Georgemas Junction railway station

Trains via Thurso

Until diesel multiple unit trains were introduced by British Rail in the early 1990s, all trains on the Far North Line were locomotive-hauled, initially by Highland Railway steam locomotives, then by LMSR steam locomotives and latterly by British Railways steam and finally Class 37 diesel locomotives. Northbound passenger trains would divide at Georgemas Junction, with the rear portion for Thurso and the front portion for Wick. A locomotive was stabled at Georgemas Junction to haul the Thurso carriages.

Following the introduction of Class 156 diesel multiple units on the line, trains were always composed of two trainsets (four cars) and at Georgemas, these would split in half with the front portion heading to Wick, the rear to Thurso. This practice was halted with the introduction of Class 158 sets which operate as single sets - on arrival at Georgemas Junction from Inverness, trains reverse to reach Thurso, and then reverse again from Thurso back to Georgemas Junction (stopping a second time) and on to Wick. An easement to the National Routeing Guide allows passengers for Wick to stay on the train between Georgemas Junction and Thurso, which would otherwise technically be off-route.^[9]

Transhipment hub

Georgemas Junction station has been used for freight services that transport containers on to lorries which are taken by road to Wick and Thurso, as well as by ferry to Orkney. In the early 2000s, EWS operated a freight train for Safeway supermarket, running containers from Mossend to be unloaded at Georgemas.^[10]

In 2012, platform 1 and the station footbridge were removed when Direct Rail Services constructed a new freight terminal at Georgemas. The platform – which was located on a passing loop that was not directly connected to the Thurso branch – had already long been virtually unused by passenger trains, since all trains passing through the station run to or from Thurso. The purpose of the platform dates back to the time when loco-hauled trains divided/attached at the station: an Inverness-bound portion from Thurso would pass non-stop through the remaining platform 2, loop around the Wick portion standing on platform 1, then reverse and attach to the Wick train from behind.^{[citation needed]}

The freight terminal has been used for taking nuclear material from Dounreay to Sellafield.^[11] Since decommissioning of Dounreay, and after a trial by Tesco in February 2021, the facility sat idle with no trains using the site.^[12]