Riding The Borders Railway
My main reason for going to Scotland was to ride on the New Borders Railway.
It looks like any new railway should, although it’s a bit stark at the moment, as all new railways and stations do.
In some ways, the most impressive features are the related new developments along the line.
There has already been a lot of new house-building, which is probably needed in Scotland as much as elsewhere in the UK.
But the most significant development is Galashiels station and the related bus station, from where you can get buses all over the Borders. Before the railway arrived to get between say Peebles and Edinburgh was an hour on the bus and then a difficult walk between Waverley station and the North Bridge, where the buses stopped. Now it’s a flat walk at either end of the journey to continue your journey.
It will be interesting to see the number of passengers, who transfer between bus and train at Galashiels.
The next developments along the line will be tourism related. The Great Tapestry of Scotland is coming to Tweedbank and I would not pass any comments on what else will be developed, other than to say that the new railway will provide masses of opportunities.
Yet again, it looks like a new rail or tram development is giving an area a lift up the scale of prosperity.
The Anonymous Widower 