GLASGOW | Subway and Urban Rail

[Kolothos]

Rail based public transport in Glasgow consists of two separate entities: The Subway, a deep level 'tube' line (although note that it is seldom called this in Glasgow) originating from 1893, and now run by SPT (Strathclyde Partership for Transport, the cities public body for public transport), and a very large collection of Network Rail lines run by First Scotrail (who took over from SPT in 2005). Together they form the largest urban rail network in the UK outside of London, and form the largest collection of underground stations in the UK outside of London: 20 in total, with 15 on the Subway and 5 on the Network Rail lines.

Glasgow and Strathclyde's rail network:


The Subway (orange line on the map) opened in 1896, opening just months after the opening of the Budapest Metro. However, there are large stretches of underground railway in Glasgow that predate the Subway. A large section of the Glasgow City and District Railway runs between High Street and just west of Charing Cross was opened in 1863, as was a similar tunnel under Argyle Street. These two tunnels are still used today, as part of the North Clyde and Argyle Lines, respectively. (lime green and blue lines on the above map). These lines are not part of the Glasgow Subway, they are part of the main railway network in Britain, and form part of Glasgow's extensive Urban and Commuter rail network.

North Clyde and Argyle Lines:


Glasgow Central Low Level Station on the Argyle Line:


These lines serve commuters from the towns on the Clyde in the west and the outer fringes and ''New Towns'' of the east.

Queen Street Low Level Station on the North Clyde Line:


Exhibition Centre Station on the Argyle Line (after exiting the main tunnel, under the Clyde Expressway at Finneston):


That's all for now, because it's late, but I'll post more pictures and information about this stuff another time! Any questions, just ask!

[Sashwindow]

very interesting, thanks for the info and the pictures! Both the subway and the suburban trains look kind of old, but in a nice and 'vintage' way

[Gag Halfrunt]

Kolothos didn't post any photos of the Subway itself, only the underground sections of suburban lines.

[Sashwindow]

oh I know, I've been to Glasgow and I've seen the subway

[Kolothos]

Sorry I've not been updating this! Right, moving onto the Subway itself. Here's one wee pic the now. This is West Street, by far the least used in the system, the area surrounding the system is almost deserted! The cone pretty much shows how narrow the platform is.


By 2016 at the earliest, the Subway will be fully automated with brand new trains and PSD's at every station. The Subway of five years from now will look very different. It's not been altered since it's late 1970's modernisation project.

[Jamandell (d69)]

Hillhead station has just undergone a complete refurbishment, going from this...



to this...



The other stations are also to be refurbished over the next few years

[peterbrusil]

It's looking at quite amazing subway service. Subway and Urban Rails are one of the most important parts of transport. Mostly, people use subway transport service to moving with their goods or luggage.

[Woonsocket54]

did they install PSDs at Hillhead?

[citybus]

I'm not surprised they're opting for platform edge screens, West Street station looks like a fucking death trap. If anything the cone will accidentally trip people up onto the trains.

[Jamandell (d69)]

Originally Posted by Woonsocket54

did they install PSDs at Hillhead?

That is a barrier to stop people getting on the wrong train, so each platform allows you to get on a train that goes in a different direction.

However PSDs will be added as part of the refurbishment eventually

[Woonsocket54]

Originally Posted by Jamandell (d69)

That is a barrier to stop people getting on the wrong train, so each platform allows you to get on a train that goes in a different direction.

However PSDs will be added as part of the refurbishment eventually

why are barriers necessary? Just have the trains open their doors only on the side of the intended platform. People won't board a train when the doors are closed on their side.

[get13]

Originally Posted by Woonsocket54

why are barriers necessary? Just have the trains open their doors only on the side of the intended platform. People won't board a train when the doors are closed on their side.

That station originally only had one centre platform. It was then extended by adding a second side platform to increase capacity so the barrier was added to increase safety on the original centre platform as one side was no longer needed.

[Woonsocket54]

Originally Posted by get13

That station originally only had one centre platform.

OK, thank you. That explains it. Was this catwalk designed as a venue for Fashion Week?

[Kolothos]

I think the idea behind the barriers was to add a bit of safety to that platform by giving something for passengers to lean against. PSD's will go in eventually as part of the future automation of the line (post-2014).

As part of the ongoing re-branding of the Subway, the new roundel logo will appear on totems outside stations. It's a fantastic idea, and it might just be that wee bit of extra effort that's needed to get more people using the Subway.


There are currently no plans for expansion, but hopefully after this modernisation and automation project is over, we can start to realistically consider it! Having been in London recently, you can really tell that the Underground stations link the different parts of the city together in a way that no other form of transport can do.

The more attractive we make the line look, the more people will want to use the Subway, and if that comes true, then conversion of heavy rail lines to rapid transit and construction of new Subway lines will really help to get people off the slow double deckers that clog up the city centre and into a much faster, frequent and green form of transport.

Well.. one can dream anyway!

[Kolothos]

Originally Posted by Woonsocket54

OK, thank you. That explains it. Was this catwalk designed as a venue for Fashion Week?

When the Subway was originally built, all of the stations had the same narrow island platform that most of the stations still retain. When they modernised the line in the late 70's, they added in new side platforms to make the stations much less crowded and safer. Buchanan Street, Hillhead and Ibrox have this layout. Govan, Partick and St. Enoch were completely rebuilt and have the conventional 'either side' platform layout, and all the rest have the island platform.

[Kolothos]

Partick Station - For the Subway, this is only one of the two interchanges on the line. At Partick the Subway interchanges with the other two underground lines (albeit heavy rail rather than Subway), the North Clyde and Argyle lines. It's the only station on the line to have had it's station buildings and concourse completely rebuilt. Over 2.5-3 million people use the interchange every year, which is good for a Glasgow station!



It's probably the only modern looking station we have!

[Minato ku]

Some videos bout the transformation of Glasgow transportation system in the 1970's.

[Kolothos]

It's a great shame that the 'Trans-Clyde' attempt at a fully integrated city wide system never came to be. I'd love to see the 'Strathclyde Red' (Orange) colour return to the trains and buses!

[Kolothos]

The Suburban network did once have it's own separate identity. They were known as 'the blue trains'.
image hosted on flickr

[DaeguDuke]

I guess Crossrail and the Airport Link are both off the cards for now? It would be great if places north/west of Glasgow could have direct access to the West Coast Main Line. Especially if the London high speed line is ever extended across the border. Current plans would be for an urban rail/subway interchange station at West Street - there's not much out there so space and a main interchange station out there would do much for regeneration.

I came across this map of what the local SPT services using crossrail might look like: