Magical Montrose

Among the ten remaining outposts of mechanical signalling along the scenic East Coast Main Line (ECML) between Edinburgh and Aberdeen, most picturesque of all must surely be Montrose, where a short length of single line sweeps into the town, crossing Montrose Basin on the South Esk Viaduct.

Just north of Montrose station stands Montrose North Signal Box (North British Railway, 1881) which was closed for several years before being re-opened in 2010 as part of a local re-signalling scheme that saw closure of boxes at Montrose South and Usan, southern end of the single-track section.

In the citation for its 1999 Category C Listing, Montrose North is described as “a rare early signal box by the North British Railway Company (NBR), notable for its thick timber mullions between each window and deep over-hanging eaves”. The citation adds that while a number of NBR ‘Type 6a’ boxes survive on the West Highland line, very few of standard NBR box types remain elsewhere in the country.

Category C buildings in Scotland are similar in significance to Grade II-listed buildings in England, being structures of local importance, but not necessarily a fine example of a certain period, building type or style. This is the third level of listing in Scotland after Category A (buildings of national or international significance) and Category B (buildings of regional importance)

Two of the three semaphores controlled from Montrose North’s 31-lever frame can be seen from the station platform, with down home signal MN37 facing trains departing from northbound platform two and alongside it MN13, which controls departure of any northbound services using the reversible line serving up platform one.

Out of sight to the north of the box and round a left-hand curve in the line, is down starting signal MN36. This is the one I had not previously managed to photograph, but one that my OS map suggested was just south of a footbridge over the railway, and potentially a good spot from which to photograph northbound trains. 

This footbridge is an easy 10 minute walk along the grass verge of a main road running close to the railway, but what would be a good vantage point is ruined by lineside vegetation behind signal MN36 totally obscuring the view of it.

There is however a reasonable spot to see trains passing it from beside a wall just north of the signal box, from where there is also a good view looking back towards the box itself.

Taking a walk over the parallel road bridge towards Ferryden another vantage point is Barns Road overbridge on the two-mile section of single line from Montrose to Usan, the only section of single line anywhere between Aberdeen and King’s Cross.

Amid all the recent interest and anguish at the ending of XC HST operations, as well as the rapid cuts being made to the ranks of the GWR Castle HST fleet, one great bonus at Montrose is the chance to see many of ScotRail’s sizeable fleet of Inter7City 2+4 and 2+5 HST sets in action on services between Aberdeen and Glasgow/Edinburgh.

ScotRail HSTs now form the majority of services between the three cities, having largely ousted the Class 170 units on these workings, and in the four hours I spent at Montrose on Monday, 30 October 2023 it was possible to see no less than ten different Inter7City sets in action.

Besides seeing services passing the signal box, there is a great view looking south from the station footbridge as trains approach the station and cross the 14 span single-track South Esk Viaduct that dates from 1881 and takes the railway across Montrose Basin.