New Rail Station at Barrhead South

[ScotTrains]

Interesting they're changing the name. I guess Barrhead South was too similar to Barrhead located at the opposite side of the town on a different line. Oh well, just glad they didn't call it after nearby dodgy Auchenback!

I really hope the contractors come up with an aesthetically pleasing design. So many new stations these days are horrible drab grey metal monstrosities!
This ststion will be visible for miles and right next to the nature reserve/ country park. Painted wooden fencing and cladding with planters etc would be nice but the current design visulisation does not look promising at all.

 

[och aye]

I really hope the contractors come up with an aesthetically pleasing design. So many new stations these days are horrible drab grey metal monstrosities!
This ststion will be visible for miles and right next to the nature reserve/ country park. Painted wooden fencing and cladding with planters etc would be nice but the current design visulisation does not look promising at all.

One thing about these "copy and paste" functional station designs is that they are generally cheaper to build, rather than building something bespoke.

With that being said, as much as I would like new stations to have some modern ornate finishes and flourishes in the metal work of bridges and waiting shelters, I realise that costs more money, which is something the railways don't really have.

 

[Falcon1200]

Interesting they're changing the name. I guess Barrhead South was too similar to Barrhead located at the opposite side of the town on a different line.

Also, Neilston passengers do not want it known that their trains also serve Barrhead......

 

[reb0118]

Also, Neilston passengers do not want it known that their trains also serve Barrhead......

There are residents of Barrhead who deny being residents of the said settlement.

 

[GLC]

Also, Neilston passengers do not want it known that their trains also serve Barrhead......

Pot kettle black as far as the residents of Newton Mearns would be concerned

 

[nlogax]

There are residents of Barrhead who deny being residents of the said settlement.

I quite like living here. Sure, it has..quirks and features.

By the time the new station is built I'll likely be living elsewhere in Scotland but regardless I'm still glad to see this sort of progress.

 

[Buzby]

Missing the opportunity of selling tickets with Barrhead (Any) on them.

It didn’t cause too much of a hardship at Tyndrum to have one Upper the other Lower, although I see they’ve reversed the order of the words - but who will ever know where the ‘new’ station is located without prompting? At least Barrhead (South) gives some clue!

 

[lachlan]

Missing the opportunity of selling tickets with Barrhead (Any) on them.

It didn’t cause too much of a hardship at Tyndrum to have one Upper the other Lower, although I see they’ve reversed the order of the words - but who will ever know where the ‘new’ station is located without prompting? At least Barrhead (South) gives some Clyde!

Indeed, hadn't thought of that. Looks like the stations will be about a 35 minute walk apart and there will be folks halfway between who could use either and would benefit from a Barrhead (Any) ticket

 

[D6130]

Indeed, hadn't thought of that. Looks like the stations will be about a 35 minute walk apart and there will be folks halfway between who could use either and would benefit from a Barrhead (Any) ticket

Aye, they could avoid the uphill slog by walking down into Barrhead in the morning and returning to Balgray in the evening for a downhill walk home.

Also, Neilston passengers do not want it known that their trains also serve Barrhead......

Could that by any chance be anything to do with the fact the the former main industry in Barrhead was the manufacture of toilets? (Cue a snide aside from the Home Secretary!)

 

[Falcon1200]

Could that by any chance be anything to do with the fact the the former main industry in Barrhead was the manufacture of toilets?

More I think the general impression that people around here have of Barrhead (whether fairly or otherwise!)

Personally I didn't see an issue with naming the station Barrhead South, given that it is south of Barrhead; Perhaps the other Barrhead could have gained the suffix Central (reviving a long lost station name).

 

[Buzby]

Perhaps the other Barrhead could have gained the suffix Central (reviving a long lost station name

I had thought I’d mis-remembered that nugget! Perhaps the implication would reasonable I’d there were more than 2 stations in the vicinity? As it stands, renaming it Barrhead North has a viable ring to it - but Balgray just doesn’t float my boat, as Balgray(hill) is next to Stobhill Hospital near Springburn (on the wrong side of the Clyde!).

 

[gomango]

"The name of the proposed new station will be Balgray, as it will be located next to Balgray Reservoir. The name is an old Scottish place name meaning either Bal (settlement) or Balg (bulge or bag shaped body of water)."

New station on track for Balgray

Network Rail has appointed Story Contracting Ltd to design a new railway station on the Neilston line in the area south of Barrhead.

www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk

How would the station be pronounced
Bal-Gray
Ba-lgray
Blag_ray

Just wondering if anyone knows thats all

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Perhaps the other Barrhead could have gained the suffix Central (reviving a long lost station name).

Barrhead Central was on the Glasgow and South Western Railway's Barrhead Line. It was opened on 1st October 1902 and closed on 1st January 1917.

 

[james73]

Barrhead Central was on the Glasgow and South Western Railway's Barrhead Line. It was opened on 1st October 1902 and closed on 1st January 1917.

True. It was all a bit confusing. Thank god for Railmaponline.com

 

[EllieAquitrain]

How would the station be pronounced
Bal-Gray
Ba-lgray
Blag_ray

Just wondering if anyone knows thats all

Not a local but given I find the general rule (nowhere near exhaustive, I must stress!) of Scottish place name pronunciation is to put emphasis on the second part of the name, I'd assume it's "bal-GRAY"

 

[Buzby]

pronunciation is to put emphasis on the second part of the name, I'd assume it's "bal-GRAY"

In my youth it was pronounced BALL-GRAY….. (First part rhymes with foot-BALL)

 

[snowball]

I've forgotten whether the bridge (over the Neilston line) near the reservoir is related to the new station, but anyway, here's a press release about the bridge:

Core path reinstated as Balgray Reservoir bridge re-opens

Network Rail has completed work to replace a bridge on a key walking route over the railway near Balgray Reservoir in East Renfrewshire.

www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk

Network Rail has completed work to replace a bridge on a key walking route over the railway near Balgray Reservoir in East Renfrewshire.

The £2.9m project saw the old concrete bridge, which had stood for around 50 years, demolished and replaced as it had neared the end of its natural lifespan.

Engineers demolished the old bridge and key parts of the superstructure were replaced over two consecutive Sunday-Monday line closures back in August 2023.

Early reconstruction saw the team work around the clock using a KIROW 1200, the largest rail-mounted crane in the UK, to lift the pre-cast concrete components into place whilst the railway between Cathcart and Neilston was closed.

Since then, contractor AmcoGiffen has been rebuilding the parapets, installing new surfacing with waterproofing, and landscaping the area around the structure. The reopening seamlessly joins the bridge to the existing footpath, reinstating the core path connecting Springfield Road to Balgray Reservoir.

Susan Menmuir, Network Rail’s scheme project manager, said: “Replacing the existing concrete bridge deck was necessary as it was gradually deteriorating and nearing the end of its lifespan.

 

[Falcon1200]

I've forgotten whether the bridge (over the Neilston line) near the reservoir is related to the new station,

Thanks for the link, but no, this bridge is not related to the new station, it is a bit closer to Patterton.

 

[och aye]

There will be a public information drop-in on Tuesday 12 December from 3.00pm - 7.00pm at the Auchenback Resource Centre (ARC), Aurs Drive, Barrhead.

Balgray station

Plans are being developed for a new railway station at Balgray, south of Barrhead, on the railway line between Glasgow and Neilston.

scotlandsrailway.com

 

[yorkie]

Reopened to enable @ld0595 to post an update

 

[ld0595]

Many thanks.

Things have been fairly quiet on the new station at Balgray in recent months, though I noticed an article published in the Glasgow Times today regarding land acquisition to create new car parking for the new station.

Car park plan for new train station in set to get green light

Council land in Barrhead is set to be leased to Network Rail on a 175-year deal to provide a car park for the new Balgray train station.

www.glasgowtimes.co.uk

Car park plan for new train station in Barrhead set to get green light

Council land in Barrhead is set to be leased to Network Rail on a 175-year deal to provide a car park for the new Balgray train station.

Two small pockets of land are also expected to be taken over by Network Rail for a “nominal” fee to allow the £18m development to progress.

Councillors in East Renfrewshire will be asked to approve both deals at a meeting today.

They are set to be completed before a full business case for the station is submitted — with the project expected to be finished by spring 2026.

The new Barrhead South station, to be known as Balgray station, will have two platforms on either side, linked by an overhead pedestrian bridge and lifts.

Council officials have reported the “delivery of a new railway station at Barrhead South, on the Glasgow to Neilston line, will support the new community at Barrhead South and enhance sustainable travel options for existing and new residents".

They added the station would “improves access to jobs and services” and to the Dams to Darnley Country Park. An access road and bus-turning circle has already been completed.

Around £15.7m of the funding for the project is coming from the Glasgow City Region City Deal, a infrastructure programme funded by both the UK and Scottish Government.

East Renfrewshire Council is expected to submit the full business case to the City Region’s programme management offices next month. The remaining £2.6m is being provided by the council.

Just over two hectares of council land has already been transferred to Network Rail, but “two additional small pockets” are also “required to allow construction and operation of the station”.

The 175-year lease is set to be agreed at a ‘peppercorn’ rent of £1 per year if asked.

A council report added: “The lease will incorporate a clause where the council receives a share, to be negotiated, of any future income from any electric vehicle charging spaces and any future introduction of car-parking charges within the facility.”

Network Rail would have a right to purchase the land at the end of the lease, with the value to be determined at that time by a chartered surveyor.

If the station was to close or part of the car park “deemed surplus to requirements”, the land will be transferred back to the council.

 

[ScotTrains]

I thought the most recent construction start date was meant to be this spring with completion next year but it is clearly delayed yet again with nothing happening on site.

The area is currently now just a local fly tipping ground, with what looks like abandoned materials (slabs, bricks, astro turf etc) from the nearby new-builds.


I wonder if the latest light rail Clyde metro proposals linking N.Mearns with Barrhead and Paisley may be delaying the construction. Hopefully things will start to move soon. It looks like the latest completion date has been pushed back again and is now not due to open until spring 2026, a decade late and way over the initial £8m proposed back in 2015. Hopefully, they'll improve the design to something more aesthetically pleasing rather than the horrid all-grey monstrosity they're currently planning, especially as the station will be seen for miles around sitting at the edge of the country park. Even just a little bit of colour or cladding to add some interest wouldn't cost much but would make the station more pleasing.

 

[s55823ewj]

Planning application submitted https://ercbuildingstandards.eastre...ils.do?activeTab=summary&keyVal=SHWKY7GP08600

 

[snowball]

Press release

Green light for new station at Balgray

Plans for a new railway station in East Renfrewshire have now been approved.

www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk

Plans for a new railway station in East Renfrewshire have now been approved.

A funding award of £18.3m from the Glasgow City Region City Deal will see the new Balgray station built on the Neilston line near to Balgray reservoir.

It’s the latest milestone in the project that will connect the existing community and new housing development to the rail network, and act as a catalyst for further development.

Over the past few months, Network Rail and East Renfrewshire Council have been working with Transport Scotland, ScotRail and Story Contracting, to plan and design the new station.

The station will have two platforms connected by a footbridge with lifts, as well as waiting shelters, cycle storage and ticket machines.

There will be an 80-space car park for passengers, with ten charging points for electric vehicles.

Footpaths and cycle paths will lead into the station and will be easily accessible for residents in nearby homes by walking, wheeling or cycling.

As part of the build, a direct path from the station to Dams to Darnley Country Park will be created, allowing easier access for visitors arriving for, and departing after, a day out.

 

[Buzby]

I wonder if Glasgow City dwellers will feel short-changed as this development is clearly within East Renfrewshire?!

 

[LambicHedgehog]

I wonder if Glasgow City dwellers will feel short-changed as this development is clearly within East Renfrewshire?!

Are you thinking of Glasgow City Council? East Renfrewshire Council is one of the eight councils that make up the Glasgow City Region.

 

[Buzby]

Ah - another geo marriage of convenience in location-spraining that is neither accurate or descriptive!

 

[Starmill]

I'm really glad to see this one moving forward. The other two most promising candidates for new stations in Scotland were Bonnybridge and Winchburgh, and it's recently been stated in writing by the Scottish Ministers that capital funding for these isn't available from them. As private funding for Winchburgh and local authority funding for either is very unlikely to materialise soon, this means they're many years away at best. The other proposals at an advanced stage have of course recently been delivered (Inverness Airport, East Linton, Reston, Cameron Bridge, Leven, Edinburgh Trams to Newhaven) so it's just this one for now in Scotland.

There were a lot of other great value ideas contained in STPR2 but there's scarce funding for anything.

 

[ScotTrains]

Yes, it's good to see some investment in the west coast, especially as the Glasgow airport link was cancelled.

It'll be interesting to see how the £15B Clyde metro plan progresses. It looks like they plan to reinstate the old junction at Lyoncross, not far from this new Balgray station, then run towards Paisley, presumably on the old Dummy railway, with its trackbed still relatively intact. This could mean we may see the old Barrhead South station reopened..

 

[numtot12345]

Will be interesting to see how many more people then take the Neilston line and remaining available capacity during peak times for stations within the Cathcart Circle.