Helmsdale railway station
Railway station in Highland, Scotland
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Helmsdale railway station is a railway station serving the village of Helmsdale in the Highland council area, northern Scotland. It is located on the Far North Line, between Brora and Kildonan, 101 miles 40 chains (163.3 km) from Inverness.[4] ScotRail, who manage the station, operate all services.
 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
158715 approaching the station in 2021 | |||||
| General information | |||||
| Location | Helmsdale, Highland Scotland | ||||
| Coordinates | 58.1177°N 3.6590°W | ||||
| Grid reference | ND023155 | ||||
| Manager | ScotRail | ||||
| Platforms | 2 | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Station code | HMS[2] | ||||
| History | |||||
Original company | Duke of Sutherland's Railway | ||||
| Pre-grouping | Highland Railway | ||||
| Post-grouping | London, Midland and Scottish Railway British Railways | ||||
| Key dates | |||||
| 19 June 1871 | Opened as terminus | ||||
| 28 July 1874 | Altered to through station | ||||
| Passengers | |||||
| 2020/21 |  564 | ||||
| 2021/22 |  3,168 | ||||
| 2022/23 | 3,484 | ||||
| 2023/24 | 4,038 | ||||
| 2024/25 | 4,242 | ||||
Listed Building – Category B | |||||
| Designated | 23 July 1987 | ||||
| Reference no. | LB7184[3] | ||||
| |||||
| |||||
History
.jpg)
The Duke of Sutherland's Railway had opened between Dunrobin and West Helmsdale (near Gartymore) on 1 November 1870.[5] Extensions of this line southward to Golspie and northward to Helmsdale were opened on 19 June 1871.[6][7] The station buildings were designed by the architect William Fowler.[citation needed]
Another company, the Sutherland and Caithness Railway (S&CR), was authorised on 13 July 1871 to take over the powers of the projected Caithness Railway and link Helmsdale with that line at Georgemas Junction, and the S&CR opened on 28 July 1874.[8]
The station master's house on the platform was abandoned in the 1980s. In 2013 it was refitted as self-catering holiday accommodation.[9]
On 7 August 2024, King Charles III visited Helmsdale Railway Station to mark the 150th anniversary of the Sutherland and Caithness railway line. The King, met railway workers, representatives of Helmsdale Community Council and members of Sutherland Schools Pipe Band. He afterwards laid flowers at Helmsdale War Memorial to mark its Centenary and met veterans and members of the local community.[10]
Accidents and incidents
On 29 April 1891 there was a collision between a down mixed train from Inverness which ran into an engine which had arrived earlier. Major Marindin of the Board of Trade investigated and found that the driver Robert Lindsay deliberately ignored the signals as he would have had difficulty in restarting the train on the rising gradient of 1 in 59.[11]
Facilities
Both platforms have waiting areas and benches, whilst platform 2 also has a help point. Bike racks and a car park are adjacent to platform 2. There is step free access to platform 2 only; platform 1 can only be accessed via the footbridge.[12]
Passenger volume
| 2004–05 | 2005–06 | 2006–07 | 2007–08 | 2008–09 | 2009–10 | 2010–11 | 2011–12 | 2012–13 | 2013–14 | 2014–15 | 2015–16 | 2016–17 | 2017–18 | 2018–19 | 2019–20 | 2020–21 | 2021–22 | 2022–23 | 2023–24 | 2024–25 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entries and exits | 3,513 | 3,514 | 4,456 | 5,348 | 5,646 | 5,680 | 5,656 | 6,086 | 5,828 | 5,778 | 5,096 | 6,204 | 5,768 | 4,636 | 5,044 | 5,086 | 564 | 3,168 | 3,484 | 4,038 | 4,242 |
The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.
Services
Mondays to Saturdays, there are four train each way that call here - southbound to Dingwall & Inverness and northbound to Wick via Thurso. Sundays see a single departure each way.[14]
| Preceding station |  National Rail |
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brora | ScotRail Far North Line |
Kildonan | ||
| Historical railways | ||||
| West Helmsdale Line open, station closed |
Highland Railway Duke of Sutherland's RailwaySutherland and Caithness Railway  |
Salzcraggie Platform Line open, station closed | ||
.jpg){kind=small}