A SECOND railway platform and bridge could be in place at Dunbar Railway Station within the next two years.

Discussions looking at the possibility of creating a second platform at the station have been ongoing for a number of months.

Preliminary works were carried out more than 12 months ago and ward councillors Michael Veitch and Norman Hampshire told the town’s community council last week that things were moving forward.

Mr Veitch said there was an agreement in place which would see Network Rail extend the existing car park at the station, which caters for about 50 vehicles, while works for the second platform would be carried out at about the same time.

The new car park would then see spaces for a further 50-60 vehicles.

The councillor added: “The council had a meeting with Network Rail and ScotRail recently and that was to discuss various station car parks in East Lothian – Drem, Longniddry and Dunbar.

“In Dunbar’s case, Network Rail have it in their programme to do a second platform.

“Thankfully, that wider project is to also include an extension to the car park.”

The additional car park, which would be built next to the existing car park, would then, it is hoped, take pressure off car parks on Countess Road and Abbeylands, as well as on-street parking at Countess Road.

The second platform would also remove the need for trains travelling north to have to change rails to stop at Dunbar.

Meanwhile, Mr Hampshire, who is chairman of the local authority’s planning applications committee, said neighbours of the station had been notified that Network Rail was planning to submit a planning application in the New Year.

The councillor, who lives on Salisbury Walk, to the south of the railway line, said: “We have only had one meeting with Network Rail and they indicated they had initial plans of what the design could look like.

“There were no detailed drawings and they are going to have a public consultation exercise just after the New Year.”

At that stage, designs of what the platform and other work would look like could be available.

Then, Network Rail would take away the feedback and prepare a planning application, with the possibility of work starting in 2018.

Detailed designs would need to be submitted to East Lothian Council and take into account that the station is a listed building before the local authority could grant planning permission.

Similarly, pedestrian access from the south would be examined, with no plans at the moment for a car park on the southern side of the line.