Dunblane railway station
| General information | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Location | Dunblane, Stirling, Scotland | ||||
| Coordinates | 56°11′09″N 3°57′57″W / 56.1857°N 3.9657°W | ||||
| Grid reference | NN780009 | ||||
| Managed by | ScotRail | ||||
| Platforms | 3 | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Station code | DBL | ||||
| History | |||||
| Original company | Scottish Central Railway and Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway | ||||
| Pre-grouping | Caledonian Railway | ||||
| Post-grouping | LMSR | ||||
| Key dates | |||||
| 22 May 1848 | Opened | ||||
| Passengers | |||||
| 2020/21 | 73,714 | ||||
| 2021/22 | 0.268 million | ||||
| 2022/23 | 0.360 million | ||||
| 2023/24 | 0.463 million | ||||
| 2024/25 | 0.451 million | ||||
Listed Building – Category C(S) | |||||
| Designated | 17 October 2002 | ||||
| Reference no. | LB48964[2] | ||||
| |||||
| |||||
Dunblane railway station serves the town of Dunblane, in central Scotland. It is a stop on the former Scottish Central Railway, between Stirling and Perth, and opened with the line in 1848. It is the northernmost station on the National Rail network to be electrified.[3]
History
Dunblane used to be a junction where the present line and the Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway diverged. This connected at Callander to the Callander and Oban Railway. The line was axed in the Beeching cuts, being formally closed on 1 November 1965 (although traffic beyond Callander had ended five weeks earlier due to a landslide in Glen Ogle).
Parts of the trackbed from near Dunblane to Doune and from Callander to Killin are now cycle paths.
A short section of track remains on the branch; it is used for storing track maintenance machines and diesel multiple units.
Facilities
The station has three platforms:
- a terminus for trains from/to Glasgow Queen Street and Edinburgh Waverley
- trains heading north to Perth, Dundee, Aberdeen and Inverness
- trains heading south to Glasgow and Edinburgh. These include those that terminate at Dunblane, which travel up the northbound line to the signal box to reverse and cross over to the southbound track before heading back down to the station.
The signal box now operates only the points and signals here. As part of the now completed electrification, the semaphore signals formerly operated by the signal box within the sections electrified (i.e. not to the north of the station) have been replaced with single aspect electrical signals.
The station has the following facilities:[4]
- Passenger information system
- Automatic ticket machine (on platform 1)
- Ticket office and waiting room (Monday-Saturday mornings)
- CCTV
- Waiting shelters and benches
- Limited car parking
- Parking to the west in the former goods sidings area, in conjunction with Tesco supermarket parking
- Help point.
In September 2014, a new footbridge opened with improved accessibility, and the original footbridge removed.[5] The listed footbridge was re-erected at the heritage Bridge of Dun railway station.[6]
Several plants have been placed around the station by a voluntary group known as Dunblane in Bloom.
Services
Dunblane is served by three train operating companies, which provide the following general pattern in trains per hour/week:
- 2 tph to Edinburgh Waverley, via Falkirk Grahamston
- 1 tph to Glasgow Queen Street, via Stirling
- 1 tph to Dundee, via Perth
- 2 tpd to Aberdeen.[7]
- 1 tpd to Inverness
- 1 tpd to London Euston[8]
- 1 tpw to London King's Cross.[9]
| Preceding station | National Rail | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bridge of Allan | ScotRail Edinburgh–Dunblane Line |
Gleneagles | ||
| Bridge of Allan | ScotRail Croy Line |
Terminus | ||
| Stirling | Caledonian Sleeper Highland Caledonian Sleeper |
Gleneagles | ||
| Stirling | London North Eastern Railway East Coast Main Line |
Gleneagles | ||
| Historical railways | ||||
| Bridge of Allan Line and station open |
Scottish Central Railway Caledonian Railway |
Kinbuck Line open; station closed | ||
| Terminus | Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway Caledonian Railway |
Doune Line and station closed | ||
See also
- Public transport in Perth and Kinross
- Dunblane Hotel, formerly the station's hotel
References
Citations
- ^ Brailsford, Martyn, ed. (December 2017) [1987]. "Gaelic/English Station Index". Railway Track Diagrams 1: Scotland & Isle of Man (6th ed.). Frome: Trackmaps. ISBN 978-0-9549866-9-8.
- ^ "STATION ROAD, DUNBLANE RAILWAY STATION INCLUDING ORIGINAL FOOTBRIDGE". Historic Scotland. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
- ^ "First Electric Train Arrives in Dunblane". Dunblane.info. 22 November 2018. Retrieved 15 November 2025.
- ^ "Dunblane (DBL)". National Rail Enquiries. Retrieved 15 November 2025.
- ^ Dunblane station's new £3m footbridge opens for Ryder Cup Network Rail 23 September 2014
- ^ "New ridge at Bridge of Dun". Heritage Railway. 11 May 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
- ^ "Train timetables". ScotRail. 18 May 2025. Retrieved 15 November 2025.
- ^ "All timetables". Caledonian Sleeper. 18 May 2025. Retrieved 15 November 2025.
- ^ "Our timetables". Lner.co.uk. 18 May 2025. Retrieved 15 November 2025.
Sources
- 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.