Bicentenary of the Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway

That this House recognises the bicentenary of the Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway, Scotland’s first modern railway whose first commercial train ran on 17 May 1826; notes that it was the first railway in Scotland to be authorised by Act of Parliament to use steam trains for both passengers and goods; further notes the railway’s importance in the development of Scotland’s railway network and its role in linking the collieries around Monklands to the Forth and Clyde Canal at Kirkintilloch; welcomes the programme of commemorative events taking place in East Dunbartonshire this spring, including the exhibition at the Auld Kirk Museum and the unveiling of a National Transport Trust Red Wheel at Southbank Marina; pays tribute to local historian Don Martin MBE for his long-standing contribution to recording the history of the railway and his sharing of previously unshown archive photographs; congratulates the Kirkintilloch and District Society of Antiquaries, the Lenzie Gauge 0 Group, East Dunbartonshire Leisure and Culture Trust, the National Transport Trust, and all involved in the work to preserve and promote this important heritage; and hopes that the bicentenary will inspire renewed interest in Scotland’s transport, industrial and local history.