Paisley Canal line

Paisley Canal line
A Class 314 service to Glasgow at Paisley Canal in 2013
Overview
Owner	Network Rail
Locale	Glasgow, Scotland
Termini	Glasgow Central Paisley Canal
Stations	7
Service
System	National Rail
Operator(s)	ScotRail
Rolling stock	Class 318 Class 320 Class 380
History
Opened	1885
Technical
Number of tracks	Double track from Glasgow Central to Corkerhill Depot Single track from Corkerhill Depot to Paisley Canal
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Electrification	25 kV 50 Hz AC
Route map (Click to expand)

v t e Paisley Canal line
Legend
City Union Line Glasgow Central Shields Junction (simplified) Shields (1885-1924) Shields Road and Pollokshields stations Glasgow & Paisley Joint Railway via Paisley Gilmour Street Bellahouston Dumbreck Bellahouston Park Halt (1938–1939) Corkerhill Mosspark Crookston Hawkhead Paisley & Barrhead District Railway Saucel Paisley Canal Paisley Canal (original location) Paisley West Barrhead Branch Corsebar Jn & Potterhill Jn Meiklerig Junction Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock & Ayr Railway Ferguslie Paisley & Barrhead District Railway Elderslie East Junction Elderslie Elderslie West Junction Johnstone Junction Cart Junction Bridge of Weir Railway Dalry and North Johnstone Line Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock & Ayr Railway

The Paisley Canal line is a branch railway line in Scotland running between Glasgow and Paisley. The line currently terminates at Paisley Canal railway station, although it previously continued through Paisley West station, near Ferguslie, to Elderslie junction where it met and crossed under the main Glasgow and South Western Railway line running from Paisley Gilmour Street station to Johnstone, and beyond. After Elderslie, the line terminated at North Johnstone, however another junction allowed services from the Paisley Canal line (also part of the Glasgow and South Western Railway Company) to continue onto the Bridge of Weir Railway and Greenock and Ayrshire Railway to the latter's terminus at Greenock Princes Pier.

The line has its origins in the ambitions of Hugh Montgomerie, 12th Earl of Eglinton, who had headed and championed both the Glasgow, Paisley and Johnstone Canal and the Ardrossan Railway. While these had been aimed to developing a route between Ardrossan and Glasgow, these routes were only part-built due to a lack of available finance for the work. During the mid-1800s, the Glasgow and South Western Railway (G&SWR) acquired both the canal and the railway. While the canal was operated as such for a time, during 1881, G&SWR set about the conversion of the canal to a railway line to relieve the Glasgow and Paisley joint line. During March 1885, the first trains commenced use of the new line.

During the 1960s, services on the line were dramatically curtailed as a result of the Beeching cuts; during these years, various stations were closed to both passenger and freight services and often demolished. On 10 January 1983, the line between Elderslie and Kilmacolm closed completely to scheduled passenger services; but the section between Hawkhead and Shields Junction remained open to serve an oil depot. A late 1980s Strathclyde Passenger Transport initiative resulted in the resumption of passenger services between Glasgow Central and a new Paisley Canal station, along with five intermediate stations, on 27 July 1990. In the years since its re-launch, additional stations have been built and opened on the route. During 2012, the entirety of the line was electrified, being furnished with a 25 kV AC overhead line for electric traction. On some occasions through 2018-19 Class 320 and class 318 units were used.