Uphall Station is a village located in

West Lothian West Lothian ( sco, Wast Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Iar) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and was one of its shires of Scotland, historic counties. The county was called Linlithgowshire until 1925. The historic county was bounded geogra ...

, Scotland. The name is derived from the neighbouring town

Uphall Uphall ( sco, Uphauch, gd, Ubhalaidh) is a village in West Lothian, Scotland. It is a swiftly growing village in a conurbation with Broxburn to the east, Dechmont to the west and the major town of Livingston to the south west. Uphall is 30 mile ...

on account of the

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 pre ...

located on the northeast perimeter of the village. The village is situated southeast of Uphall and

Broxburn Broxburn ( gd, Srath Bhroc, IPA: �s̪ɾaˈvɾɔʰk is a town in West Lothian, Scotland, on the A89 road, from the West End of Edinburgh, from Edinburgh Airport and to the north of Livingston. Etymology The name Broxburn is a corruption of " ...

, north of

Pumpherston Pumpherston is a village in West Lothian, Scotland. Originally a small industrial village housing works for the nearby shale mine and works, it now forms the eastern part of the new town of Livingston, which was constructed to the west of Pumphe ...

and northeast of

Livingston Livingston may refer to: Businesses * Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010) * Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline * Livingston International, a North American custom ...

. It lies approximately a quarter of a mile from the A89, which is a major road running between

Greenock Greenock (; sco, Greenock; gd, Grianaig, ) is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council areas of Scotland, council area in Scotland, United Kingdom and a former burgh of barony, burgh within the Counties of Scotland, historic ...

in the west of Scotland and

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

in the east of Scotland. A gala day (an outdoor

fête In Britain and some of its former colonies, fêtes are traditional public festivals, held outdoors and organised to raise funds for a charity. They typically include entertainment and the sale of goods and refreshments. Village fêtes Village f� ...

) is held annually, usually in June.

Uphall railway station

Housing

Uphall Station has a variety of housing, including old Victorian and Edwardian stone-built cottages, modern housing estates, bungalows and cottages. The cottages were built during the mining days of Uphall Station to house the large mining community, since each property has been extended in different ways, every property is unique and house prices vary. Some cottages have low maintenance yards whilst others have very large (3000sqft/ 300sqm) back gardens. Houses in the area have recently sold for over £300,000 with the new Dundas Estate houses selling for between £250,000 and over £300,000.

Natural landscape

Uphall Station encompasses a nationally significant population of protected Great Crested Newts, thought to be to third largest breeding site in Scotland. The site, to the North East of the main thoroughfare of Pumpherston Road, is also home to badgers, wild roe deer, foxes, Soprano pipistrelle bats, 17 species of rare and at danger bird species including Grey partridge, yellowhammers, Skylarks and birds of prey. In all, the area is home to over a 100 species of animals and many species of wild flowers. The area is open access and currently utilized as arable farmland as well as a training ground for local amphibian welfare charities due to its highly accessible nature by road and rail.

Crime levels

Uphall Station has a relatively low crime rate compared with the rest of West Lothian and is therefore considered a safe place to raise children. According to Police Scotland, West Lothian has a much lower than average crime and offense rate which is lower than every city in Scotland, including a crime rate nearly 30% lower than Edinburgh, 64% lower than Glasgow and a third lower than Falkirk. Dishonesty crimes in West Lothian are half that of Edinburgh and violent crime is 72% lower than that of Glasgow. This is possibly attributed to the numerous neighbourhood watch schemes in the area and the number of affluent commuters who reside in the village.

Services

Uphall Station has a population of around 1,026 residents; Uphall Station has a significant proportion of commuters to Edinburgh due to its reputation as a safe commuter village with exceptional links to Edinburgh, Glasgow and other parts of West Lothian through Scotrail, M8 motorway, Lothian Country Buses and McGill's Eastern Scottish buses. There are numerous local taxi companies which can take you to Livingston, Edinburgh airport and Edinburgh as well as further afield.

Public transport

Chartered bus services depart frequently. These are operated by McGill's Eastern Scottish. Timetables can be viewed online at the McGill's Scotland East website Lothian Country Buses formerly served the area from 2018 offering another bus route to Edinburgh and Livingston from Pumpherston Road. Lothian Country Buses stopped serving the area in November 2022. Uphall rail station is exceptionally popular with Edinburgh commuters with up to four trains an hour from 6am until midnight and the journey taking less than 20 minutes to reach the heart of Edinburgh. Commutes to Glasgow are also popular due to the reliable service every 15 minutes. Uphall Station is also ideally situated for Edinburgh Airport which is a short drive or taxi ride away.

Amenities

Within Uphall Station, shops and services include: a small supermarket, local pub with pool and darts hall, a hairdresser salon, a bowling club and an Thai restaurant.

West Lothian Council West Lothian Council is the local authority for the council area of West Lothian in Scotland. History West Lothian District Council was created in 1975 as one of four districts within the Lothian region. The West Lothian district took its name f ...

operates a

mobile library A bookmobile or mobile library is a vehicle designed for use as a library. They have been known by many names throughout history, including traveling library, library wagon, book wagon, book truck, library-on-wheels, and book auto service. Bookm ...

service as it lies outside the one-mile threshold of a local library. Uphall Station is adjacent to a large country park which houses a variety of local animals including deer, birds of prey, endangered great crested newts and other nesting birds. Within a five-minute walk lies a popular Indian restaurant, Scotmid, another corner shop, upscale golf club with dining facilities and two Chinese takeaways.

References

1. http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/scotland/sescot/search/resultsindex.php?results=889515,88953

External links

Museum of the Scottish shale industry - Uphall Station Rows and Office Rows
* http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2015/09/5338/downloads {{authority control Villages in West Lothian