| Last train over Guardbridge. Seen here is engine 46464 pulling the last goods train to cross the Eden Estuary at Guardbridge before the closure of the St Andrews Line in January 1969. Photographer, Hamish Brown notes that "There wouldn't have been any trumpets blown for the last 'goods'". Whereas the closure heralded long-lasting inconvenience to passengers. The line was built in 1852 by Thomas Bouch, engineer and manager of the EP&D (Edinburgh, Perth and Dundee Railway Company). His speciality was light railways. He was also responsible for the origional Tay Rail Bridge which collapsed on 28 December 1879 as a passanger train was crossing to Dundee. Bouch was personally blamed for the loss of over 70 people in the accident. The trauma and disgrace killed him. The St Andrews line ran four and a half miles from the first tee on St Andrews Golf Course to Milton, near Leuchars main line station on the ED&P line. It was popular and successful but essentially a light railway, and essentially unstable. Investigations revealed that the rails were attached with wooden trenails to sleepers that were too widely spaced and neither of the wooden bridges the line crossed had been tarred. Local directors of the line employed two wrights to check the bridges. Closure of the St Andrews line was greated with "alarm" by the people of St Andrews and neighbouring areas of Fife. Provost Fordyce and the St Andrews Town Council fought long and hard to keep the line open but to no avail. The connection was severed in January 1969, along with many other lines closed throughout Britian by the then Minister of Transport, Dr Beeching. "The St Andrews Citizen", 11 January, 1969. |
