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Network Rail opened for passengers the new East Linton station on December 13, 2023, as the town re-joined the rail network after almost six decades.
Transport Minister Fiona Hyslop was joined on the first train to East Linton from Edinburgh by a wide range of local people and groups who had campaigned for the return of the station and those involved in its construction.
“The new East Linton station is the latest example of this Scottish Government’s commitment to building and investing in Scotland’s Railway. Our aim is to encourage more people out of their car and onto sustainable public transport. The station will open up education, leisure, and business opportunities for East Linton’s growing community, while also offering greener ways to travel as we work towards our ambitious Net Zero goals,” Fiona Hyslop, Minister for Transport, said.
The new station at East Linton includes two new 158m long, 4m wide station platforms and associated furniture (waiting shelters, seating, and ticket machines), a new footbridge across the railway, incorporating lifts and stairs on either side, lighting columns throughout the site and CCTV, a car park, bus stop with shelter and a drop-off space, 114 parking spaces including blue badge priority parking and 18 electric vehicle charging points and cycle storage facilities.
The train was greeted on arrival by a piper and the Minister was joined by local school children from East Linton Primary school to celebrate the return of passenger services to the town.
The Minister unveiled a plaque to mark the opening of the new station, which restores a rail link lost when the original station closed in 1964.
The reconnection of East Linton to the national rail network follows completion of work to construct the station and is part of the Scottish Government’s ongoing investment in Scotland’s Railway.
Around 130,000 journeys are expected to be made to and from East Linton in the first year of its operation.
Commuters will be able to connect into Edinburgh Waverley, with direct access to the East Coast Main Line also available for services to Dunbar and Newcastle. As well as improving transport connectivity, the station will help transform the economic outlook of the area it will serve.
Services at the station will be provided by both ScotRail and TransPennine Express with 22 services a day calling at East Linton and a journey time to Edinburgh of 20 minutes. |
