Glasgow Central station fully reopens on Friday, July 19, 2025, in time for the Commonwealth Games, months after a devastating fire. Scottish Deputy First Minister Jenny Gilruth described the area as looking 'fantastic' as the remaining section of Union Street and two station entrances, closed since March, reopened at lunchtime.
The fire began on Sunday, March 8, in a vape shop on Union Street, spreading through the building and causing a collapse. Only the facade of the B-listed Victorian building at the junction with Gordon Street remained, later demolished due to safety concerns.
Stabilisation Work Completed
Work to stabilise a gable at the site is now complete, and scaffolding has been removed, paving the way for the reopening. Deputy First Minister Jenny Gilruth visited the station and Union Street on Friday morning as final preparations were made.
She said: 'I'm here today at Union Corner to support the reopening of this part of the city. The devastating fire which took place earlier this year really impacted on a number of local businesses, and of course the operations of Glasgow Central station behind me. The Government at that time was able to step in and provide up to £10 million of extra financial support to the local authority to distribute to local businesses who were really suffering at that time.'
'It's been a great opportunity this morning to have a walk around the site, which is dramatically different from what it looked like earlier this year, but also to see the reopening that's happening around about the station, looking really fantastic, gearing up for the Commonwealth Games, which of course kick off next week.'
Full Reopening Before Commonwealth Games
The full station concourse reopened on Monday, July 14, ahead of Friday's reopening of the remaining entrances. Union Street and the Union Street and Gordon Street entrances of Glasgow Central are all fully reopening on Friday.
Joanne Maguire, managing director of ScotRail, said: 'It's a great day for our staff and for our passengers. There's been a phenomenal amount of work done by Glasgow City Council, by Network Rail Scotland colleagues, and by ScotRail to ensure that we have the station fully reopened before the Commonwealth Games and the summer of sport. We're hugely thankful to our passengers for their patience since the Union Street fire in March. There was a lot of work done to get our services resumed, partially in the first week and then fully. We know that it has been disruptive with a limited number of entrances and exits. But we know that our customers were delighted that we resumed the full timetable so quickly.'
Temporary Use for the Site
The council has appointed architects to explore the 'meanwhile use' of the Union Corner site before a permanent solution can be found. Architectural firm O'Donnell Brown will develop plans for how the site can be used over the next four years or so.
Angus Millar, convener for city centre recovery at Glasgow City Council, said: 'I would like to thank everyone affected by the fire and its aftermath for their patience, and pass on my gratitude to the council staff, our contractors and partners for the huge amount of work they have done to get us to this stage.'
