Dunbar railway station

This article is about the railway station in Scotland. For the cattle station in Queensland, see Dunbar Station (Queensland).

Dunbar Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Bàrr
Looking north from the reinstated second platform at Dunbar in 2020.
General information
Location	Dunbar, East Lothian Scotland
Coordinates	55.9985°N 2.5145°W / 55.9985; -2.5145
Grid reference	NT680784
Managed by	ScotRail
Platforms	2
Tracks	3
Other information
Station code	DUN
History
Original company	North British Railway
Pre-grouping	North British Railway
Post-grouping	LNER
Key dates
16 June 1846	Opened
Passengers
2019/20	0.474 million
2020/21	66,300
2021/22	0.252 million
2022/23	0.319 million
2023/24	0.399 million
Listed Building – Category B
Designated	11 January 1988
Reference no.	LB24857
Notes Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Dunbar railway station serves the town of Dunbar in East Lothian, Scotland. It is located on the East Coast Main Line and is a two platform station. It is 29 miles 5 chains (46.8 km) from Edinburgh Waverley and 364.092 miles (585.950 km) from London King's Cross.

History

The station, which was first opened by the North British Railway in June 1846, used to have two platforms and an overall roof. The northbound platform loop line was taken out of use and lifted in the early 1970s, whilst the platform itself and the station roof were both removed during the modernisation and electrification by British Rail of the northern end of the East Coast Main Line in 1987–88.

For approximately five months in 1979, this was the terminal station for a shuttle service to Edinburgh Waverley. The shuttle service was provided after the East Coast Main Line was blocked due to the collapse of Penmanshiel Tunnel. Buses linked Dunbar with Berwick-upon-Tweed, from where rail services to London King's Cross resumed.

Platform Layout

The main platform (One) is located on a loop adjacent to the main through lines. The second platform is on the main northbound line which has had trains stopping there since 15 December 2019.

Prior to December 2019, the line on which the main platform is located was bi-directional (meaning that trains travelling to/from London or Edinburgh Waverley had to take it in turns to use the station if they were scheduled to stop there). Preliminary work into a new second platform began in October 2015. In December 2018, Network Rail announced (via press release) that Amco had been appointed the contractors for the construction of the second platform, which would start in Summer 2019 and was intended to have the works completed by early 2020. Construction of the new platform necessitated a new footbridge with lifts, and improvements to the station carpark were carried out as part of the project. The bridge was completed ahead of schedule and the new platform opened in December 2019. Final fitting work and completion of the carpark continued, however it was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

With all Northbound services now using the second platform and no longer using the main platform loop (with the exception of all terminating Scotrail Services from Edinburgh), this now leaves Syston station in Leicester as the only rare example of a single platformed main line railway station used on a major route.

Accidents and incidents

• On 3 January 1898, an express passenger train collided with a freight train that was being shunted. One person was killed and 21 were injured.

Facilities

The station is fully staffed, with the ticket office open throughout the week (Monday - Friday 05:55 - 21:30, Saturday 06:25 - 20:40 and Sunday 11:15 - 21:30). Self-service ticket machines are also provided for use outside these times and for collecting pre-paid tickets. There are toilets, a payphone and vending machines on the concourse. Train running information is provided by manual announcements, digital CIS displays, a customer help point and timetable posters. Level access is available from the entrance and concourse to the platform.

There are two platforms. The station entrance is to the east, adjacent to the southbound platform. The northbound platform, reinstated in 2019, is accessible via a footbridge with lifts.

Services

The station is served by ScotRail, CrossCountry, London North Eastern Railway and TransPennine Express. It was managed by the InterCity East Coast franchise holder until June 2015 when responsibility was transferred from Virgin Trains East Coast to Abellio ScotRail.

The daytime service at Dunbar is as follows:

ScotRail

ScotRail run a service to/from Edinburgh Waverley every two hours which starts and terminates here which call at East Linton, Wallyford, Musselburgh and Edinburgh Waverley. These services do not operate on Sundays.

LNER

LNER provide a limited service at Dunbar. This is as follows:

On Monday to Thursdays, there are four trains per day south; three of these go to London Kings Cross, while one operates to Leeds. On Fridays there is an extra late night service which terminates at Newcastle. On Saturdays and Sundays, there are two trains per day to London Kings Cross, one to Doncaster and one to Newcastle. There are also four trains per day north to Edinburgh, (five on Sundays).

TransPennine Express

TransPennine Express provide the following service, There are five southbound trains per day to Newcastle plus an extra two trains which terminate at Berwick. Northbound, there are seven trains per day to Edinburgh(Six on Saturdays)

CrossCountry

CrossCountry call at Dunbar three times a day (two on Sundays) to Edinburgh Northbound and Southbound to Plymouth and Birmingham New Street.

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Berwick-upon-Tweed or Alnmouth or Newcastle		CrossCountry (Cross Country Route) (East Coast Main Line)		Edinburgh Waverley
Reston or Berwick-upon-Tweed or Alnmouth		London North Eastern Railway (East Coast Main Line) (London-Edinburgh)		Edinburgh Waverley
Reston		TransPennine Express (North Route) (East Coast Main Line)		East Linton
Terminus		ScotRail Edinburgh to Dunbar (East Coast Main Line)		East Linton
	Historical railways
Innerwick Line open; station closed		North British Railway NBR Main Line		East Linton Line and station open (resited)

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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.
• 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.
• Jowett, Alan (March 1989). Jowett's Railway Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland: From Pre-Grouping to the Present Day (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-086-0. OCLC 22311137.
• Jowett, Alan (2000). Jowett's Nationalised Railway Atlas (1st ed.). Penryn, Cornwall: Atlantic Transport Publishers. ISBN 978-0-906899-99-1. OCLC 228266687.
• Scotrail timetables: Glasgow - Edinburgh - North Berwick & Dunbar

External links

• Video footage of Dunbar railway station