Muir of Ord

IV6 7ST

As Muir of Ord expands, the commuter traffic to & from Inverness has been increasing as well. Situated some 13 miles from Inverness, the station has played several roles on the line. Opened in 1862 in the village of Tarradale, the station was soon to become a junction, for the branch to Fortrose, in 1894. It boasted two bay platforms on the Down side and an island platform on the Up, thus giving five platform faces, as well as fairly good freight facilities. Distillery traffic was a major revenue source.The Black Isle branch closed to passengers in October 1951, but retained a goods service until 13 June 1960. The same date saw Muir of Ord station closed, along with the other intermediate stations between Dingwall and Inverness.
The station was reborn in October 1976, when it was opened to passengers for the second time, albeit with greatly reduced facilities.
RETB signalling was introduced in the late 1980s and this meant switching the direction of travel through the two remaining platforms, making Muir of Ord the only station on the Inverness - Kyle line with a right-hand loop. It is also the only loop on the Inverness to Dingwall section. I'm sure the train planners would love to get at least one of the closed loops re-instated.
On 7th February 1989, the Ness viaduct in Inverness collapsed, making Muir of Ord, effectively, the southern terminus of the Kyle and Far North routes. It also posed a problem by "trapping" a selection of traction and rolling stock north of the river. Dingwall became the passenger terminus and Muir of Ord was again closed to passengers. Temporary servicing and fuelling facilities sprang up at Muir of Ord and buses replaced trains for the Dingwall to Inverness section until 9th May 1990.
Since then, Muir of Ord has enjoyed a reasonably peaceful existence. The station building has been replaced by bus shelters and the temporary TMD was soon dismantled, leaving nature to reclaim most of the sidings and railway land. Even the Station Hotel has been redeveloped. Massive increases in passenger usage have seen extra trains introduced under the "Invernet" banner.
If you do have time to kill, the Tarradale Hotel (on the northbound side) offers a convenient refreshment.

IV6 7ST

As Muir of Ord expands, the commuter traffic to & from Inverness has been increasing as well. Situated some 13 miles from Inverness, the station has played several roles on the line. Opened in 1862 in the village of Tarradale, the station was soon to become a junction, for the branch to Fortrose, in 1894. It boasted two bay platforms on the Down side and an island platform on the Up, thus…  (read more)

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