The Balerno line was a short loop railway in the southern suburbs of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was 6 miles in length, leaving the main Caledonian Railway Edinburgh to Carstairs line at Slateford, and rejoining it at Ravelrig. It was built by the Caledonian Railway mainly to service the many manufacturing enterprises situated along the upper Water of Leith, and passenger trains also ran. The line opened in 1874. As well as at Balerno, stations were constructed at Colinton, Juniper Green and Currie. The line was steeply graded. In the 1930s the line increased in popularity for residential and leisure travel, but the passenger business never reached the desired level, and the line was closed to passenger trains in 1943. In the 1960s the mills that sustained the goods train business closed down, and the line closed completely in 1967.

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80 m

Balerno railway station

Balerno railway station was opened in 1874 and served the area of the village of Balerno that now forms part of the city of Edinburgh. Although primarily built as a goods line, with a dedicated goods station at Balerno, serving the many mills on the Water of Leith, a passenger service was provided by the Caledonian Railway using the Balerno Loop and after grouping by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, seeing formal closure to passenger traffic shortly after nationalisation. The station was the only one with a separately served goods station on the 'loop' line and lay in rural surroundings that had been popular with families having a day out in the country.
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Balerno Community High School

Balerno High School is a six-year secondary school located in Balerno, a suburb of Edinburgh, Scotland. The school stands on the banks of the Water of Leith, and serves children from Balerno, Kirknewton and Ratho, and also hosts pupils from a variety of areas outside the catchment area such as Currie, East Calder, Mid Calder, Edinburgh and Livingston. It also is the Heart Of Midlothian FC academy school.
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Water of Leith Walkway

The Water of Leith Walkway is a public footpath and cycleway that runs alongside the river of the same name through Edinburgh, Scotland, from Balerno to Leith.
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Balerno

Balerno () is a village on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Scotland situated 8 miles (13 kilometres) south-west of the city centre, next to Currie and then Juniper Green. Traditionally in the county of Midlothian it now administratively falls within the jurisdiction of the City of Edinburgh Council. The village lies at the confluence of the Water of Leith and the Bavelaw Burn. In the 18th and 19th century, the area was home to several mills using waterpower. In the 2Oth century, the mills closed and the village now forms a residential suburb of Edinburgh,