Livingston
Livingston is a large town in West Lothian in the central belt of Scotland, built as a "New Town" from 1963. In 2022 it had a population of 55,800.
Understand
editIn the 12th century a Flemish man, De Leving, built a fortified tower (long gone) and the settlement of Levingstoun or Livingston grew up around it. In the 19th century, West Lothian became urbanised when the shale oil industry developed, but the Livingston area remained farmland until the 1960s. Then five "new towns" were built rapidly to relieve congestion in Glasgow, four of them on greenfield sites (East Kilbride, Glenrothes, Cumbernauld and Livingston) while the fifth was built onto the existing town of Irvine. Livingston was laid out on a grid, with A899 running north-south and A705 running east-west, and a chequerboard of residential estates. These include Livingston Village, Bellsquarry, Craigshill, Howden, Dedridge, Ladywell, Knightsridge, Murieston, Adambrae, Deans and Eliburn. The town has expanded to engulf Polbeth, West Calder, East Calder, Mid Calder, Uphall and Pumpherston. It was run by a development corporation until 1997 then local government transferred to West Lothian; Robin Cook was its MP from 1983 until his death in 2005.
Get in
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By road
editLivingston is 17 miles west of Edinburgh and 33 miles east of Glasgow. The M8 (Edinburgh-Glasgow) runs to the north of Livingston and the usual approach is to exit at jcn 3 and turn south onto A899. Otherwise follow A71 which runs south of town.
By bus
editLothian Country Bus X27/28 runs daily from Edinburgh every 20 mins, starting from Regent Rd opposite St Andrews House not the bus station. It takes an hour to Livingston via Riccarton (for Heriot Watt University) and Mid Calder, and continues to Deans and Bathgate. Night Bus N28 runs shortly after midnight, with an extra run at 3:30AM Saturday and Sunday. X40 runs hourly from Edinburgh Royal Infirmary via the southwest suburbs and Mid Calder to Livingston and St John's Hospital.
Bus 73 runs hourly M-Sa from Blackburn via Bathgate, Deans and St John's Hospital to Livingston.
SD Bus 31 runs hourly M-Sa from Bathgate via Linlithgow, Uphall and St John's Hospital.
First Bus 600 runs from Edinburgh Airport every 30 min via Ratho, Newbridge, Kirkliston, Winchburgh, Broxburn and Uphall, taking an hour to Livingston and continuing to Whitburn.
Citylink 902 runs hourly from Glasgow Buchanan Station, taking 75 min via Airdrie and Coatbridge, and continues to Broxburn, Ratho, then Edinburgh Airport, Zoo, Haymarket and York Place. Megabus also runs hourly from Glasgow.
Stagecoach Fife X51 runs hourly from Dunfermline, taking an hour via Rosyth, Ferrytoll (for Forth Bridge and South Queensferry), Kirliston and Newbridge.
Stuart's Bus 34A runs three times M-Sa from Lanark, taking an hour.
1 Livingston bus terminal is on Almondvale Ave between the two main shopping centres.
By train
editThe fundamental assumption of a 1960s New Town is that everyone will drive, and railways are history. So the town straggles between two railway lines, neither particularly convenient. Both stations are simple platform halts with step-free access and ticket machines but no other facilities.
2 Livingston North is next to Carmondean Shopping Centre between Eliburn and Deans. It has trains from Edinburgh every 20 min via Haymarket, Edinburgh Park and Uphall, taking 20 min. These continue west via Bathgate and Glasgow Queen Street (50 min) to Helensburgh or Milngavie.
3 Livingston South is by the Murieston shops and has trains from Edinburgh every 30 min via Haymarket, Slateford, Kingsknowe, Wester Hailes, Curriehill and Kirknewton, taking 30 min. These continue through West Calder, Shotts and a dozen other halts, taking an hour to Glasgow Central.
Get around
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SD Buses L1 and 9 potter round town hourly M-Sa. A dozen taxi firms are based in Livingston.
There's no bus along the lane to Cairnpapple Hill but it's an easy bike ride.
See
edit- 1 Almond Valley, 37 Millfield EH54 7AR, ☏ +44 1506 414957. Daily 10AM-5PM. Amusement park mostly for pre-teens, with museum, farm, rides slides and animals. The light railway is 762 mm gauge, hauled by a rinky-dinky industrial diesel, and runs weekends April-Sept plus daily in summer school holidays, £2 extra. Assistance dogs only. Adult £12, conc £11, child £10.
- 2 Cairnpapple Hill, Bathgate EH48 4NW. Apr-Sep daily 10AM-4:30PM. A 4000-year-old ritual complex with Bronze Age and early Christian tombs. The burial chamber has been roofed over by a modern concrete dome but you can shimmy in. Adult £7.50, conc £6, child £4.50.
- 3 Torphichen Preceptory, Bathgate EH48 4NW. Apr-Sep Sa Su 1-5PM. This has been a religious site at least since the Bronze Age. In medieval times it was a base for the Knights Hospitaller of St John of Jerusalem, providing shelter and treatment for pilgrims. In 1298 Edward I of England was injured by his own horse before the Battle of Falkirk and was treated here. "Tóir Féichín" means a sanctuary boundary stone, once past it you were under church jurisdiction and secular bailiffs couldn't touch you. What you see now is mostly from 1400: the Preceptory was dissolved at the Reformation but the church continued in use. Adult £2, conc or child £1.50.
- 4 Jupiter Artland, Bonnington House, Wilkieston EH27 8BY, ☏ +44 1506 889900. May-Sep daily 10AM-5PM. Extensive contemporary sculpture garden and gallery. You arrive through artistic earthworks (no tobogganing please). The Steadings has an exhibition changed annually, then you stroll through the woods and try to figure out why each sculpture was so named. Tickets also needed for dogs. Adult £12.
Do
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- Walk the Almond Valley. The best of it is downstream: use the car park on Pumpherston Rd (by the bottle bank) and follow the riverside trail. From the weir this follows a feeder sluice to the Union Canal, which spans the valley by an impressive aqueduct.
- 1 Escape Livingston, 11 Beveridge Square EH54 6QF, ☏ +44 1506 416615. Daily 10AM-10PM. Escape games: teams of 2 to 12 are locked in a room and have to solve a series of riddles, clues and puzzles to escape within the hour. £20 pp.
- Football: 2 Livingston FC, Almondvale Stadium, Alderstone Rd EH54 7DN, ☏ +44 1506 417000. "The Lions" were relegated in 2024 and now play soccer in the Scottish Championship, the second tier. Their home ground is the 9000-capacity Almondvale Stadium aka "Tony Macaroni Arena".
- 3 Deer Park Golf and Country Club, Golf Course Road EH54 8AB, ☏ +44 1506 446699. Daily 6:30AM-9:30PM. Country club with spa, swimming pool, ten-pin bowling and golf course: white tees 6396 yards par 72. visitor round £20 pp.
- 4 Dalmahoy Golf Club, Kirknewton EH27 8EB, ☏ +44 131 333 1845. Upscale golf course, country club and hotel.
- Golf: other courses are Pumpherston, Uphall and Binny.
- Vue Cinema is a multiplex in the main shopping mall at Almondvale Ave.
- West Lothian Highland Games used to be held in Bathgate village, but were scrapped in 2022.
Buy
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The core of Livingston is an extensive shopping area, bisected by Almondvale Avenue. The area east of the avenue is Livingston Centre and has more eating places. West side is the Designer Outlet, with Vue Cinema. Together they have over 250 stores, generally open M-W F 9AM-7PM, Th Sa 9AM-8PM, Su 10AM-6PM. These 250 are relentlessly the same as each other and as any other retail unit in the country, not least by lying empty.
Eat
edit- There's no stand-out, but lots of budget places in the main mall of Almondvale, with others in the villages of Uphall and Mid Calder.
- Tony Macaroni, The Hub, Almondvale Cres, Livingston EH54 6QX, ☏ +44 1506 410505. M-F noon-9:30PM, Sa Su 10AM-9:30PM. Large Italian chain restaurant on two levels.
- Sapphire, Bankton Centre, Murieston EH54 9DA (at South railway station), ☏ +44 1506 417272. Th-Tu 4:30-11PM. Basic Chinese, eat in or takeaway.
- La Vita Viva, 35b Main St, Mid Calder EH53 0AN, ☏ +44 1506 885138. W-M 12:30-9:30PM. Small restaurant with good selection.
- Khushis, 15 Bank St, Mid Calder EH53 0AS, ☏ +44 1506 884514. W-M 4-9:30PM. Cheap and cheerful Indian, byob.
Drink
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- Brucefield Farm (The Carvery), Brucefield Industrial Estate, Rutherford Square EH54 9BU, ☏ +44 1506 417788. Daily 9AM-9PM. Family-friendly carvery, does takeaway.
- Beefeater Restaurant & Pub is within the Premier Inn at M8 jcn 3, open daily 7AM-11PM.
- Livingston Inn, 2 Main St, Livingston EH54 7AF, ☏ +44 1506 205472. Su-Th noon-11PM, F Sa noon-midnight. Pleasant old pub with food, has rooms.
- Harvester on Almondvale Ave is a chain pub with food open daily 9AM-8PM.
- The New Year Field, Unit 1, Livingston Designer Outlet, Almondvale Avenue EH54 6QX, ☏ +44 1506 420770. Daily 8AM-midnight. JD Wetherspoons pub with food.
Sleep
edit- 1 Linwater Caravan Park, Clifton Rd, East Calder EH53 0HT (3 miles east of Livingston), ☏ +44 131 333 3326. Park for touring caravans, motorhomes and tents, open all year. Two-person tent £35, hook-up £40.
- 2 Travelodge, The Hub, Almondvale Cres, Livingston EH54 6QX, ☏ +44 871 984 6288. Good value budget chain. B&B double £130.
- 3 Chain Runner, Almondvale Way, Livingston EH54 6GA, ☏ +44 1506 243991. Mid-price hotel run by Marston's Inns. B&B double £140.
- 4 Mercure Livingston Hotel, Almondview, Livingston EH54 6QB, ☏ +44 1506 551950. Clean comfy Accor chain hotel. B&B double £120.
- 5 Livingston Lodge Hotel, Hawk Brae, Livingston EH54 6TW, ☏ +44 1506 460841. Tatty mid-range place. Double (room only) £70.
- 6 Premier Inn Livingston, Deer Park Drive, Livingston EH54 8AD (at jcn 3 of M8), ☏ +44 333 321 1238. Reliable budget chain with 74 rooms, no air con. B&B double £140.
- 7 Macdonald Houston House, Uphall EH52 6JS (A899 two miles north of Livingston), ☏ +44 344 879 9043. Pleasant hotel in a 16th century manor house set in gardens and woods. B&B double £220.
- Oatridge Hotel is half a mile further east on Uphall main street.
- 8 Premier Inn Bathgate, Starlaw Rd, Bathgate EH48 1LL (off jcn 3A of M8 west of Livingston), ☏ +44 333 321 1237. Another branch of this chain. B&B double £140.
- 9 Best Western Hilcroft Hotel, East Main Street, Whitburn EH47 0JU (A705 eight miles west of Livingston), ☏ +44 1501 740818. Clean comfy modern hotel with 32 rooms. B&B double £120.
Connect
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As of Oct 2024, Livingston and its approach roads have 5G from all UK carriers.
Go next
edit- Edinburgh and Glasgow both rate as must-see.
- Linlithgow has an impressive ruined medieval palace, birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots, and the coast is attractive around Blackness Castle.
- To check if they made a better job of Scotland's other 20th century New Towns, see East Kilbride, Glenrothes, Cumbernauld and Irvine.
| Routes through Livingston |
| Glasgow ← Coatbridge ← | W  E |
→ junction  → Edinburgh |
| Kilmarnock ← Motherwell/Carluke ← | SW  E |
→ West Edinburgh → Edinburgh City Centre |