2. Railways

The reopened Borders Railway - The Waverley Route

On Sunday 6th of September 2015 the Borders Railway opened to passenger traffic. Three days later on 9th September it was officially opened by HM The Queen travelling in a special train hauled by John Cameron's A4 60009 "Union of South Africa". This is a rebuilt railway on the route of the North British Railway's famous "Waverley Route". The line runs to a terminus at Tweedbank, a new station between Galashiels and Melrose. There is talk of extending the route to Hawick, the last town of any great size along the former Edinburgh to Carlisle railway closed on 6/1/1969.
This is a journey in a southerly Up direction from Edinburgh to Tweedbank so will jump about with dates and rolling stock.
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    Moving further south a short distance but still at Newtongrange. The new station can be seen in the distance but the skyline is dominated by the Scottish Mining Museum's Lady Victoria Colliery. 158739 tries to gather speed on the rising 1 in 70 gradient with 2T72 0954 Edinburgh to Tweedbank.
    Lady Victoria Colliery was preserved as it represents an almost complete survival of a major Victorian colliery. It was sunk in 1890 by the Lothian Coal Company and came into production in 1894 with the last coal being wound in 1981. The headstock stands over the main shaft which is 1,644 feet deep with a 20 foot diameter, the widest in Scottish mining. The mine was named after Lady Victoria Alexandrina Montagu Scott, the wife of the Lothian Coal Company chairman at the time. The ground in front of the buildings have been greatly altered since the mine closed and it was covered with sidings.
    Crossing the road to get the going away shot of 158739, Tweedbank bound.