Dunfermline Press. » News » Hopes grow for direct Dunfermline to Glasgow rail service

Why are there wasting money on this? Its pointless for the point of view of fifer, as no one will take the train to Glasgow along this route, it already takes 55mins from Alloa to Glasgow, so you would have to add on another 20 – 30 mins to get to Dunfermline, even if there tried to say we could have a fast train to Stirling will it be fast? Is there not a speed limit on the section between Dunfermline – power station?

I wont be taking the train nor will anyone else, there a coach every 20mins to Glasgow and it take about 1 hour to get there, so why would anyone pay more and travel more?

I dare say this is been told to us so SNP can get a train to Edinburgh from alloa. Once again the SNP are not doing something for the people of west fife but for other people, there just making it look pretty and showing us a nice we package for us to sail down on.

How about speeding the money on better uses,

* Better bus service to Alloa? There a lot of people would like this, or help pay for Fast commuter coach to Stirling

* More train and buses to Edinburgh from fife? We need it,

* Sorting out the Homeless problem in fife, We should have none, this is not the place but there should be Two James bank centrals

A: Homeless: with a drug etc problem

B: Homeless with NO PROBLEMS

This would give everyone a better change than putting them wrongly all together and also give the people the help there need.

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Dunfermline is LONG overdue DIRECT services to/from Glasgow BUT VIA THE FORTH BRIDGE, Dalmeny (Winchburgh Junc) & Linlithgow (as with the once a day Mon-Frid Kirkcaldy service).

An extension from Stirling/Alloa to Clackmannan, Kincardine, Culross, Toryburn, Cairneyhill & Dunfermline

would, apart from in the peaks, serve a more local market!

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What's the point of running trains to glasgow via alloa when there's a perfectly good line via Dalmeny and Linlithgow which is only used once each way daily from Markinch.

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Re: Rail services from Alloa

I no longer live in the area but have been interested to follow the re-opening of the Alloa railway. (I travelled to Tillicoultry and Dollar in steam days!)

Regarding recent comment on the extension of services (e.g. to Dunfermline, at least) I would observe the following.

The restored SAK line includes parts of two distinct former routes. The section from Stirling to Alloa is part of the former double-track main line from Stirling to Dunfermline and Fife. This line closed to passengers in 1968. The section from Alloa to Kincardine is part of the Alloa-Kincardine-Dunfermline branch line, which closed to passengers very much earlier, in 1930. On the main line, the journey time from Stirling to Dunfermline was about 30 minutes. If the main line existed today, a limited stop Dunfermline-Glasgow journey of just under an hour might be possible.

The main Stirling-Dunfermline line was not apparently on the original ‘Beeching’ closure list. (Nor, incidentally, was the direct main line from Edinburgh to Perth via Dunfermline and Kinross.) Although the eastern end of the Stirling-Dunfermline line, which passed through the former Dunfermline Upper station, did not completely close until as recently as 1993, the track-bed has subsequently (and, it would appear short-sightedly) been built over and destroyed within Dunfermline.

Today, short of restoring the main line and providing a completely new east-south link near Dunfermline, rail services east of Alloa would have to use the curvaceous, single-track coastal freight route through Kincardine, which would be unlikely to support a frequent or fast service to Dunfermline. Also, for Edinburgh, a new east-south curve would be required at Charleston since the remaining Kincardine line joins the line from the Forth Bridge at a north-facing junction.

In short, it appears that major investment (perhaps similar to that for an upper Forth road crossing) would be required properly to restore main line passenger rail services east of Alloa.

But could the recently reconstructed Alloa line support increased services? It is noticeable that, although the Stirling-Alloa section has been built as mostly single track on a former double-track alignment, some of the new drainage and signalling works appear to encroach on the former track-bed, which (without major rework) would appear to limit the potential for any future re-doubling to accommodate additional or more frequent services.

A revived Stirling-Dollar service might be a more logical extension of the present single-line, hourly Alloa service.

In this regard, it is perhaps also unfortunate that the new Alloa station has been built just east of the former junction with the Devon Valley line. The new Alloa station is thus in the wrong place for any future restoration of services to the Hillfoots, Tillicoultry and Dollar, which would require it to be moved back to its original location.

But then, addressing all the above would have involved rather more forward planning!

Yours, etc.,

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I agree wholeheartedly with 'observer'. However, if I may point out the trackbed of the old DVR (Devon Valley Railway) is still available apart from a short section at Tillicoultry. Yes this would be a valuable coup if the 'powers that be' get their act together. This line was at one time apportioned to the Scottish Railway Preservation Society after closure, and is still in abeyance.

To utilise the Culross Line through Longannet on the surface will require two passing loops and the relevant resignalling

There are miles of track which could be doubled and signalled independently. This is less costly that passing loops with signalling.

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