, symbol_location = gb , symbol = rail , image = Achnasheen station - geograph.org.uk - 3636057.jpg , borough =

Achnasheen Achnasheen (Gaelic ''Achadh na Sìne'') is a small village in Ross-shire in the Highland council area of Scotland. The village is situated on the River Bran at the junction of two roads built by Thomas Telford. Despite the size of the village, ...

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

, country = Scotland , coordinates = , grid_name =

Grid reference A projected coordinate system, also known as a projected coordinate reference system, a planar coordinate system, or grid reference system, is a type of spatial reference system that represents locations on the Earth using cartesian coordin ...

, grid_position = , manager = ScotRail , platforms = 2 , code = ACN , classification = DfT category F2 , original =

Dingwall and Skye Railway The Dingwall and Skye Railway was authorised on 5 July 1865 with the aim of providing a route to Skye and the Hebrides. However, due to local objections, another Act of Parliament was required before work could commence. This was passed on 29 Ma ...

, pregroup =

Highland Railway The Highland Railway (HR) was one of the smaller British railways before the Railways Act 1921, operating north of Perth railway station in Scotland and serving the farthest north of Britain. Based in Inverness, the company was formed by merger ...

, postgroup = LMSR , years = 19 August 1870 , events = Station openedButt (1995) , mpassengers = , footnotes = Passenger statistics from the

Office of Rail and Road The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the economic and safety regulation of Britain's railways, and the economic monitoring of National Highways. ORR regulates Network Rail by setting its ...

Achnasheen railway station is a remote

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a prep ...

on the Kyle of Lochalsh Line, serving the village of

in the north of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

. The station is from , between Achanalt and

Achnashellach Achnashellach ( Gaelic: ''Achadh nan Seileach'') is an area in Wester Ross in the Highlands of Scotland, and within the Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or hi ...

. ScotRail, who manage the station, operate all services.

History

The station was opened by the

on 19 August 1870, but operated from the outset by the

. The station hotel was built by Alexander Ross and opened in 1871. It was extended by William Roberts in 1898 and again at the turn of the 21st century. Taken into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway during the

Grouping Grouping may refer to: * Muenchian grouping * Principles of grouping * Railways Act 1921, also known as Grouping Act, a reorganisation of the British railway system * Grouping (firearms), the pattern of multiple shots from a sidearm See also ...

of 1923, the line then passed on to the Scottish Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948. It was once an important railhead, handling passengers, mail and freight bound for parts of Wester Ross, including

Gairloch Gairloch ( ; gd, Geàrrloch , meaning "Short Loch") is a village, civil parish and community on the shores of Loch Gairloch in Wester Ross, in the North-West Highlands of Scotland. A tourist destination in the summer months, Gairloch has a go ...

and the

Loch Torridon Loch Torridon ( gd, Loch Thoirbheartan) is a sea loch on the west coast of Scotland in the Northwest Highlands. The loch was created by glacial processes and is in total around 15 miles (25 km) long. It has two sections: Upper Loch Torridon ...

area. A proposal for a branch line to Aultbea, via Gairloch and Poolewe. Plans for the Loch Maree and Aultbea Railway was put to Parliament in 1893, but the proposal was rejected, as it deemed that the line would not be commercially viable in such a remote area. All freight in this area now travels by road. The station building still serves as a postal distribution point, but the mail travels from Inverness by road. When sectorisation was introduced by British Rail, the station became part of ScotRail until the

Privatisation of British Rail The privatisation of British Rail was the process by which ownership and operation of the railways of Great Britain passed from government control into private hands. Begun in 1994, it had been completed by 1997. The deregulation of the indust ...

Facilities

Facilities here are very basic, consisting of shelters and benches on both platforms on both platforms, and a help point on platform 1, adjacent to a small car park. Unusually, for such a rural location, there are accessible toilets at the station. As there are no facilities to purchase tickets, passengers must buy one in advance, or from the guard on the train.

Platform layout

The station has a

passing loop A passing loop (UK usage) or passing siding (North America) (also called a crossing loop, crossing place, refuge loop or, colloquially, a hole) is a place on a single line railway or tramway, often located at or near a station, where trains or ...

long, flanked by two platforms. Platform 1 on the eastbound line can accommodate trains having three coaches, whereas platform 2 on the westbound line can hold five. The station is the location of one of the three

s on the line west of and trains are sometimes timetabled to cross here. The loop was once controlled from signal boxes at each end of the station (a common method of working on the HR), but both were closed when

Radio Electronic Token Block Radio Electronic Token Block is a system of railway signalling used in the United Kingdom. It is a development of the physical token system for controlling traffic on single lines. The system is slightly similar to North American Direct Traffic ...

signalling was introduced by British Rail on the line in 1984. The loop is now supervised remotely from the power box at .

Passenger volume

The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.

Services

There are four trains a day in each direction (one on Sundays in winter, two in summer, depending on the time of year) stopping here, connecting Achnasheen with all stations between Inverness and .eNRT December 2021 Edition, Table 219

References

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

Station on navigable O.S. map
Railway stations in Highland (council area) Railway stations served by ScotRail Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1870 Former Highland Railway stations William Roberts railway stations {{Highland-railstation-stub