I went on the new Levenmouth to west Fife train service – was the hype justified?

Fields of blooming rapeseed contradict a grey sky from the train window as we race towards west Fife.

I’ve joined passengers onboard the 9.45am service from Leven to Edinburgh Waverley.

It is another significant day for the Levenmouth Rail Link.

Trains from Leven and Cameron Bridge were officially reinstated to much fanfare on May 29 last year.

But, up until Monday May 19, there had been a catch.

Only one hourly train had operated via Kirkcaldy from Leven to Edinburgh – to the disappointment of rail campaigners.

However, there are now two hourly trains to the capital on weekdays and Saturdays.

The new service operates on the northern section of the Fife Circle, providing a direct connection to Cowdenbeath, Lochgelly, Dunfermline and other Fife towns.

I jumped on board on the first day of this new service to see what all the fuss was about.

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The train departs Leven on time as I clutch my hastily bought ticket for Inverkeithing.

In my haste, I bought an Anytime Day Return for £12.90 at the ticket machine.

But it’s worth noting an Off-peak Day Return costs only £8.80.

There are several passengers in the carriage I sit in, which has plenty of seats available around tables.

Two more ladies board at Cameron Bridge, which is only three minutes up the track.

I presume most of my fellow travellers are heading for Edinburgh, but overhear one lady ask the conductor for tickets to Dunfermline Queen Margaret.

She asks him if this stop is near the hospital of the same name.

This gives a clue about what this new service provides for Levenmouth’s 37,000-odd population.

We pass through peaceful countryside and slow down to a crawl as we briefly join the East Coast Main Line on the way to our next stop at Glenrothes With Thornton.

Regular stops for Leven-Edinburgh train

The journey is then split into a series of regular and short stops in a part of Fife I’ve never before seen from a train window.

An elderly lady waves off her husband at Cardenden at 10.10am and there are views of the Lomond Hills en-route to arriving in Lochgelly at 10.14am.

Several passengers board at Cowdenbeath at 10.20am, before the carriage really starts to fill up six minutes later at Dunfermline Queen Margaret.

It is only a five-minute walk from here to its namesake hospital, making it a useful stop for NHS patients.

The train then takes us on a large U-shaped bend through Dunfermline City and towards Rosyth.

Housing estates on one side of train are complemented by west Fife countryside on the other.

It is then a short hop to Inverkeithing where I make a swift exit after spilling water all over the seat next to me.

Hopefully a soggy bum didn’t ruin someone’s experience of crossing the Forth Rail Bridge.

Heading back along the Fife coast to Leven

I have time to ponder my experience on the outward journey as I wait at Inverkeithing for my 11.28am return train to Leven.

The service seems well-used and offers an environmentally friendly alternative to the car when travelling from Levenmouth to other Fife towns.

It’s just a shame it has taken nearly a year to get to this point.

On my way back eastwards the train heads through Fife coastal towns.

The train is much quieter and again stops regularly, at Dalgety Bay (11.31am), Aberdour (11.36am) and Burntisland (11.41am).

Then it pulls into Kinghorn at 11.46am, which perhaps has the best setting of the Fife Circle railway stations in its position above Kinghorn Beach.

Firth of Forth views are nothing new for Leven-bound passengers, with trains following this coastal route since the rail link was reinstated.

Soon we are speeding past Stark’s Park – home of Raith Rovers – and, after a quick stop in Kirkcaldy at 11.51am, we continue onwards to Cameron Bridge.

I notice how much the railway winds as we retrace our steps along the River Ore and River Leven, passing the impressive Cameronbridge Distillery.

It’s not long until I step onto the platform at Leven and complete my morning on the Fife Circle.

The promise of two hourly trains has finally arrived in Levenmouth.

Finn Nixon is a reporter for The Courier’s live news team.

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