North Berwick

North Berwick

Station 108

Rudy visited North Berwick on
Monday, 14th March 2022
arriving at 12:16 from Edinburgh Waverley

North Berwick Station

North Berwick is the terminus of the North Berwick Branch Line which leaves the East Coast Mainline just over 7km (4.5 miles) away at Drem. The current station dates from 1985 and is a very basic single platform terminus.

Threatened with closure several times in it’s life the station is now popular with commuters and seaside tourists, seeing around 600,000 yearly passengers prior to 2020.

North Berwick History

When the railway first reached North Berwick in 1850 it was not successful – even being reduced to a horse-drawn coach along the tracks for a while in an attempt to cut costs! A royal visit and wealthy Victorians’ enthusiasm for seaside summer homes meant changed fortunes and the branch survived.

But by the 1960s the branch line was again poorly utilised and threatened with closure. Luckily this was refused but services were reduced to an impractical level for anyone but the diehard commuters. Electrification arrived in 1990 and, albeit with trains built in the 1960s, a much better service was provided.

The station buildings were demolished in 1985 and the shortened track provided with a basic shelter. The space now a large carpark – how many cars use the railway and how many are tourists to the town is not recorded.

North Berwick is the last station on the North Berwick Line, 35 minutes by train from Edinburgh Waverley.

There is a small newsagent & coffee kiosk that also acts as the station waiting room. There are no toilets at the station.