Invergordon railway station

Invergordon
Scottish Gaelic: Inbhir Ghòrdain
Location
Place	Invergordon
Local authority	Highland
Coordinates	57°41′21″N 4°10′28″W / 57.6891°N 4.1745°WCoordinates: 57°41′21″N 4°10′28″W / 57.6891°N 4.1745°W
Grid reference	NH704686
Operations
Station code	IGD
Managed by	Abellio ScotRail
Number of platforms	2
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2004/05	8,109
2005/06	9,195
2006/07	12,949
2007/08	15,853
2008/09	19,974
2009/10	20,648
2010/11	23,444
2011/12	34,564
2012/13	34,974
2013/14	36,356
2014/15	31,962
History
28 July 1874	Opened
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Invergordon from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.
UK Railways portal

Invergordon railway station is a railway station serving the town of Invergordon on the Cromarty Firth, in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is located on the Far North Line.

The station consists of two side platforms with two tracks forming a passing loop on the predominantly single-track line from Dingwall to Thurso and Wick. The permanent station buildings are all on the southbound platform, the northbound platform having a simple shelter. As of 2011 the buildings are not in use. In 2008/2009, the station underwent a brightening-up programme run by the Invergordon "Off The Wall" group.

Northbound, leaving the station, the track snakes under a one-way road bridge and runs alongside Park Primary school until turning into single track; it then runs through the Invergordon distillery and Inverbreakie housing estate. It then enters the woods.

The station's usage has more than doubled since 2004/2005.

Geography

The station is located at the south end of Invergordon high street and is easily accessible from all areas of Invergordon, the closest area being the densely populated area of South lodge.

Services

The station has seen a number of timetable improvements since 2008, with the addition of an extra through train each way to/from Wick on weekdays and further shorter distance services to/from Inverness aimed at the commuter market (these mainly run as far as Tain or Ardgay). Prior to this, 3 departures in each direction was the standard service on the line for many years.^[1]

In the May 2016 timetable, there are seven trains from (plus an extra late service on Fridays & Saturdays only) and nine trains to Inverness Mon-Sat with four of these running the length of the line to Thurso & Wick. On Sundays, there is a single train to/from Wick and five to Inverness (three of these run to Tain whilst the other starts here).^[2]

RAF Sunderland crash

On 26 November 1944, Royal Air Force Short Sunderland DD851 of the No. 4 (Coastal) Operational Training Unit departed Cromarty Firth, RAF Alness on an anti-submarine patrol of the North Sea off the coast of Scotland. During the initial climb a connecting rod on the starboard inner engine broke, the engine caught fire and fell off. The Sunderland, with a full load of fuel and depth charges then crashed into the railway line 2 miles northeast of Invergordon Railway Station where all 11 of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) crew were killed.^[3] The crew are buried in the Stonefall Air Force Cemetery in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.^[4]

References

1. Table 239 National Rail timetable, May 2006.
2. Table 239 National Rail timetable, May 2016.
3. Form 1160 Crash Report (Report). Air Ministry. 1944.
4. Allison, Les; Hayward, Harry (June 1992). "They Shall Not Grow Old" A book of Remembrance. Brandon, MB: Commonwealth Air Training Plan Museum Inc. ISBN 0920436412.