170th anniversary of rail station opening

Cumbernauld Station reached its 170th anniversary on Tuesday having first been opened on August 7, 1848.
Cumbernauld Station as it was in 1904 after it had been reopened for passenger services in 1870Cumbernauld Station as it was in 1904 after it had been reopened for passenger services in 1870
Cumbernauld Station as it was in 1904 after it had been reopened for passenger services in 1870

The station was built by Caledonian Railway on the Scottish Central Railway which gave access to the north east from Glasgow and Carlisle.

However this proved to be something of a false start, as with just a few farms and cottages nearby it didn’t prove to be a commercial success and closed a year later.

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The introduction of the railway had opened up the area to new industry, jobs and housing though, and started to thrive.

As such it was decided to reopen the station in April 1870 for passenger services from Glasgow Buchanan Street towards Falkirk and Stirling.

The decision to designate Cumbernauld as a New Town in 1955 saw its population expand and ensure that even though it lost a direct link to Glasgow for a time, after the closure of Buchanan Street, it avoided the axe of Dr Beeching.

Earlier this year overhead lines on the railway between Cumbernauld and Bonnybridge went live which could lead to services going to Edinburgh for the first time.