be more up-market dwellings, and are more modern than the council houses which predominate in the village. There has been a new swing park added to Plains and a post office was opened in 2016. A campaign to bring a railway station has not yet been successful. Plains has an active Community Council. Organised religion Christian worship takes place at the Elim Gospel Hall and at Plains Evangelical Church. What is now Plains Evangelical Church, a thriving non-denominational independent church, was begun by Mr Robert McCracken in 1900. St David's Catholic church remains open for worship. Education There are two state schools: St David's Primary and Plains Primary. Both schools are accommodated in a shared campus built on the former football pitches on the west side of Bruce Street. These football pitches were the former site of pit bings which were only removed as the result of community pressure in the 1960s. Points of interest National Cycle Route 75, a Sustrans long-distance cycle path, ran parallel and around south of Main Street. This was constructed along the bed of a former North British Railway line that previously had linked Glasgow and Edinburgh. On 10 May 2007, the bill allowing this line to be re-established as a commuter railway was passed by the Scottish Parliament. The line opened in December 2010. In addition to the re-opening of this 'missing link' between Glasgow and Edinburgh, the existing line between Bathgate and Edinburgh was electrified. As a result of the re-establishment of the railway line, the Sustrans cycle path now stops before reaching Plains on the west side and restarts at the east end of Plains Main Street. In the mid to late 20th century, Plains Countryside Park was the site of the annual Plains Summer Gala - a day of parades, children's sports events and entertainment - a tradition typical of villages in the area including Harthill, Whitburn and Armadale. Although around nineteen years since the Plains Summer Gala was last held, a new committee formed and resurrected this tradition in 2012. The Gala included a lively procession around the village and games and stalls on the play parks in the middle of the village. Further reading Wilson, Rhona: "Old Airdrie Villages" References External links Airdrie Museum Villages in North Lanarkshire Airdrie, North Lanarkshire