Glasgow Central Station high level to remain closed this week after devastating fire

Latest updates

Glasgow Central high level to remain closed for the rest of the week
Low level trains to resume on Wednesday morning
City centre road closures remain in place
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) is visiting ‘air quality sensitive areas’
First Minister John Swinney ‘deeply concerned’ by the scenes
18 fire engines and specialist resources sent to the scene at height of blaze
More than 250 firefighters involved since alarm raised at 3.46pm on Sunday
Drone pilots warned not to fly near site

Glasgow Central Station will not reopen this week due to the instability of the fire-ravaged building on Gordon Street.

Scotland’s busiest train station was closed on Sunday after a blaze engulfed a neighbouring four-storey building on Union Street, causing it to partially collapse.

Network Rail has been unable to determine whether there has been any damage to the station because of the instability of the facade at the Union Street corner.

The train operator has said the high level station will therefore remain closed until structural assessment work is able to take place.

Four fire engines and a high-reach vehicle remain at the scene as of 4.30pm on Tuesday, while a preliminary multi-agency investigation into the cause of the fire is underway.

Police Scotland road closures and the cordon have been reduced, with some still in place for public safety.

The fire started at around 3.46pm on Sunday and quickly spread to a 19th-century commercial building at the corner of Gordon Street and Union Street, causing “enormous damage” and the loss of the building’s dome.

More than 200 firefighters were involved in the incident, with 18 fire engines and a specialist resource deployed to the scene at the height of the blaze.

Only the facade of the building has been left standing on Gordon Street. Network Rail Scotland

Network Rail said Glasgow Central will reopen “as soon as it is safe to do so”.

Route director Ross Moran said: “We are grateful to Scottish Fire and Rescue teams who have been working tirelessly to contain the fire on the Union Corner site.

“I am pleased to advise passengers that we will be able to open Glasgow Central Low Level station from tomorrow morning (Wednesday).

“Unfortunately, further work is required to ensure the high level station is safe for trains to operate. Our priority is to make sure that we can reopen Glasgow Central as soon as it is safe to do so and we will continue to work with emergency services, the local council and our train operators to restore services.

“We want to reassure passengers that we are doing everything we can to open the high level station, but we must enable the emergency services and Glasgow City Council to complete their critical work to secure the Union Corner site and make it safe.”

David Ross, ScotRail chief operating officer, said: “Following comprehensive safety checks, I’m very pleased that we will operate ScotRail services via Glasgow Central low level.

“However, Glasgow Central High Level station will not reopen this week as the impact of the fire in the building next to the station continues to be assessed by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and Glasgow City Council.

“We know this closure is causing significant disruption for our customers, and we’re very sorry for the impact it is having on journeys.

“Our teams are working hard to keep people moving where possible, and we’d encourage customers to check their journey before travelling using the ScotRail app or website.”

Glasgow’s Subway Network will be accepting ScotRail tickets.

An SPT spokesman said: “Ticket acceptance with @ScotRail is now in place on Subway services as city-wide travel disruption continues.”

Drone pilots have been warned not to fly near the site of the major building fire.

In a statement, Police Scotland said unmanned aircraft must not be flown close to the incident site while operations are ongoing.

They said: “Due to the ongoing emergency response in the area surrounding the building fire on Union Street in Glasgow, unmanned aircraft should not be flown close to or within the airspace until 12pm on Friday, March 13, 2026.

“Drone pilots and operators are reminded it is an offence to fly over an ongoing emergency response and are encouraged to check NOTAM information and the Drone Safety Map before flying.”

Road closures

The public has been urged to avoid the area if possible and plan ahead for any journeys.

Road closures have been put in place:

• Renfield Street at West George Street

• St Vincent Street at West Nile Street

• West Nile Street southbound from Bath Street

• Still in place at Broomielaw between Oswald Street and Jamaica Street

• Vehicles can go over King George V bridge and turn left onto Broomielaw

• Clyde Street westbound, turn right onto Glasgow Bridge and then back over King George V bridge

Explainer

What do we know about the Union Street fire?

More than 200 firefighters have been involved in efforts to bring the blaze under control

‘Enormous damage and disruption’

First Minister John Swinney, who visited the scene of the fire on Monday morning, said the blaze had caused enormous damage and would lead to significant disruption.

On Tuesday, Swinney committed to support the rebuild of the area, telling MSPs in Holyrood: “Above all else, let me be clear today: the Scottish Government will stand with the city of Glasgow as it recovers from the fire.

“Given the significant cost the city faces, we will back those costs with cash.

“To get that work started, a ministerial oversight board has been established, chaired by the cabinet secretary for Justice.

“We will rebuild, we will restore, and Glasgow will flourish again.”

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“The disruption from this incident is absolutely enormous because Central Station in Glasgow is the busiest in Scotland – a huge number of passengers go in and out of the station every day – and the adjoining roads that are closed will also add to congestion in and around the city.

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“The government recognises that this is an unexpected and extraordinary incident to affect the city of Glasgow, so there will be numerous businesses affected and we will work with Glasgow City Council to support the council and businesses as part of the recovery operation.

“The government will be active supporters of that process, we’ll be financial contributors to that process to make sure we can get the city centre of Glasgow up and running as quickly as we can.”

Glasgow City Council leader Susan Aitken said the incident could have been “so much worse” without the actions of fire crews.

“This is another reminder of just how important Glasgow city centre is to Scotland’s national life”, she said. “It has no equivalent in terms of economic and cultural impact.

“Ensuring a swift recovery and longer-term restoration must be a priority for all levels of government in the weeks ahead.”

‘Significant and complex incident’

SFRS deputy assistant chief officer Ian McMeekin said on Tuesday: “This has been a significant and complex incident, and our crews have worked tirelessly at the scene since the initial call on Sunday afternoon.

“This includes limiting further fire damage to nearby buildings, including Glasgow Central train station, and to bring a large-scale fire under control.

“This incident has required significant levels of resource, and we will continue to remain on scene as we move into a recovery phase alongside our multi-agency partners.

“We understand the disruption this fire has caused, and we are grateful for the patience shown by the public as we work to bring this incident to a safe conclusion, before the site is handed over to partner agencies.”