The inside track on our most super stations

Once unloved, Wemyss Bay is a rail charmer for enthusiasts

Its heyday was a time before low-cost airlines, when hopping on a cheap flight to foreign parts couldn’t have been imagined.

Instead, a packed-like-a-sardine train trip to catch a ferry “Doon the Watter” was holiday heaven.

But now Wemyss Bay station, the gateway to the Isle of Bute, is being lauded as one of the nation’s greatest gems. It takes pride of place in a new book, Britain’s 100 Best Railway Stations, not only being given a five-star rating but being chosen for the all-important front cover.

And for author Simon Jenkins, seeing it in all its glory has a special significance as he helped save it from ignominious ruin.

Simon’s involvement with the Clyde coast beauty dates back over 30 years.

“I founded the Railway Heritage Trust in 1983 and Wemyss Bay was one of the early recipients of one of our grants,” said Simon, a former board member of British Rail.

“It was in a terrible state but when I went back to see it in its resplendent restored state, it was just one of the most charming, most complete works of art of any station in Britain.”

The Caledonian Railway station was built in 1903, when steam ruled the tracks, and was a collaboration between two of the pre-eminent figures of the Scottish railways scene.

Architect James Miller, formerly of the Caledonian, was responsible for many of the country’s finest station designs and he had the closest of relationships with the company’s engineer Donald Matheson.

Matheson had just been to America studying large crowds, and he put what he’d witnessed into play to cope with the eager travellers heading from Glasgow to the Rothesay ferry.

“They had to move a trainload of people in five minutes to beat the rival ferries,” explained Simon. “He’d worked out that they moved faster in a curve than a straight line. Then he had to get the luggage separately – as that would slow passengers down – so it went down a ramp behind the station straight to the boat. It was an exercise in people movement and efficiency.

“And Miller was a remarkable architect who had the most extraordinary approach to engineering. He had an eye for drama and magic.”

Like many stations, Wemyss Bay fell on the hardest of times as the crowds dried up. But grants and the tireless efforts of those who refused to see it wither and die in the shape of the volunteers of the Friends of Wemyss Bay Station have helped transform its appearance. Hanging baskets and a

garden brought colour and a secondhand bookshop and gallery have provided an additional reason to visit.

Although lacking the vibrant bustle of yesteryear, Wemyss Bay was a very different entity when Simon paid a visit for his book.

“The sun was shining and it was like a station out of a magic story.

“The only other people there, were two delightful ladies in the bookshop discussing the British Empire. It was a wonderful scene. It’s a splendid station.”

Train travel is once again booming in the UK with over well over 1.5 billion journeys annually, an increase of some 50% in just over a decade.

And unloved stations are now being cherished all over again.

“They are part of our heritage and we do value them more than we did before,” added Simon. “The most encouraging thing about doing the book was discovering that, compared to the really desperate state of them 30 years ago, they were well looked-after.

“I was particularly charmed by the Scottish ones.

“We are beginning to appreciate that these are works of architecture which is a really good thing.”

Britain’s 100 Best Railway Stations by Simon Jenkins ( Viking £25) is out now.

Left, Simon Jenkins, author of Britain’s 100 Best Railways Stations, which Wemyss Bay station, above, is now featured in

GLASGOW Central “Central is custodian of the city’s soul. For over a century, its sweeping roof has looked down on tear-stained moments of departure, whether via the docks to the outside world, or to seek fame and fortune down south in England.”

Waverley STATION Simon says: “Waverley is a ‘nervous breakdown’ of a station. The most distinguished feature remains its only real work of architecture, which is the waiting-hall and surrounding offices.”

Picture: ALAMY

perth “This is a glorious mess of a station, much battered by history and not yet back to its old self. Even from the forecourt, we can sense Perth’s grandeur. Its station badly needs restoration.”

Gleneagles “It was restored in 2014 when the course hosted the Ryder Cup. Although deserted much of the time, it still has an atmosphere of expecting the arrival of someone important.”

rannoch “The manager, James Renton, had such faith in the project he paid the workers out of his own pocket when bankruptcy threatened. A head sculpted on the platform honours his commitment.”

aviemore “This is an exemplary case of station rescue. Today it could be a Hollywood winter sports musical set. Roofs ensure that not a single flake of snow descends on alighting passengers.”

stirling “At first it has the appearance of an abandoned hunting lodge. The interior is more self-confident. The canopies carry the most decorative of valances.”

Glenfinnan “The station has acquired celebrity for its careful conservation and its railway museum, which tells the dramatic story of the building of the line at the turn of the 20th Century.”

pitlochry “On the up platform is a miniature baronial villa in stone, on the down platform is a wooden chalet. Each seems determined to outdo the other in charm.”