SCOTLAND can boast many attractive railway locations where it is still possible to see 40+ year old HSTs passing historic semaphore signals and impressive signal boxes, but a place that stands out for me is Kingussie, one of two locations on the Highland Main Line with a listed and working signal box, as well as a listed station building.
Paying my first return to this pleasant small town, 11¾ miles south-west of Aviemore, for almost two and a half years (October 2021), my aim on 11/12 March 2024 was to photograph trains pausing and passing the listed station, its unusual signal box, six semaphores and a spectacular mountain backdrop.
In the citation for its “Category B” Listing, Historic Scotland described Kingussie station and signal box as “substantial, well-detailed example of a late 19th century Highland Railway station and station house complex with associated footbridge and signal box. The decorated brackets and cast-iron columns to the glazed awning are good representatives of Highland Railway architecture and add to the wider interest.
“The 1894 signal box is a ‘Type 3’ box by McKenzie and Holland. This important signalling manufacturer provided signalling for much of the Highland Railway during the late 19th century. Other survivals of this once common type are the large example at Aviemore Station and at Boat of Garten North on the preserved Strathspey Railway.”
All six of the semaphore signals that are controlled from Kingussie’s 17-lever frame can be seen from the station and from a nearby footbridge. Look south-west from the station footbridge and you will see a pair of up starting signals, KG13 (platform 2) and KG4 from the bi-directionally signalled platform 1, with a tall down home signal (KG2) some way beyond as you look towards the spectacular mountainous backdrop.
From another footbridge to the east of the signal box and level crossing there is a good vantage point to watch Inverness-bound trains departing from platform 1 and passing down starter KG3, opposite the signal box, while looking east to the end of the passing loop you will see a pair of up home signals, with KG14 for platform 2 and alongside it, on a shorter post, KG10 for access to platform 1.
As I wrote after my October 2021 visit, the two principal passenger services at Kingussie are a London Euston-Inverness portion of the Caledonian Sleeper train that divides at Edinburgh Waverley, where other parts of the train head for Aberdeen and Fort William, and the day-time Highland Chieftain service from Inverness to London King’s Cross.
Besides these two services, the other passenger services of particular interest are workings between Edinburgh Waverley/Glasgow Queen Street and Inverness formed by Scotrail Inter7City HST (2+4 and 2+5) sets, with the non-HST services between these three cities being worked by Class 158 or 170 units.
Freight action along the Highland Main Line remains pretty modest, with the only regular service being the train of Tesco containers from Mossend to Inverness, which is currently scheduled to pass Kingussie on its outward journey at 08.07, and pass again at 16.14 on its southbound working.
Kingussie is one of four listed signal boxes on the Highland Main Line between Perth and Inverness. The only other working box to enjoy a listing is Dunkeld (Highland Railway, 1919), while the two others to enjoy protected status are those at Pitlochry (1911) and Aviemore (1898), both of which closed due to re-signalling in 2019.
Train services through Kingussie were running well on the two days I spent there, with no delay to the Caledonian Sleeper as I had noted on my last visit, and the southbound Tesco train held at signal KG14 for almost half an hour to wait for the Edinburgh-Inverness service I was alighting from to arrive.
The freight train has to be held at the up home signal, as allowing it into platform 2 before the line ahead was clear would mean obstructing the level crossing next to the signal box for an unacceptably long time.
For anyone tempted to visit Kingussie I can highly recommend a bed and breakfast called Greystones that is a ten-minute uphill walk from traffic lights in the town’s High Street and, in the absence of any pubs, I can also recommend the Royal Tandoori, which is in the High Street.
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