The Railway Line just North of Ross Wood

Image: © Ian Dodds Taken: 22 Sep 2021

Don't be fooled by the big blue bootprint just South of here on the OS map. While Ross Wood - which actually covers quite a large area, straddling two roads, and possibly this railway - certainly does have some, there is only one track, leading to a waterlogged railway underpass, in the vicinity of the misleading boot. The railway, as seen, is heading towards Carstairs, famous for having a mental hospital and a railway junction. At the junction, railway lines heading from Edinburgh and Glasgow converge, joining to form the West coast line that heads into England. The line runs alongside the M74/M6 motorway for a good distance either side of the border. I have not researched this at all, but presumably most longstanding motorways follow the routes of old roads, outside of town and city centres at least. The second presumption is that a railway running alongside a motorway must be so commonplace because the old roads provided the easiest means of transportation of the huge amount of materials and men necessary to construct the railway network.

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