Dundee and Newtyle Railway

v t e Dundee and Newtyle Railway
Legend
Scottish Midland Junction Railway Alyth Railway Alyth Junction Scottish Midland Junction Railway Ardler Junction Newtyle (new) Newtyle (old) Hatton Incline Hatton Auchterhouse (new) Auchterhouse (old) Dronley Balbeuchly Incline Rosemill Goods Baldragon Baldovan Maryfield Goods Lochee Back of Law Lochee West Law Tunnel Liff Law Incline Dundee and Perth Railway Dundee Ward Road Dundee West Dundee East Dundee Tay Bridge Dundee Harbour Dundee and Arbroath Railway Tay Bridge Firth of Tay North British Railway

The Dundee and Newtyle Railway opened in 1831 and was the first railway in the north of Scotland. It was built to carry goods between Dundee and the fertile area known as Strathmore; this involved crossing the Sidlaw Hills, and was accomplished with three rope-worked inclined planes. Newtyle was simply a remote railhead, and the anticipated traffic volumes were not achieved, the inclines incurred heavy operating costs, and the railway never made money.

Responding to the criticism of the remote Newtyle station, two further railways were built; these were nominally independent but for practical purposes were branches of the Dundee line. The lines were the Newtyle and Coupar Angus Railway and the Newtyle and Glammiss Railway; they opened in 1837 - 1838. The extension lines did not transform the finances of the main railway, but when the Scottish Midland Junction Railway wanted to build a main line between Perth and Forfar, it adopted the lines and upgrading them, incorporating them in to the route of the new main line.

The Dundee and Newtyle Railway was taken over by the Dundee and Perth Railway and the difficult inclines were by-passed by circuitous and more easily graded routes in the period 1860 to 1868. Nonetheless the line declined and closed to passengers in 1955. The Coupar Angus and Glammis (Glamis) lines continued as part of the Forfar main line, but that closed in 1967.