Scottish Highland Railways E-Book

David Tucker

• Herausgeber: Crowood
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Beschreibung

Scottish Highland Railways describes eight great journeys by rail through northern Scotland, detailing the history of the lines while travelling along their modern-day routes. In addition, the landscapes, regional history, stations and services available are all described. With over 100 present-day and archive photographs and maps, this book provides the histories of the railways of the east coast, the Grampian region, the highland main line and the Far North, West Highland and Oban, Mallaig and Kyle of Lochalsh lines. A railway company 'family tree' is given and a timeline documenting the many mergers and changes over time. The recent history of these railways in the 20th and 21st centuries is given along with a list of operational stations in 2020 together with passenger usage statistics. There are also details of rail organizations and regulations in Scotland.

Leseprobe

ScottishHighland

RAILWAYS

West Highland Line between Tyndrum and Bridge of Orchy, looking to Beinn Odhar.

ScottishHighland

RAILWAYS

DAVID TUCKER

First published in 2021 byThe Crowood Press LtdRamsbury, MarlboroughWiltshire SN8 2HR

[email protected]

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2021

© David Tucker 2021

All rights reserved. This e-book is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 78500 793 4

IllustrationsThe majority of the photographs are the author’s originals; others are credited individually. With special acknowledgment to the following: the Museum of Scottish Railways (The Scottish Railway Preservation Society), John Robin, Norman McNab, Sarah Bromage, iStock.com by Getty Images (various individuals), Picfair (various individuals), Wikimedia Commons and Open Street Map.

Contents

Preface, Definitions and Terminology

Chapter 1 Background to Scotland and its Highland RailwaysChapter 2 Earliest Lines: the East CoastChapter 3 Mid-Nineteenth-Century Developments: the Grampian RegionChapter 4 Scotland’s Backbone: the Highland Main LineChapter 5 A Duke’s Legacy: the Far North LineChapter 6 Railway Romance: the West Highland LineChapter 7 Reaching the West Coast: Oban, Mallaig and Kyle of LochalshChapter 8 Scottish Highland Railways in the Twentieth CenturyChapter 9 Scottish Highland Railways in the Twenty-First Century

Appendix I: Stations Open in 2020

Appendix II: Company Family Tree

Appendix III: Timeline of Highland Railway Companies

Appendix IV: Station Usage: Examples of Passenger ‘Entries and Exits’, 2018–19

Appendix V: Rail Organizations and Regulation in Scotland

Sources

Index

Preface, Definitions and Terminology

Scottish Highland Railways is one of a series of railway books from Crowood that cover both the hobby of modelling (more than fifty titles published) and the history of the railways themselves. Since 2014 the latter titles have covered, on a regional basis, the railways of Lincolnshire, Shropshire, Ayrshire, Telford and other UK regions.

The present book differs from these published titles in a crucial way, due to the vast geographical scale of railways serving the Highlands of Scotland. There are eight long lines running into and through the Highlands, plus, of course, the ‘lost lines’ that any regional history must cover. This scale reduces the opportunity for providing too much local detail, although the book does include extensive sourcing and referencing for those wishing to delve into local, historical railway detail (for example, books focusing on the West Highland Line or the Great North of Scotland company, and also online resources). There is no shortage of publications and online sources covering the history of the railways in Scotland, among them P.J.G. Ransom’s comprehensive Iron Road – The Railway in Scotland (Berlinn, 2007), David Spaven’s The Railway Atlas of Scotland (also from Berlinn, 2015) and Getting the Train: The History of Scotland’s Railways, by David Ross (Stenlake, 2018).

The geographical extent and the nature of the network in the Highlands means that history is best dealt with line by line, rather than in a strict chronology of railway companies. There was originally little in common between, for example, the Duke’s railway in distant Sutherland and the West Highland connecting Helensburgh to Glasgow, or the Royal Deeside line taking Queen Victoria and her guests to Balmoral Castle. A strict chronological approach would drag the reader from one side of Scotland to the other within each of the formative decades (for example, the 1890s) so chronology is presented within the chapters dedicated to each of the distinct railway lines (for example West Highland, East Coast, Far North).

An exception can be made, however, for the single chapter covering the twentieth century. It may seem odd to offer several chapters covering line development between 1840 and 1900 and only one for the twentieth century, but as the introduction to that chapter will explain, the Highland railway network was more or less complete by the early 1890s, and the main changes affecting it in the twentieth century would be national – or even international – rather than localized. These included the impact of two World Wars, the ‘Grouping’ into larger rail companies, nationalization (into British Railways) and then privatization, these events accompanied by broad social and technological changes: the rise of car ownership, the demise of steam, and the impact of ‘Beeching’ (explained below under Terminology).

Although historical by nature, the book also examines trends and events in the early twenty-first century that are underpinned not only by changes in railway management (the franchise system), but also by technology and political changes, such as devolved powers for the Scottish government regarding public transport. This century has also brought a refreshing revival of interest in both modern rail and heritage lines, not least among tourists to Scotland interested in riding The Jacobite steam-hauled trains over the Glenfinnan viaduct, made world famous in the Harry Potter movies.

Note on publication date: This book was written mainly during 2019 for publication in early 2020 but the global pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus delayed publication into 2021. The pandemic and its ‘lockdown’ also delayed impending government decisions on the future of UK railways (the postponed Williams Review) and, in Scotland, on the ScotRail franchise. Furthermore, the pandemic introduced uncertainty over the UK’s planned exit from the European Union (‘Brexit’) that would ultimately influence railways in the Scottish Highlands.

Given its historical emphasis, the book was not greatly affected by the events of 2020, but the perspective of Chapter 9, Scottish Highland Railways in the Twenty-First Century, should be read in this context.

Defining the Highlands

There is a geological definition enshrined in the Highland Boundary Fault, but this has little relevance in terms of human settlement and therefore of the transport network. Instead, coverage starts at the northern extremity of the Central Belt – the low-lying area stretching from Glasgow to Edinburgh – and extends all the way northwards to the coast at the UK’s most northerly railway station, Thurso, by way of Fort William in the west, Inverness in the centre and Aberdeen in the east.

Politically, Highland Council is the largest of the local government areas in Britain, with an area of nearly 10,000 square miles (including the former counties or shires of Inverness, Ross, Cromarty, Caithness and Sutherland). The term ‘Highlands and Islands’ is still used by some organizations (for example by HITRANS – Highlands and Islands Transport Partnership), but it now has no political relevance. The islands – the Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland – have no railways, but there are important links from ports with railway stations for transferring to ferries (Aberdeen, Oban, Mallaig, Kyle of Lochalsh, Thurso and Wick).

Like ‘Highlands and Islands’, ‘Grampian’ has disappeared from the political lexicon but remains useful for defining a large north-eastern corner of Scotland, nowadays containing the council areas of Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire and Moray. An understanding of railway development in this region is crucial to understanding the evolution of northern Scottish railways.

Finally, there are Highland lines that start (or end) in the northern reaches of the counties of Perth and Kinross, Argyll and Bute, Stirling and Angus, and all these therefore straddle ‘highland’ and ‘lowland’ and need to be considered.

MODERN GOVERNMENT AREAS (COUNCILS) IN THE HIGHLANDS

COUNCIL AREAPRINCIPAL SETTLEMENTS*Highland CouncilInverness, Nairn, Fort William, Thurso, Wick, DingwallCity of Aberdeen–AberdeenshirePeterhead,* Fraserburgh,* Inverurie, StonehavenMorayElgin, Forres, Buckie/Rathven*Perth and Kinross (north)Perth, Crieff,* Dunkeld, PitlochryArgyll and Bute (north)ObanStirling (north and west)Stirling, Callander*Angus (north)Dundee, Arbroath, Forfar,* Montrose, Carnoustie

* not served by rail in 2019

Terminology

With the general reader in mind, technical terms (and abbreviations) are avoided as much as possible, but there needs to be some clarification of basic terms involving the railway system, traction, and the companies responsible for the network’s development in the Scottish Highlands.

Please note that ScotRail’s website is scotrail.co.uk. There is an unofficial website called scot-rail.co.uk for ‘Scotland’s online rail enthusiast community’, while Railscot (railscot.co.uk) is an unofficial, primary resource for Scottish railway information.

Railway Terms

‘Rail’ is used interchangeably with ‘railway’ to describe both the industry as a whole and the companies involved, while a railway is also the actual ‘permanent way’ comprising trackbed, track, sleepers. Routes are described as ‘lines’ between two termini, both informally and to denote specific ScotRail terms: Kyle Line, Far North Line et al.

‘Train’ should not be used to denote a locomotive, which is the vehicle that provides the traction, whether steam, diesel or electric. Where used, ‘train’ refers to a group of connected railway carriages or wagons hauled by a locomotive engine (described together as the rolling stock), and usually specific to a route and service (for example, the 9.10 train from Helensburgh to Fort William). A train may include multiple units, where an engine is incorporated into at least one of the carriages to make them self-propelled (either diesel or electric, DMU or EMU).

Companies

The main government franchise for passenger services in Scotland is branded as ScotRail, the franchise held since 2015 by Abellio, based in the Netherlands (hence, ‘Abellio ScotRail Ltd’). Other companies with passenger services reaching the Highlands are LNER (‘London North Eastern Railway’), Caledonian Sleeper (operated by Serco) and Cross-Country (by Arriva). Freight services, which are not covered in this book, are contracted by separate companies.

Early rail companies in the Highlands often had long, complicated names – an exception being Highland Railway, founded and named in 1865, an early company whose role should not be confused with the overall railway structure of the Highlands, as defined in Chapter 1. In this book, three conventions are used to shorten and simplify these long names: any ‘The’ prefix, and the suffixes ‘Railway’ and ‘Junction’, are omitted, and an ampersand (&) is used for the many companies whose names usually bore their destinations – for example Dunblane, Doune & Callander (rather than ‘The Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway’); Scottish Central; or Keith & Dufftown.

Abbreviations for companies are prolific in the rail industry but are avoided where possible in this book. The essential ones are these:

• BR: British Rail. From 1946 to 1994, railways in Scotland were operated under the nationalized BR system as its Scottish Region

• The ‘big four’ private groups that preceded BR were LMS (London Midland & Scottish), LNER (London & North Eastern), Great Western Railway (GWR) and Southern Railway (SR), of which only LMS and LNER operated in Scotland. (The LNER name was revived in 2018 as the name of the new franchise holder for the East Coast line – London to Scotland – replacing Virgin)

• Preceding LMS and LNER in the Highlands were, principally, Highland Railway and Great North of Scotland (GNOS)

On a carriage, the official colour scheme and script for ScotRail including a Gaelic translation.

Traction and Rolling Stock

The electrification of lines is taking place in Central Scotland with the goal of reducing the use of diesel engines. The most common traction in the Highlands, however, is still provided by DMU. In 2019, Abellio ScotRail’s locomotive fleet numbered just over 500, with an increasing proportion of EMU.

In the Highlands, high speed trains (HST) have been hauled, until 2019, by Class 43 (or ‘InterCity 125’) diesel on the long-distance routes between Glasgow or Edinburgh and Aberdeen or Inverness. From December 2019, LNER planned to use new ‘Azuma’ (Class 800) sets on the Scottish legs of its long-distance services from London. Class 170 (‘Turbostar’) still operated in 2019 (for example Aberdeen–Inverness), some cascaded from central Scotland routes, replacing Class 156 (‘Super Sprinter’, on the West Highland Line) or Class 158 (‘Express Sprinter’, Far North and Kyle lines). During 2019 and 2020, a number of Class 153 ‘Super Sprinter’ rail-cars were being phased in for the West Highland, Far North and Kyle lines; they couple to other multiple units including Classes 156, 158 and 170. Some carriages using Class 153 on the West Highland were being converted, in 2019, to carry up to twenty bicycles and with more rack space for sports equipment and luggage such as rucksacks.

‘Beeching’

Familiar to anyone with an interest in British railway history is the symbolic abbreviation ‘Beeching’ for the rationalization of the nationalized rail network in the 1960s to 1970s. ‘Beeching cuts’, or even ‘the Beeching axe’, are short-hand terms for the large swathe of British railways – encompassing stations and whole lines: a dozen of them within the Highlands – that were closed down. This action followed recommendations in an official repor (The Reshaping of British Railways, 1963) written by Dr Richard Beeching, Chairman of British Railways.

Distances

The imperial system is used throughout, in line with UK road distances (still officially measured in miles, not kilometres):

CHAPTER 1

Background to Scotland and its Highland Railways

Railways into and through the Scottish Highlands were shaped by a combination of factors – geographical, political, social and economic – and these factors continue to influence the industry today.

Highland Geography

Beginning with physical geography, the Highlands area (as defined above ‘Defining the Highlands’) covers 33,300 square miles, or one-third of the land mass of Great Britain. The obvious characteristic of this region is its mountainous or hilly terrain, which has contributed to the sparse population: around six persons per square mile, as against forty per square mile for Scotland as a whole (and 264 per square mile in England). Settlements are widely spread out: some stretches of the journeys through the Highlands involve gaps of more than 15 miles between stations. At one extreme, the last stage on the northbound Main Line between Carrbridge and Inverness is 27.6 miles, typically lasting 28 minutes, and there are several non-stop runs of 15 miles or more on the rural lines if no ‘request stops’ are made.

View from Duirinish station (single platform), remote request stop on Kyle Line; fewer than 1,000 annual ‘entries and exits’ are made by passengers at this station (see Appendix 4).

Corrour summit (West Highland Line) in winter. JOHN ROBIN, 1974

Physical features presented challenges to railway builders in the nineteenth century. The flat east coast route was the easiest, and first, to be developed – seeChapter 2 – in part due to a relatively high population density and to thriving agriculture and industry (fishing, forestry), but also inspired by royal approval: Queen Victoria and Prince Albert both approved of train travel, particularly when a line opened to their Highland retreat, Balmoral.

In the centre and west of northern Scotland, tougher terrain meant fewer towns and villages to connect, and the need to build railways around, or over, a variety of physical features. As encountered on each of the lines described in subsequent chapters, these features included mountains and hills (or ‘bens’, from the Gaelic name, still used); rivers and lakes, or ‘lochs’; and valleys both steep (‘glens’) and broad (‘straths’). The route from the southern urban centres (Glasgow, Edinburgh, Perth, Stirling) to Inverness, the Highland capital, was blocked by the Drumochter and Slochd mountain passes until the 1890s, while the fjord-like structure of the indented west coast also delayed the development of a West Highland line.

Climate is another factor for railways to contend with in the Highlands, particularly high winds and snow on the lines in winter.

Highland History

The Highlands took part in Scottish national history, but also had their own historical development, based on early tribal regions and, later, the importance of local extended families known as ‘clans’. In the course of describing the development of specific railway lines – and stations, in particular – reference is made to some key events in Scottish history, and these are outlined briefly, as follows:

• Early peoples – Picts, Britons and Scotti, or Scots – left their imprint on the land, particularly in enduring place names (bens, glens) and some monuments. Roman occupation was brief, from c. ad70 to c. ad212

• Scottish nationhood was confirmed in the medieval period by resistance to attacks from both the English and the Norse. The Stuart dynasty (1371–1714) included kings and queens of both Scotland and, after 1603, England (as the united Great Britain under James I, but remaining as James VI in Scotland). Ousted by the Hanoverian dynasty, the Stuarts in exile plotted – unsuccessfully – to retake the British throne (see sidebar: The Jacobites)

• The eighteenth century brought enlightenment and the Agricultural Revolution, together with the growth of the British Empire, producing an exodus of people from the Highlands. Migration continued into the nineteenth century, when thousands of Highlanders were displaced by sheep farms (during the Clearances); but coastal fishing developed, and Queen Victoria’s love of Scotland and its people kick-started tourism to the Scottish Highlands

• The World Wars of the twentieth century united the British in common cause, but by the 1990s the demand for semi-independence (‘devolution’ of power from Westminster) had reinstated a parliament in Edinburgh with an influence on transport development in Scotland. The old industries declined, but forestry, energy production, leisure and tourism took their place in the Highland economy

Queen Victoria’s Royal Route, celebrated at the former Ballater station tearoom (described in Chapter 2).

The twenty-first century has brought unresolved challenges that warrant their own chapter, including the management of the country’s railway system, and, at a higher level, Scotland’s position within the United Kingdom (and within Europe).

Highland Culture, Tourism and Railway Journeys

The motivations of rail passengers today are usually very different from those of early nineteenth-century travellers by rail.

Tourists are drawn not only to the Highlands, but also to enjoying its railway journeys: the West Highland Line is regularly voted among the world’s most scenic journeys. The tourist is also likely to hope to encounter some aspects of the regional landscape or culture that are very distinctly ‘Highland’ – almost bordering on cliché!

The cultural symbols of the Highlands, however clichéd, range from tartan and bagpipes to ‘hairy cows’ and heather, but some of the symbols helped underpin railway development in the tourist era. The chiefs of the clans who dominated some regions often had the final say on railway routes, as the wealthy landowners, and the castles they occupied, were sometimes given private stations (for example Dunrobin in Sutherland, Blair Atholl in Perthshire, Duncraig in Ross-shire). Whisky distilleries were often positioned deliberately off the beaten track – to evade discovery by the excise collector – but transporting raw materials and casks became an important function for rail in some areas.

In the modern era, railways have developed alongside tourism in several directions. ScotRail, the main national operator, offers several tourist ‘passes’ over several days, including the Highland Rover, Spirit of Scotland and Scottish Grand Tour. Tour companies such as Great Rail Journeys, although based in York, had nineteen tours on sale in 2019, the majority with names such as ‘Highland Adventure’ and ‘Christmas in the Highlands’. Heritage trips are popular, the most familiar being rides on The Jacobite (with its Harry Potter connections) by West Coast Railways and the Strathspey Railway, based in the busy tourist town of Aviemore on the Highland main line.

Example of the translated station name at Ardlui (West Highland Line), in English and Gaelic.

Another distinct cultural feature of travelling in the Highlands comes from encountering the old language of Gaelic. Although spoken today by only a small minority, the language retains its links with the landscape – lochs, bens, glens – and also with towns and their railway stations. Since 1996, ScotRail has put Gaelic translations on station signs, some examples being the following:

The translation of ScotRail itself as Réile na h-Alba – with ‘Réile’ meaning railway and ‘Alba’ being the ancient name for Scotland – has been introduced into the livery, along with a saltire symbol.

THE JACOBITES

A Jacobite was a supporter of the armed rebellions aimed at restoring the Stuart dynasty to the British throne, starting with the exiled James II of Britain (James VII in Scotland). The King Jameses had styled themselves ‘Jacobus’, from the Latin, hence ‘Jacobite’.

The most serious of several Jacobite risings was the final one, in 1745–46, when Stuart supporters under the exiled Charles Edward Stuart (‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’) invaded from France, raised armed insurgence in the Highlands and marched south, capturing Edinburgh and driving on to the English Midlands. Forced to retreat by the British army, the last Jacobites were defeated at the Battle of Culloden (1746) near Inverness. The Bonnie Prince escaped to the Hebridean islands and then to France.

The Highland Main Line crosses the Culloden battlefield where the National Trust visitor centre is an important destination for visitors to the Highlands. The West Highland branch to Mallaig stops at Glenfinnan, where Charles gathered his supporters.

The viaduct at Glenfinnan, and The Jacobite steam train that crosses it, have since been made famous by Harry Potter movies, and interest in the Jacobites has been fostered by Outlander, a popular series of books and television dramas.

Infrastructure: Past to Present

The Highland infrastructure for both rail and road transport has been influenced by the geography of this UK region, both physical and human. A mountainous, often rugged terrain means that human settlements – and railway stations – are small and scattered far apart.

Railway lines have to negotiate steep inclines and summits, and must be carved through mountain passes or along river valleys and, frequently, alongside bodies of water: rivers, lakes or the seacoast. These challenges to constructing a railway through semi-wilderness have resulted in scenic enjoyment for passengers, making the journeys more popular among twenty-first-century tourists than ever before.

Single track, doubling temporarily, to loop round the island platform at Ardlui station (West Highland).

Highland railway lines are, for the most part, single track, for the obvious reason that traffic is too infrequent to justify double tracking. However, this is changing on the Aberdeen–Inverness line, 108 miles long in total, on which 16 miles of track out of Aberdeen were doubled in 2018/19. (Also on this line, three new stations have been built and platforms lengthened at some stations.)

The predominant use of single tracking meant that loops for trains to pass, and also sidings, were important elements from the beginning. Island platforms, with up and down trains passing on each side, are frequently found on Highland lines, usually necessitating tunnelled walkways for passengers to reach the platform. Sidings were frequently built to facilitate a primary early use of Highland railways: the loading and off-loading of agricultural and heavy industrial goods, including livestock, timber and quarried stone.

Signalling Equipment

The single-tracked Highland lines made signalling equipment an important part of the construction process in the days of mechanical signalling. Stations and junctions were often isolated, so that attention was paid to making signal boxes comfortable and convenient for signalmen who might spend hours between each train coming through. Semaphore signalling was used on the early lines, but by the time the West Highland was built and opened (in 1894), the electric token system was available. In the 1980s, RETB (radio electronic token block) was introduced on the Highland lines.

Former signal box (listed) at Dunkeld & Birnam station (formerly ‘Dunkeld’).

Many of the original signal boxes were demolished, but some remain in use while still others have been converted into waiting rooms or even tourist accommodation. Some boxes have been listed for their architectural value, preventing their demolition. At Dunkeld & Birnam on the Highland Main Line, the 1919 Highland railway box still stands as a listed building: ‘Brick with weatherboarding and multi-pane glazing to cabin accessed by timber forestair to half-gabled entrance porch outshot at upper level’ (britishlistedbuildings.co.uk).

Railway Stations

Just under 100 of Scotland’s 358 railway stations lie in the Highlands area as defined for this book. They range from the relatively busy hubs at Inverness, Aberdeen and Fort William, down to lonely stations isolated from any significant settlements, most notably on Rannoch Moor (West Highland) and along the Far North Line. Like the lines, these stations (along with depots and sidings) were originally built by individual Highland companies – often financed by local landowners – but control eventually passed to British Rail and then, under privatization, to the UK infrastructure corporation, Network Rail. Since 2015, Network Rail (Scotland Route) has worked in ‘a close working relationship’ with Abellio ScotRail in managing the Scottish line infrastructure and stations.

Station sign for Insch showing the national rail logo (red symbol), and ScotRail/Scotland’s Railway in blue livery.

The photo of Insch station sign, against an unusually azure sky, incorporates both the former British Rail (and Network Rail) red and white ‘double arrow’ and ScotRail branding. Transport Scotland has specific rules for station signage: ‘The British Rail double arrow is the widely recognized symbol for all railway stations. As such, it should be retained on all road and street signage and as an identification mark at the entrance to ScotRail stations.’

Principal Depots

The principal depots for maintaining the ScotRail fleet are in the Central Belt, near Edinburgh (Haymarket depot) and Glasgow (three depots), but there is also a yard at Inverness – the TMD (Traction Maintenance Depot) situated just outside Inverness station, past the Milburn Road junction. The depot helps to maintain the ‘workhorse’ Class 158 Express DMUs on Highland lines, together with carrying out checks on the Caledonian Sleeper trains.

Rolling Stock: Past to Present

Rolling stock on the Highland lines – locomotives, multiple units, passenger coaches and freight carriers – is documented in great detail in books dedicated to individual lines or railway companies (see Sources at the end of this book, and within the journey chapters), and this detail need not be reproduced here. Features of rolling stock development included:

• The manufacturing and maintenance, in the early days, of rolling stock by railway companies with rights to routes, such as Great North of Scotland and Highland Railway. Later, sub-contracting increased as the manufacturing industry became more concentrated, particularly around Glasgow

• Individual ‘locomotive superintendents’ were employed by the early companies to take personal charge of commissioning and/or designing the stock

Locomotive HR103 (Highland Railway) at Riverside Museum, Glasgow. The first 4-6-0 in Britain, built in 1894. Above and behind, Glasgow & South West’s No. 9 (Class 5, 0-6-0, 1917).

Account had to be taken of the demands that an upland terrain would place on rolling stock, particularly locomotives: steep gradients, the power to haul heavy freight loads, fuel capacity for long journeys, and the likelihood of inclement weather affecting the track itself (especially snow and high winds). As summarized by the Highland Railway Society: