A public engagement event will be held on Monday, with locals being encouraged to share their thoughts on a potential park and ride, public transport facility and active travel connections at Hairmyres Rail station.

These elements form part of the East Kilbride Rail Enhancement Project, which is a key part in the Scottish Government’s plans to decarbonise Scotland’s railway to passenger services by providing greener trains along the route. The plans also include moving Hairmyres station to a new site off Redwood Avenue – approximately 600m to the west of its existing location.

Head of Roads,Transportation and Fleet Services, Colin Park, said: “South Lanarkshire Council’s Proposal of Application Notice (PoAN) for a transport interchange plays an important part in the wider proposal for the East Kilbride Enhancement Project.

“The application represents a significant opportunity to provide improved transport connections for the local community that goes hand in hand with Network Rail’s anticipated upgraded station facilities for Hairmyres.

“As part of the ongoing development, Network Rail and Transport Scotland are planning to engage fully with communities to update them on the East Kilbride Enhancement Project in the near future. 

“This will include the delivery and timescales of this critical investment in future infrastructure. 

“In the meantime, the council are taking forward the proposed transport interchange element through the planning process.”

The first public engagement event will take place on Monday 26 June at Duncanrig Secondary between 6pm and 9pm.

Another public engagement event will then take place on Monday 21 August between 1pm and 5pm at Plaza Mall (outside Costa Coffee), EK Shopping Centre.

Mr Park added: “These events will garner comments and queries about the transport interchange to help ensure that the scheme meets the needs of the surrounding residents and other interested parties.”

For those who cannot attend the in-person events a webpage, which will be live until Friday 25 August 2023, will contain all the information from the public events as well as an electronic version of the survey/questionnaire for comments. For more details go to the council website.