. Originally, the line between Inverness and Perth went via Forres, but the Inverness and Aviemore Direct Railway was opened in 1898 to allow for a more direct routeing.

158703 heads south through the Drumochter Pass in the snow

There are two significant summits on the line: Drumochter Summit (also spelled Druimuachdar) (elevation 1,484 ft or 452 m) between Blair Atholl and Dalwhinnie,[2][3][4] and Slochd Summit (elevation 1,315 ft or 401 m) between Carrbridge and Inverness.[5] Other distinct features on the route include the viaducts at Culloden and Tomatin, the spectacular mountain pass at Drumochter and the severe gradients encountered in both directions, particularly the extended climb from Inverness to the Slochd summit which averages around 1 in 60 the whole way.

Initially the only double track was between Inverness and Daviot and also Stanley Junction and Perth. In the 1890s the single line working was improved with the replacement of telegraphing orders to trains along the line with staff and tablet control instruments. This was later upgraded to automatic token-exchange apparatus. However, the main improvement came with the doubling of sections of line, designed by the engineer Alexander Newlands, beginning with Blair Atholl to Dalnacardoch (8+1⁄4 mi or 13.5 km) in 1900, extended to Druimuachdar (8+1⁄2 mi or 13.5 km) in 1901 and Dalwhinnie (5+1⁄2 mi or 9 km) in 1909.[6] In the 1960s, many sections of the line were converted from double track to single track. In 1976, 23 miles (37 km) from Blair Atholl to Dalwhinnie was redoubled.[7][8] In March 2019 Network Rail completed a programme of works to increase capacity on the line and support the introduction of InterCity 125 sets on ScotRail services, with passing loops and platforms extended.[9]

## Stations and services

[edit]

As of 2020, there are stations on the line as follows:

Places served | All trains
stop? | Ordnance Survey
grid reference | Notes

|
|
|

Perth | Yes | NO112230
Dunkeld and Birnam | No | NO030417 | Shared station
Pitlochry | Yes | NN937580
Blair Atholl | No | NN870653
Dalwhinnie | No | NN634848
Newtonmore | No | NN715984
Kingussie | Yes | NH756003
Aviemore | Yes | NH895123 | Connection with Strathspey Railway
Carrbridge | No | NH899224
Inverness | Yes | NH667454

Services on the line are provided by ScotRail and London North Eastern Railway. A roughly two-hourly ScotRail service operates between Perth and Inverness throughout the day. On weekdays and Saturdays, there are 11 services in total in each direction, all running from/to either Glasgow Queen Street (via Stirling) or Edinburgh Waverley. The London North Eastern Railway service is entitled the Highland Chieftain; it departs Inverness at 08:00 and runs to London King's Cross via the East Coast Main Line, arriving in London at 16:00. The return working leaves London at 12:00 and reaches Inverness at 20:00. On Sundays there are 7 trains each way. The journey time between Perth and Inverness takes between 2 hours and 2 hours and 20 minutes, depending on the calling pattern and if the train is booked to be looped at any passing places.

The Caledonian Sleeper travels overnight between Inverness and London Euston via the West Coast Main Line. The southbound train joins portions from Aberdeen and Fort William at Edinburgh Waverley, and similarly the northbound train divides there. South of Edinburgh, it forms the longest locomotive-hauled passenger train in the United Kingdom, with 16 coaches.

All trains between Perth and Inverness call at Pitlochry, Kingussie and Aviemore. Most ScotRail services call at Dunkeld & Birnam (9 north and 10 south) and at Blair Atholl (8 north and 6 south), with the stations at Dalwhinnie (5 each way), Newtonmore (6 each way) and Carrbridge (6 each way) being served less often. On Sundays, a couple of services continue through to Elgin, calling at Nairn and Forres.[10]

Panoramic view of the Highland Line Culloden Viaduct with a First ScotRail train on it

## Rolling stock

[edit]

Class  | Image  | Type  | Operator  | Route  | Maximum Speed  | Builder/
built  | In service
on the line  | Leased from  | Other notes

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

mph  | km/h
43 |  | Diesel locomotive | ScotRail | Glasgow/Edinburgh to Inverness | 125  | 200  | BREL Crewe Works 1975–1982  | 2018–  | Angel Trains |

* Operates under the brand Inter7City.
* Fleet consists of 9 four-coach and 17 five-coach trains.
* 1 four coach train damaged in the Stonehaven derailment.

Mark 3 |

| Passenger carriage | BREL Derby Litchurch Lane Works 1979-1980
67 |  | Diesel locomotive | Caledonian Sleeper | London Euston to Inverness
(Takes over from electric loco at Edinburgh)  | Alstom Valencia 1999-2000  | 2023-  | DB Cargo UK | Replaced Class 73/9 when their lease from DB Cargo UK Expired.
Mark 5 Passenger Coach |  | Lounge car
Seated Sleeper
Sleeping car | London Euston to Inverness  | 100  | 161  | CAF Beasain 2016-2018  | 2019–  | Caledonian Sleeper Rail Leasing  | Replaced the Mark 2s
Mark 5 Sleeper Coach | Replaced the Mark 3s
158/0 Express Sprinter |  | DMU | ScotRail | Glasgow/Edinburgh to Inverness | 90  | 145  | BREL Derby Litchurch Lane Works 1989—1992  | 1990-  | Porterbrook |
170/3 & 170/4 Turbostar |  | 100  | 161  | AdTranz/Bombardier Transportation Derby Litchurch lane Works 1998-2005  | 1999-
Class 800 Azuma |  | Bi-mode multiple unit | London North Eastern Railway | London King's Cross/Edinburgh to Inverness | 125  | 200  | Hitachi Newton Aycliffe 2014-2018  | 2019–  | Agility Trains |

* Service is titled the Highland Chieftain.
* Fleet consists of 10 five-coach and 13 nine-coach trains.

## Usage

[edit]

Station usage at some stations remain stable. Overall usage on the line comparing April 2003 to April 2010 has increased 154%.

Station usage

Station name  | 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  | 2023–24
Perth | 641,822  | 694,527  | 700,509  | 763,415  | 886,748  | 888,586  | 929,282  | 959,310  | 975,364  | 988,795  | 1,077,598  | 1,077,598  | 1,146,000  | 1,081,000  | 1,117,248  | 1,112,068  | 1,059,278  | 181,454  | 614,804  | 695,276  |
Dunkeld and Birnam | 15,406  | 18,810  | 19,339  | 21,897  | 20,856  | 26,010  | 25,436  | 26,178  | 26,506  | 27,862  | 29,924  | 31,050  | 32,022  | 32,878  | 37,982  | 36,930  | 36,608  | 7,740  | 27,444  | 38,416  |
Pitlochry | 66,890  | 84,555  | 88,638  | 78,193  | 78,776  | 97,302  | 87,210  | 87,684  | 90,618  | 98,340  | 101,902  | 112,496  | 121,168  | 121,342  | 125,264  | 125,006  | 121,060  | 22,450  | 84,374  | 105,586  |
Blair Atholl | 8,313  | 11,708  | 11,896  | 10,491  | 10,443  | 11,716  | 11,572  | 13,948  | 12,608  | 14,280  | 14,084  | 16,062  | 16,652  | 17,598  | 19,802  | 21,008  | 18,388  | 3,688  | 11,870  | 13,402  |
Dalwhinnie | 2,066  | 1,619  | 2,013  | 1,774  | 1,975  | 2,644  | 2,208  | 1,894  | 1,984  | 2,172  | 2,472  | 2,460  | 2,392  | 3,188  | 3,372  | 3,368  | 3,226  | 614  | 1,960  | 2,832  |
Newtonmore | 4,184  | 5,396  | 6,815  | 6,631  | 7,060  | 8,358  | 7,972  | 9,484  | 9,406  | 8,958  | 8,326  | 8,636  | 9,432  | 8,770  | 9,194  | 7,848  | 7,456  | 1,498  | 5,400  | 6,470  |
Kingussie | 23,815  | 27,725  | 30,045  | 32,135  | 33,416  | 42,618  | 35,838  | 38,544  | 40,298  | 40,954  | 41,408  | 42,522  | 42,850  | 44,200  | 44,736  | 40,758  | 39,254  | 7,352  | 25,682  | 32,978  |
Aviemore | 70,272  | 80,977  | 91,456  | 101,294  | 115,431  | 152,528  | 124,972  | 132,336  | 132,052  | 136,456  | 141,311  | 150,724  | 152,000  | 145,000  | 147,964  | 138,490  | 132,618  | 25,492  | 92,240  | 112,090  |
Carrbridge | 1,531  | 1,910  | 2,987  | 3,954  | 5,438  | 4,232  | 4,500  | 5,118  | 5,636  | 4,454  | 5,540  | 6,256  | 6,898  | 5,808  | 6,064  | 5,584  | 5,474  | 1,622  | 3,714  | 4,840  |
Inverness | 721,358  | 822,928  | 873,011  | 915,840  | 975,569  | 1,407,600  | 1,070,924  | 1,127,718  | 1,180,160  | 1,213,382  | 1,282,445  | 1,303,662  | 1,307,000  | 1,259,000  | 1,238,770  | 1,243,338  | 1,214,648  | 231,894  | 753,228  | 974,808  |
The annual passenger usage is based on sales of tickets in stated financial years from Office of Rail and Road estimates of station usage. The statistics are for passengers arriving and departing from each station and cover twelve-month periods that start in April. Methodology may vary year on year. Usage since the period 2019–20 have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, especially the period 2020–23.

## 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.[11]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Highland Main Line timetables at https://www.scotrail.co.uk/sites/default/files/assets/download_ct/edinburgh_glasgow_-_inverness_0.pdf Archived 18 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine
2. ^ Yonge, John (December 2007) [1987]. Jacobs, Gerald (ed.). Railway Track Diagrams 1: Scotland & Isle of Man (5th ed.). Bradford on Avon: Trackmaps. map 19B. ISBN 978-0-9549866-3-6.
3. ^ Baker, Stuart K. (2015) [1977]. Rail Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland (14th ed.). Addlestone: Oxford Publishing Co. p. 60, section B2. ISBN 978-0-86093-669-5.
4. ^ Vallance, H.A.; Clinker, C.R.; Lambert, Anthony J. (1985) [1938]. The Highland Railway (4th ed.). Newton Abbot: David & Charles. pp. 13, 25, 115, 116, 118, 177, 197. ISBN 0-946537-24-0.
5. ^ Yonge 2007, map 19D
6. ^ Thomas, John; Turnock, David (1989). A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain. Volume 15 North of Scotland. David St John Thomas. p. 236\. ISBN 0946537038.
7. ^ Highland doubling The Railway Magazine issue 902 June 1976 page 277
8. ^ Highland doubling starts The Railway Magazine issue 905 September 1976 page 476
9. ^ Highland main line upgrade work complete Network Rail 28 March 2019
10. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 April 2016. Retrieved 5 April 2016.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
11. ^ Shirres, David. "Decarbonising Scotland's Railway". Rail Engineer. No. 190\. pp. 46–53. Retrieved 3 July 2021.

## External links

[edit]

* Route on OpenStreetMap
* Highland Main Line on Transport Scotland
* Highland Mainline Community Rail Partnership

* 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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