It was the end of the line for Glasgow Metro’s 44-year-old carriages as the last of the old-style trains made their final run through the underground loop.
Since December, the city’s subway is gradually phasing out old trains and replacing them with new barrier-free modern cars.
In the course of 2024, a total of 17 trains were gradually put into operation.
The new rolling stock is just one part of a £288m program to upgrade the Tube system, which will in future include platform doors and driverless trains.
- Author, Jamie Russell
- Role, BBC Scotland News
The Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT), which operates the Metro, said the two latest trains had completed an estimated 2.6 million passenger miles – 400,600 loops of the system.
Driver Julie Baker, who took one of the trains on its last run, said she tried not to cry as she drove it for 35 years – almost as long as its lifespan.
“I’m really emotional, but it’s time to change that,” she said.
Julie has been working for SPT since she was just 16 and passed her driving test in her 20s.
“There were quite a few girls driving in those days, but it seems more men are doing it now – the shifts aren’t always family-friendly,” she said.
“But that’s all I’ve ever known.
“I’m looking at my big pension and retirement in the next few years when the trains are driverless,” she said.
The old-type trains were introduced into passenger service on 16 April 1980 as part of the second system modernization project which began in May 1977.
This project closed the subway for three years.
It introduced 33 Metro-Cammell trains to the system, and in 1992 an additional eight cars were built to make all trains three cars long.
One of the older carriages was moved to Glasgow’s Riverside Museum as part of its transport exhibits.
The new third-generation trains are the same length as the older carriages, but have a “walk-through” design and are air-conditioned.
SPT said the trains should be more comfortable and quieter.
The new trains are also the first to be barrier-free and have a dedicated space for wheelchair users – but only two of the 15 metro stations have lifts to help people with mobility problems.
Often nicknamed the ‘Clockwork Orange’ due to its striking orange color and single-loop design, Glasgow’s Subway has undergone its third upgrade since 2012.
This included the renovation of all 15 stations, a new smart ticketing system, a new rolling stock (trains) and the introduction of a new signalling, communication and dispatching system.
The third generation trains also have the ability to be driverless, which the operator wants to introduce in the future.
SPT will also introduce platform screens to the platforms as part of a £288 million upgrade.
Interior designer Anna Campbell Jones, who is also a judge for the ‘Scottish Home of the Year’ competition, has designed a seat pattern (moquette) on older trains.
Glaswegian Campbell-Jones told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland that this was her first design job after graduating from Glasgow School of Art.
The old chairs had 100% mohair upholstery and Scotch leather.
“It was in the early 1990s when the old wagons were being converted,” she said.
“It’s incredible how long they’ve lasted and I feel incredibly old that something I designed will now be in a museum.”
SPT chairman Councilor Stephen Dornan said it was a sad day to say goodbye to the much-loved fleet.
“I know a lot of staff, current and retired, and a lot of passengers have been wanting to take part in the last loop around the system in recent weeks,” he said.
Richard Robinson, SPT’s director of transport operations, told Good Morning Scotland that the new proposals help bring the Metro into the 21st century.