# IRELAND | Railways



## redstarcastles (Oct 1, 2013)

Generally they work very well, impressive at 100 mph on the Cork line when the track is good! They have reconfigured the sets into 3,4 and 5 coach sets. Some info here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IE_22000_Class

Some pictures here:

http://transportsceneireland.smugmug.com/RailSceneIreland


22323 Connolly 5 July 2013


22350 Kilkenny 3 August 2013


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From Irish Times:



> http://www.irishtimes.com/news/envi...es-reopening-of-phoenix-park-tunnel-1.1749501
> 
> *Transport plan costing €900m includes reopening of Phoenix Park tunnel*
> 4th April 2014
> ...


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From RailStaff:



> http://www.railstaff.co.uk/2014/06/17/iarnrod-eireann-overcome/
> 
> *Iarnród Éireann - A crisis to be overcome*
> 17 Jun 2014
> ...


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## redstarcastles (Oct 1, 2013)

*Some pictures from the recent past*

When trains were orange and black:


079 Drogheda 9 August 2008


173 Heuston 5 April 2008


226 Adamstown 26 May 2007 

More here:
http://smu.gs/1uHwk7d


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From Rail Journal:



> http://www.railjournal.com/index.ph...l-reverses-passenger-decline.html?channel=542
> 
> *Irish Rail reverses passenger decline*
> Tuesday, July 08, 2014
> ...


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## csd (Oct 28, 2009)

*Some heritage action from the south*

Folks,

Apart from push-pull loco services on the Dublin - Cork and Dublin - Belfast lines, all other intercity routes in Ireland are served by DMUs since BR Mark 3 coaches were finally displaced by Rotem InterCity Railcars in 2009. This has led to the return of diesel-hauled heritage trains, run by the Railway Preservation Society of Ireland (who mainly run steam excursions) and the Irish Railway Record Society.

Here are a few shots from a recent trip using 071 Class diesel haulage and 1960s-vintage Cravens coaches.

1. Waterford station has had its infrastructure significantly cut back since a landslide on 31.12.2013 damaged the signalling infrastructure. In its heyday, Waterford had six passenger platforms, but this has now been reduced to a single bay platform (shown here). This platform, and the now freight-only through track under the signal box to Belview Port are all that remain. The main platform can now no longer be reached, and all points and crossings have been removed. Entry to Waterford is now controlled by Waterford West cabin. This has led to the demise of the last section of Absolute Block signalling in Ireland, as Waterford Central has been abolished as a Block Post, and the Waterford - Waterford West section now consists of two sidings.

In this photo, you can see the gantry-mounted signal box, which spans the the through lines leading to Belview port, and the closed lines to New Ross and Rosslare Strand. The landslide was from the cliff face you can see behind it.

The train is formed by a 2,450 hp Class 071, number 078, an ex-BR Mark 1 steam/generator van, and a rake of Cravens coaches, which are standing in the one remaining operational platform in Waterford.
IMG_7177 by csd75, on Flickr

2. After Waterford, we headed west on the Waterford - Limerick line. As run-round is only possible in Waterford freight yard, a fresh loco was attached to what was the rear of the train, which brought us to Limerick.

Here at Carrick-on-Suir, we can see this loco, 079, which has yet to receive an overhaul and repaint into the new freight livery.
IMG_7223 by csd75, on Flickr

3. A view of the signal box at Carrick-on-Suir. Until earlier this year, it was possible to cross trains here, but the loop was removed in May as the points were life-expired and there was no money to replace them. Carrick remains a block post, so a token exchange took place here. This means it's possible to dispatch two trains towards Clonmel from Waterford in the same direction, but crossing with trains in the opposite direction from Limerick Junction can now only happen at Tipperary and Clonmel.
IMG_7218 by csd75, on Flickr

4. Our train waiting at Clonmel station. Here you can see the lower quadrant semaphore signals used on the Waterford - Tipperary section of the line. The three block sections using Harper's instruments and miniature Electric Train Staffs are Waterford West - Carrick-on-Suir (no loop), Carrick - Clonmel, and Clonmel - Tipperary. Tipperary - Limerick Junction now uses modern signalling since the Junction was resignalled a few years ago.

Our signal is "off", so we are clear to proceed. There's still time for a few more photos though!
IMG_7235 by csd75, on Flickr

/csd


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## csd (Oct 28, 2009)

*Heritage part 2: Limerick & the Nenagh branch*

(Continued)

Moving on to Limerick and the secondary branch line serving Nenagh.

1. Limerick is the terminal station for services from Dublin (every two hours, most change at Limerick Junction, but some are direct), Waterford (two per day), Galway (seven per day), and Ballybrophy via Nenagh (two per day). Limerick and Cork are the last of the main terminal stations that haven't been upgraded to computer-based signalling. Although the signals themselves are colour-light, control is via a mechanical interlock in Limerick cabin.

A third loco, number 074, was attached here to bring us back to Dublin using the secondary route via Nenagh (as opposed to the main route via Limerick Junction).
IMG_7257 by csd75, on Flickr

2. Situated at the end of a double track section to Limerick, Killonan signal cabin controls a level crossing, and entrance to the Nenagh branch from the Limerick side. The branch is single track, with two ETS sections: Killonan - Birdhill, Birdhill - Roscrea, and a manual staff between Roscrea and Ballybrophy, the junction with the Cork main line.

The signalman has just handed our driver the ETS staff for the Killonan - Birdhill section, and is returning to his cabin to open the level crossing gates to road traffic. The mainline to Limerick Junction is to the right and behind the train, and is controlled by CTC in Connolly station, Dublin.
IMG_7259 by csd75, on Flickr

3. Birdhill station, first block post on the Nenagh branch heading from Limerick. The driver here has stopped short of the platform end to allow photographers to get a better shot. Here you can see that Birdhill has a passing loop (to the right of the train) and a short siding (on the left). The signal cabin is visible to the right, and the signals protecting the Killonan - Birdhill section are visible in the distance.
IMG_7273 by csd75, on Flickr

4. Cravens interior. These coaches were introduced in 1963, and lasted in regular service until December 2006. Several have now been preserved by the RPSI, and see use on special trains such as this. More details on Wikipedia.
IMG_7302 by csd75, on Flickr

5. Castleconnell station has no loop and a single platform. Facilities here are pretty basic; the station building is no longer in use, and tickets are sold on the train.

The generator/steam heating van and the first four Cravens carriages are in the livery they used in Irish Rail service between 1987 and 2006. The final three carriages have been repainted into an RPSI blue livery.
IMG_7293 by csd75, on Flickr

/csd


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## csd (Oct 28, 2009)

*Heritage part 4: shunting at Ballybrophy*

Ballybrophy is a junction station on the Cork/Dublin main line, giving access to the Nenagh branch from this end. A ground frame controls access to the Nenagh branch to and from the main line, so usually trains will terminate in the bay platform at Ballybrophy, and passengers will transfer to another train on the main line platforms. However in this case, our train shunted from the Nenagh branch bay out onto the main line and across into the loop platform on the Down side (platform 4, visible on the extreme right of photo 1).

1. Our train in the bay platform, which serves the Nenagh branch to Limerick. The tracks in the foreground are the Dublin/Cork main line, and we're looking north towards Dublin. You can see railway staff in hi-vis vests calling CTC for permission to operate the ground frame and allow the train to propel (reverse) out onto the main line.
IMG_7308 by csd75, on Flickr

2. A closer view of the rear of the train. Note the double-headed signal. The right-hand head is controlled by CTC in Dublin, and has cleared the main line for a service train. Once this has passed, the left-hand head will clear to green when the ground frame is used to set the route from the Nenagh bay out to the main line.
IMG_7304 by csd75, on Flickr

3. Our train has reversed out onto the main line, and is now waiting for the road to be set to the loop platform at Ballybrophy. The line to Limerick via Nenagh is visible curving off to the left.
IMG_7314 by csd75, on Flickr

4. We now draw forwards into the loop platform while a service train, the 1705 Dublin Heuston - Tralee waits at the Down Home signal.
IMG_7321 by csd75, on Flickr

5. Approaching the platform, the IRRS board is clearly visible, denoting a special being run by the Irish Railway Records Society.
IMG_7339 by csd75, on Flickr

6. The 1705 Heuston - Tralee can now access platform 2 now that the IRRS train has cleared the main line. The train is formed of a 5-car Premier class ICR, which includes a first class section and a buffet car.
IMG_7371 by csd75, on Flickr

7. Old and new: 45 years separate the entry into service of this rolling stock.
IMG_7375 by csd75, on Flickr

8. After running around the train, our loco eases onto the coaching stock to couple up once more. Irish coaching stock used screw couplers, so a shunter is required to manually couple trains and reconnect brake hoses. Once a common sight at terminal stations, this procedure is now only required for special heritage trains such as this. All service trains are now either EMU/DMU or push-pull.
IMG_7397 by csd75, on Flickr

/csd


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From Global Rail News:



> http://www.globalrailnews.com/2014/08/15/eu-funding-for-belfast-dublin-cross-border-train-fleet/
> 
> *EU funding for Belfast-Dublin cross-border train fleet*
> 15 AUG, 2014
> ...


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

Wonderful timelapse of new bridge across Royal Canal near Broomsbridge station. This is the part of elimination rail crossing at Ratoath Road. Here is the describtion:



> The Ratoath Road, Realignment and Over-bridge Project commenced in June 2013 and will be fully completed in early 2015, closing one of the busiest manually operated rail level crossings on the Iarnród Éireann network. The €9.8 million Iarnród Éireann project has been developed in co-operation with Dublin City Council and is funded by the National Transport Authority.
> 
> The bridge span is 70m with a width of 15.4m to the outside of the steelwork. The Steel structure was manufactured by Horta Coslada in Madrid. The weight of the lift is approximately 330 tonnes comprising approximately 305 tonnes of structural steel work with an additional 25 tonnes of tackle and hook block. The weight of the overall bridge is approximately 1620 tonnes including structural steel, structural concrete, pavement, parapets and finishes. The Crane which will be used to lift the bridge into position has come in by sea from the UK.
> 
> ...


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From Global Rail News:



> http://www.globalrailnews.com/2014/10/17/no-additional-funding-for-irish-rail-operator-in-2015/
> 
> *No additional funding for Irish rail operator in 2015*
> 17 OCT, 2014
> ...


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## callagg2 (Aug 31, 2014)

How much of Irish Rail's losses can be attributed to Running uneconomic routes like Galway-Limerick, Limerick-Waterford etc...


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## MarcVD (Dec 1, 2008)

callagg2 said:


> How much of Irish Rail's losses can be attributed to Running uneconomic routes like Galway-Limerick, Limerick-Waterford etc...


As far as I remember, those routes were closed and re-opened only a few
years ago. I even don't know whether it's already re-opened as far as Galway. Why has it been re-opened if it is not economic to operate ? If
the re-opening has been made at the request of the government, why does
not Irish Rail state that it will not continue to operate it if it does not receive
the appropriate funding ?


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From Rail Journal:



> http://www.railjournal.com/index.php/europe/belmond-to-launch-irish-luxury-train.html?channel=542
> 
> *Belmond to launch Irish luxury train*
> Thursday, November 06, 2014
> ...


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## csd (Oct 28, 2009)

*DART at Bray Head*

Hugging the cliff-side and skirting the Irish Sea, the section of railway between Bray and Greystones south of Dublin is particularly scenic.

The wires were extended south to Greystones, and DART replaced DMU service to the seaside town in 2000. With the exception of the Bray - Greystones section, the DART system is double-track throughout.

This shot shows a four-car 8510 class EMU on a northbound service as it passes MP13.5 and a 50 mph (80 km/h) Permanent Speed Restriction on the southern approaches to Bray. The mileposts here are measured from the long-closed Dublin Harcourt Street station. Also visible is the Outer Home signal for Bray, showing a Proceed aspect.

DART Bray Head by csd75, on Flickr

/csd


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From Rail Journal:



> http://www.railjournal.com/index.ph...-ridership-returns-to-growth.html?channel=524
> 
> *Irish Rail ridership returns to growth*
> Tuesday, January 06, 2015
> ...


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## artisanvapor (Jan 7, 2015)

Nice pics very great place for travelling...........................


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From Rail Journal:



> http://www.railjournal.com/index.php/europe/ie-mulls-dublin-airport-rail-link.html?channel=537
> 
> *IE mulls Dublin Airport rail link*
> Monday, January 26, 2015
> ...


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

Grade separation of Ratoath Road level crossing in North Dublin is almost complete, opening should be soon:


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From Rail Journal:



> http://www.railjournal.com/index.ph...ridership-recovery-continues.html?channel=524
> 
> *Irish Rail ridership recovery continues*
> Thursday, April 09, 2015
> ...


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## redstarcastles (Oct 1, 2013)

Pictures taken on Saturday the 17th of December on a surprisingly sunny day!


3003 & 4011 Whitehead 17 December 2016


B142 Whitehead 17 December 2016


MK3 Sleeper Whitehead 17 December 2016
From the UK, Irish Rail never had Mk3 Sleepers.


4011 Whiteabbey 17 December 2016


No. 85 in the sun of Belfast Central 17 December 2016


No. 85 Belfast Central 17 December 2016


C3Ks cross the River Lagan 17 December 2016


No. 85 passes Harland & Wolff Crane 17 December 2016


No. 85 crosses the River Lagan 17 December 2016


No. 85 crosses the River Lagan 17 December 2016


4019 Great Victoria St 17 December 2016

More here:
https://transportsceneireland.smugmug.com/RailSceneIreland/RSE-December-2016/


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## suasion (Sep 7, 2015)

^^^^^^^^^^

Irish rail never had MkIII sleepers but 5 of their old MKIIIs have been refurbished as sleepers for the the Grand Hibernian train.:tongue4:
http://www.belmond.com/grand-hibernian-train/ireland-by-train I imagine the ex BR example would have a different interior but.


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## redstarcastles (Oct 1, 2013)

Some pictures from this evening:


22211 Hazelhatch & Celbridge 31 May 2017


22348 Hazelhatch & Celbridge 31 May 2017


4004 Hazelhatch & Celbridge 31 May 2017


234 Hazelhatch & Celbridge 31 May 2017


22135 Hazelhatch & Celbridge 31 May 2017


22343 Hazelhatch & Celbridge 31 May 2017

More here:
https://transportsceneireland.smugmug.com/RailSceneIreland/RSI-May-2017/


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## redstarcastles (Oct 1, 2013)

Some pictures from Limerick taken last Saturday. The 2800 class are currently based in Limerick. These consist of 10x2 coach sets and operate on services to Galway, Ballybrophy, Limerick Junction and Waterford. Stored 2700 sets are to be refurbished and may replace the 2800s in 2018, the 2800s to return to Dublin for Commuter services.


2809 Limerick 22 July 2017


2802 & 22217 Limerick 22 July 2017


2806 Limerick 22 July 2017


2801 front Limerick 22 July 2017

https://transportsceneireland.smugmug.com/RailSceneIreland/RSI-July-2017/


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## csd (Oct 28, 2009)

*RPSI train*

After Iarnród Eireann and Translink/Northern Ireland Railways, the third operator of passenger trains in Ireland is the Railway Preservation Society of Ireland (RPSI). The RPSI operates tour trains on both sides of the border and owns a carriages and locomotives, both steam and diesel.

None of the diesel locomotives is currently certified for main line running, but 121-class number 134 dating from 1961 is currently being restored to full operating condition. As part of the fundraising efforts for this the RPSI ran "The Branchline Wanderer" rail tour on 7 April 2018. The tour left Dublin Connolly station and visited Waterford and Limerick.

1. Until their displacement to second-line duties, the 071 class worked CIE/Irish Rail's top link trains between 1977 and the arrival of the 201 class in 1994. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the arrival of this type, Irish Rail painted the class leader into its original livery in 2016. Still sporting this colour scheme, 071 stands at the head of the tour train in Dublin Connolly on 07.04.2018.
IMG_0252

2. Having left the main Dublin - Cork line at Cherryville Junction south of Kildare, the tour train approaches Thomastown viaduct on the single line to Waterford. The first coach behind the locomotive is the Brake Generating Steam Van, number 3173. This provides steam heating and electricity for the coaching stock, Irish locomotives not generally being capable of providing 'hotel power' for passenger stock. 3173 was one of a series of 13 converted from former British Rail Mark 1 carriages in 1972.
IMG_0264 by csd75, on Flickr

3. The tour train stands in Waterford station on Ireland's south coast. At its peak Waterford had six platforms, but following a landslip on the cliff you can see behind the train on 31.12.2013, the signal box and all but one of the platforms were taken out of use. Movements in and out of the station are now controlled from Waterford West signal box, located 800 metres to the west of the station. It controls access to the remaining active platform (number 5) and the line to Belview (Waterford Port).
There are plans to move the station further east as part of a North Docks redevelopment project. Part of this work involves the stabilisation of the cliff face to allow passenger trains to pass once more.
IMG_0268 by csd75, on Flickr

4. Leaving Waterford, we head towards Limerick on the little-used Limerick - Waterford line. This shot was taken shortly after departure from Waterford, with a view of the River Suir and bridges old and new. The nearer bridge (with the missing span) used to carry the Waterford - Cork line (via Dungarvan and Fermoy). This line was closed in 1967, but a section as far as Ballinacourty near Dungarvan was reopened in 1969 to serve Quigley's magnesite plant.
Waterford West signal box is also visible. This is the fringe box to mainline CTC (Centralised Traffic Control) which controls the line to Dublin. The line we're taking uses mechanical signalling and an electrically-interlocked token system. The driver has slowed the train to collect the token for the Waterford West to Carrick on Suir section here.
IMG_0271 by csd75, on Flickr


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## redstarcastles (Oct 1, 2013)

2816, 2819, 22261 & 22319 Limerick 30 June 2018


2801 Limerick 30 June 2018

More here:
https://transportsceneireland.smugmug.com/RailSceneIreland/RSI-June-2018/


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## redstarcastles (Oct 1, 2013)

Went to see the Belmond come and go and other action:

22328 Connolly 11 August 2018


082 & Belmond Connolly 11 August 2018


216 arrives into Connolly 11 August 2018


8607 & 29428 Connolly 11 August 2018


8633 Connolly 11 August 2018

More here:
https://transportsceneireland.smugmug.com/RailSceneIreland/RSI-August-2018/


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

*The Listowel and Ballybunnion Railway*

I love this monorail system which was proposed in a number of places in Europe. The design was by Lartigue and this line was the only line of this type that saw regular use for scheduled services.

The line has fascinated me for some time. I hope this post is of interest. 

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2018/12/31/the-listowel-and-ballybunion-railway


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## Art Nouveau City (Nov 23, 2018)

*Dublin Connolly Railway Station*









https://trainphoto.org.ua/view/17226/


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

*The West Clare Railway*

This post is the result of reading an article in The Railway Magazine, this time from the May 1951 edition!

We are in the Republic of Ireland, specifically in County Clare. The May 1951 edition of the magazine carried an article on the 3ft gauge light railway which ran from Ennis to Kilrush and Kilkee. The total length of the railway was about 53 miles.

The first post gives some consideration to the history of the line and then looks at the section of the journey between Ennis and Corofin.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/04/08/the-west-clare-railway-part-1-ennis-to-corofin


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

*The West Clare Railway*

This is the next part of the journey along the West Clare Railway.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/04/15/the-west-clare-railway-part-2-corofin-to-lahinch


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## zaphod (Dec 8, 2005)

rogerfarnworth said:


> *The West Clare Railway*
> 
> This is the next part of the journey along the West Clare Railway.
> 
> http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/04/15/the-west-clare-railway-part-2-corofin-to-lahinch


I found it fascinating how archaic those railways were into the early 1960s before they closed. It's easy to imagine how people in that era who witnessed the demise of these rural lines would have been at once very sad to see them go but also likely saw them as severely outdated. A modern bus would probably hold more passengers than two of those passenger coaches and travel at highway speeds.


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## Khaul (Sep 8, 2009)

rogerfarnworth said:


> *The West Clare Railway*
> 
> This is the next part of the journey along the West Clare Railway.
> 
> http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/04/15/the-west-clare-railway-part-2-corofin-to-lahinch


That's a nice railway to model.


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

*The West Clare Railway*

The next length of the line takes us from Lahinch to Miltown-Malbay. .....

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/04/20/the-west-clare-railway-part-3-lahinch-to-miltown-malbay


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

*The Cavan and Leitrim Railway - The Extension*

I have started work on a study of the Cavan and Leitrim Railway and hopefully the first post on the two main lines will be ready soon. While I was reading various sources on-line and Patrick Flanagan's book about the line, I became aware of a series of attempts to extend the tramway which ran from Ballinamore to Arigna through to Sligo. None of these attempts was successful.

In the end an extension line was built to aid transport of coal from the Arigna mines down to the tramway station. This extension was under 5 miles in length and was soon truncated to a much shorter version. It was known as the Arigna Valley Railway.

The story is worth reading. For much of it I am indebted to Patrick Flanagan and his contributions are referenced throughout.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/04/26/the-cavan-leitrim-railway-arigna-valley-railway


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## sponge_bob (Aug 11, 2013)

zaphod said:


> I found it fascinating how archaic those railways were into the early 1960s before they closed. It's easy to imagine how people in that era who witnessed the demise of these rural lines would have been at once very sad to see them go but also likely saw them as severely outdated. A modern bus would probably hold more passengers than two of those passenger coaches and travel at highway speeds.


What is more difficult to imagine, than a narrow guage service, is 

a) the appalling state of the roads in that area in 1960
b) how low car ownership was before the 1960s in Ireland. 


There were 4 major narrow guage networks, all rural services in the west. The County Donegal railways (the largest) the Cavan and Leitrim the Dingle line and the West Clare. The build quality in the late 19th century was atrocious, I mean atrocious by 19th centure standards, and there were few places on these networks where a train could safely do 40mph. 

The first one to succumb to bus competition was the Dingle line which closed just before WW2.


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## bongo-anders (Oct 26, 2008)

Has anyone besides me been watching All The Stations Ireland.

Some interesting videos so far, but I haven't seen them all yet.


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

*The Guinness Brewery Railways, Dublin*

The St. James's Gate Brewery belonging to Guinness had what was apparently, apart from the bog railways of the Midlands, the longest private railway system in Ireland. In total there were 10 miles of track of which 8 miles were narrow gauge. There were some interesting innovations in lured within the system - a spiral in narrow gauge allowing trains to pass under St. James's Street, an ingenious conversion wagon which allowed narrow gauge locomotive to work on the broad gauge sidings, a unique design of narrow gauge locomotive specifically suited to the needs of the site.

This is another post prompted by reading 1951 editions of The Railway Magazine!

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/04/26/the-guinness-brewery-railways-dublin


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

*The West Clare Railway*

The next length of the line from Miltown Malbay to Quilty brings us back once again to the Atlantic Coast. ........

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/04/30/the-west-clare-railway-part-4-miltown-malbay-to-quilty/


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## TWEire (Jun 21, 2018)

bongo-anders said:


> Has anyone besides me been watching All The Stations Ireland.
> 
> Some interesting videos so far, but I haven't seen them all yet.


Yeah I watched it. Kind of got the feeling Geoff didn't really give a sh*t. It was nothing compared to the GB version. I thought they'd do more considering they raised 25K


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

*The Co. Donegal Railways*

After completing two articles in a series about the Co. Donegal Railways, covering the Glenties Branch, I was put in touch with Kerry Doherty who lives in Co. Donegal and he provided a few additional images of the branch. I have updated my original articles with a total of four photographs, three of which come from Kerry Doherty and the fourth from the Co. Donegal Railway Heritage Centre. ....

I have not posted these articles here before now, these are the two links. ....









Co. Donegal Railways, Ireland – Part 1 – The Glenties Branch – Stranorlar to Ballinamore


My wife and I were due to take our annual holidays in 2020 in April and May. We would have been staying in Co. Donegal in Ireland and would, among other things, have explored some parts of the old …




rogerfarnworth.com













Co. Donegal Railways, Ireland – Part 2 – The Glenties Branch – Ballinamore to Glenties


This article covers the Western length of the Glenties Branch of the Co. Donegal Railways. The Eastern length of the branch is covered in the first article in this series about the Co. Donegal Rail…




rogerfarnworth.com







> The Glenties Branch ran through a very rural part of Co. Donegal and seemingly stopped short of what could be considered a 'sensible' destination - the Atlantic Coast. Indeed it seems as though there were quite a few people in Ardara on the coast who thought that way. There was a concerted campaign over many years to get a short extension built between Glenties and Ardara.


As we have noted in oru discussion about these narrow gauge lines, even though their construction was often government funded, they were usually resource poor and served rural areas. Their presence probably saved the areas through which they ran but they themselves are now part of history.


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

rogerfarnworth said:


> *The Guinness Brewery Railways, Dublin*
> 
> The St. James's Gate Brewery belonging to Guinness had what was apparently, apart from the bog railways of the Midlands, the longest private railway system in Ireland. In total there were 10 miles of track of which 8 miles were narrow gauge. There were some interesting innovations in lured within the system - a spiral in narrow gauge allowing trains to pass under St. James's Street, an ingenious conversion wagon which allowed narrow gauge locomotive to work on the broad gauge sidings, a unique design of narrow gauge locomotive specifically suited to the needs of the site.
> 
> ...


A short note about a couple of publications which focus on the Guinness Brewery Railways. .....









The Guinness Brewery Railways, Dublin, again. ….


The featured image above shows a staggering number of barrels at the Guinness Brewery in Dublin! [3] This very short article results from some recent reading about the railways on the Guinness Brew…




rogerfarnworth.com







> This very short article results from some recent reading about the railways on the Guinness Brewery site in Dublin.
> 
> An article in 'Narrow Gauge & Industrial Railway Modelling Review' Issue 60 Volume 8, October 2004, p134-142; and
> Paul Webb, 'Shifting the Stout', The Moseley Trust, Apedale, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire.


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

*The Co. Donegal Railways again. ....*

This next post about the Co. Donegal Railways is the first looking at the Strabane to Letterkenny Railway. It begins at Strabane and runs as far as the town of Raphoe which was an ancient seat of temporal and spiritual power. ....









Co. Donegal Railways, Ireland – Part 4 – Strabane to Letterkenny (Part A – Strabane to Raphoe)


Wikipedia gives us a very short history of the line from Strabane to Letterkenny and provides a single image – the Railway Clearing House map with stations in Strabane and Letterkenny: &#8220…




rogerfarnworth.com







> The first railway station in Letterkenny opened on 30th June 1883. The line out of Londonderry started out as the Londonderry and Buncrana Railway and was absorbed into the L&LSR in 1887. [9] That line is not the subject of this article but it is important to note that Letterkenny had been rail-served for many years before the branch from Strabane arrived in the town.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

On this island hosting a naval base near Cork there is a network of abandoned tracks, without connection to the outside, not even via a ferry. What were them?









51°53'59.6"N 8°23'31.3"W · Ireland


Ireland




www.google.com


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## zaphod (Dec 8, 2005)

I can't give you an answer in this case, but I know that naval bases often had small internal railroads to haul around munitions between bunkers and ships. A lot of American naval bases have them, especially on the west coast, but I don't know if any are still used today. Sometimes WW2 era bases used industrial light railways for general construction, for example in Hawaii near Pearl Harbor there's a still functional underground freight subway that is used to move equipment into giant subterranean ship fuel reservoirs for maintenance purposes.


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## VITORIA MAN (Jan 31, 2013)

redstarcastles said:


> Pictures taken on Saturday the 17th of December on a surprisingly sunny day!
> 
> 
> 3003 & 4011 Whitehead 17 December 2016
> ...


nice photos


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Thank you, zaphod. I have found that it was used for internal transports of a steel plant, and curiously it was standard gauge, not Irish gauge, certainly to use second hand or off the shelf rolling stock.









Haulbowline - Wikipedia







en.wikipedia.org










Irish Steel Haulbowline


Here's a few photos of the 4' 8½" gauge line used by Irish Steel on Haulbowline. They were taken during an IRRS visit, but I can't remember the date. First there are two views of one of the three Unilok road/rail shunting locomotives used on the system - the number would seem to be IA01 (or 1A01)...




irishrailwaymodeller.com


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

Coccodrillo said:


> On this island hosting a naval base near Cork there is a network of abandoned tracks, without connection to the outside, not even via a ferry. What were them?


Hi Coccodrillo
Sadly, I don't know. I hope others might be able to help you.
Roger


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## rogerfarnworth (Jan 7, 2019)

This next post completes the length of the Strabane and Letterkenny Railway









Co. Donegal Railways, Ireland – Part 6 – Strabane to Letterkenny (Part C – Convoy to Letterkenny)


As we noted at the start of the two previous articles about this line, Wikipedia gives us a very short history of the line from Strabane to Letterkenny and provides a single image – the Railw…




rogerfarnworth.com





*A Journey Along the Line - Strabane to Letterkenny - Part C - Convoy to Letterkenny*

We return to Convoy Railway Station which sits to the East of the Village. While we are waiting for our train, a railcar from Letterkenny stops at the station.


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## geogregor (Dec 11, 2006)

Judging by this thread railways in Ireland must be very unimportant nowadays...


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## 437.001 (Mar 27, 2009)

geogregor said:


> Judging by this thread railways in Ireland must be very unimportant nowadays...


???

I think it's just that there aren't many news going on about Irish rail...

Besides, Ireland is a small island / the RoI is a small country.

And an important part of its population lives in Dublin, so the "railways" thread naturally gets less busy (for Dublin you'd rather look at the "urban transport" subforum, that is busier, just not as much as London, of course).


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## horlick97 (Oct 7, 2010)

Are there plans to regauge railways in Ireland to standard gauge?


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## davide84 (Jun 8, 2008)

The motivation for regauging in case of Spain, and maybe in the future the Baltic states, is better freight and HS integration with the rest of the continental network. That is not an issue for Ireland.


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## mgk920 (Apr 21, 2007)

There is off and on chatter about drilling a tunnel between Scotland and Northern Ireland, but I'm not seeing that happen within the foreseeable future. Should that happen though, that could be the impetus that is needed to do that.

Mike


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## 437.001 (Mar 27, 2009)

🔼🔼🔼
A tunnel from Scotland to Northern Ireland would be a rather complicated thing to build.
And that, for various reasons:

-depth of the sea between Scotland and Northern Ireland.
-presence at the bottom of potentially toxic stuff dumped underwater many years ago.
-overall cost of the thing.
-number of passengers expected (not the same if the tunnel goes to Glasgow and/or Carlisle than if it reaches Wales).

I'd say it would make more sense a tunnel from Holyhead to Dublin.

Well, at least before Brexit.
Now, go figure.

For now, we know that the Republic of Ireland is reinforcing its ferry services to/from:

1) France (Cork-Roscoff, Dublin-Cherbourg, Rosslare-Cherbourg, Rosslare-Dunkerque)
2) Belgium (Cork-Zeebrugge, Dublin-Zeebrugge)
3) Spain (Rosslare-Bilbao, Dublin-Santander)
4) Portugal (Dublin-Leixoês)


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## Neb81 (Jun 14, 2010)

High-speed rail from Cork to Dublin and Belfast could be in place next year


> He said work would then begin to replace the Enterprise fleet and introduce a full hourly service all day from about 2026 to 2027.
> 
> He said Irish Rail's target is to cut the journey between Dublin and Belfast to 90 minutes. The current journey time is just over two hours.
> 
> Mr Meade said there are plans to upgrade existing lines to 200kmph operation.


It seems earlier talk of a true high-speed line on Cork-Dublin-Belfast has given way to something more modest, but wondering how simple an upgrade to 200km/h operation would be, given the optimistic timeframe? The Dublin-Cork line has some amount of 160km/h running, and is quad-track to avoid conflicts with commuter services from Hazelhatch almost to Heuston, so it seems that at least on this stretch, it'd be comparatively straightforward - I'm guessing removing some level crossings and signalling upgrades. 

But the Dublin-Dundalk line, AFAIK, is only 140km/h at best and has no traffic separation at all - and there's the intensive DART service already there too, which IE is keen to further extend all the way to Drogheda. Also, given the DART Interconnector tunnel has been scrapped, the only route is via the Phoenix Park tunnel, which very slow and would necessitate the train reversing at either Heuston or Connolly.

Given all that do we actually have any idea of what works are planned to make it happen? I'd love to see 200km/h trains to Cork, but this announcement seems big on aspiration and short on real detail.


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## sponge_bob (Aug 11, 2013)

I am afraid the journalist is a half wit. 


Neb81 said:


> High-speed rail from Cork to Dublin and Belfast could be in place next year
> 
> Given all that do we actually have any idea of what works are planned to make it happen? I'd love to see 200km/h trains to Cork, but this announcement seems big on aspiration and short on real detail.


It is possible to through run 150kph diesel trains from Belfast to Cork. I am sceptical as to whether there will be much business and the current arrangement involves changing stations, via tram, in Dublin. 

The complications of reversing to through run in Dublin will likely kybosh this plan. There was a Cork-Belfast service over 50 years ago IIRC but back then Ireland barely had any roads and the quick way to get from Cork to Belfast today is by express bus, changing buses at Dublin Airport and with a roughly hourly service interval already.

There is a vague proposal, being studied, for a genuine high speed rail Dublin Bypass of some sort. The study may be published in the next year.


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## Stuu (Feb 7, 2007)

sponge_bob said:


> There is a vague proposal, being studied, for a genuine high speed rail Dublin Bypass of some sort. The study may be published in the next year.


Surely there is no case for that? Dublin is the overwhelming destination for intercity travel in Ireland, there's never going to be a case for service significant enough to build a bypass.


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## sponge_bob (Aug 11, 2013)

Stuu said:


> Surely there is no case for that? Dublin is the overwhelming destination for intercity travel in Ireland, there's never going to be a case for service significant enough to build a bypass.


Well. The main programs right now are to electrify within 30km of Dublin and to increase commuter services on those sections but these are mainly twin track sections with mixed long distance and commuter services save for one short quad exception SW of Dublin.

There is strong case for a new fast alignment to remove commuter traffic from these sections and that would be, sensibly from around SW of Dublin to the Airport and north along the M1 motorway to join the old Belfast alignment around Drogheda. The cost of quad tracking from central Dublin to near Drogheda would be outrageous so an entirely new fast alignment makes sense.

From around Kildare to Cork you can probably get 150-170kph running with relatively few civils required because there are fewer commuter services west of Kildare.


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## Stuu (Feb 7, 2007)

sponge_bob said:


> Well. The main programs right now are to electrify within 30km of Dublin and to increase commuter services on those sections but these are mainly twin track sections with mixed long distance and commuter services save for one short exception SW of Dublin.
> 
> There is strong case for a new fast alignment to remove commuter traffic from these sections and that would be, sensibly from around SW of Dublin to the Airport and north along the M1 motorway to join the old Belfast alignment around Drogheda. The cost of quad tracking from central Dublin to near Drogheda would be outrageous so an entirely new fast alignment makes sense.


What sort of numbers of people make those journeys every day? They will be insignificant compared to journeys into Dublin, both regional and national/island-wide. An extra pair of tracks into Dublin from the north is going to be far more useful. For idle speculation, how about a new line Heuston-Airport-Balbriggan. It's only 35km - maybe €5bn with half of it in tunnel? A big project but not completely impossible


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## sponge_bob (Aug 11, 2013)

Yes, but the commuter traffic into Dublin will increase and will compete even more with long distance services on the same pair of tracks, especially Dublin Connolly to Drogheda. I'll wait to see if they grasp the nettle in the rail 'study' now underway but this being Ireland they could well make a total shite of it. 

My idea is a single tunnel diving around 6-7km west of Heuston then >Heuston>Airport>North of Drogheda. Stations at Heuston and the Airport, underground, should have 2 platforms. There should be no further stations on this section south of Drogheda.

North of Balbriggan would be OK right now. it would avoid the messy bits that are not economically quaddable but they are seriously planning already on electrifying to Drogheda and drastically increasing the commuter services on the Balbriggan to Drogheda section. This project is called DART+ North. It will include a major stabling depot in Drogheda as currrently envisaged.

There is only one station from Dublin to Drogheda where a fast/slow conflict can be resolved with more than 2 tracks, it is called Clongriffin. A 12 year old greenfield station east of the airport. Even that only has three tracks right now but a fourth could be added quite trivially.


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## sponge_bob (Aug 11, 2013)

I am proposing a longer version of that.


Stuu said:


> For idle speculation, how about a new line Heuston-Airport-Balbriggan. It's only 35km - maybe €5bn with half of it in tunnel? A big project but not completely impossible


Not easy to quad the last 5km SW of Heuston, it slopes steeply for 2km near it, so start the tunnel E of Park West station near the M50. Limited platforms in Heuston so add a pair underground oriented perpendicular to the liffey. Think Park West-Balbriggan, de minimis.

At the northern end you will have to bypass Drogheda sooner or later but you could terminate N of Balbriggan for now if you really insist.

Problem is that Balbriggan-Drogheda will soon have as many commuter trains as Clongriffin- Malahide does once the Dart terminus is Drogheda rather than Malahide and the stock is stabled in Drogheda. That much is already planned as _DART+ North_ But you could add passing loops north of Balbriggan although I think the viaduct S of Drogheda station is protected.

They are to quad 2-3km east of Park West as part of a planned _Dart+SW_ scheme. The last 2-3km is triple track today and perhaps not quaddable at a reasonable cost. 

Heuston then the only Dublin Station for non commuter trains from most of Ireland. Only SE destinations served from Connolly. Non commuter stock is to be hybrid medium term and would solely run as electrics in the tunnel, of course.

But the stations are where you spend most money so I only propose Airport and Heuston undergrounds. The loading guage N of Dublin is historically smaller than on the ex Heuston lines too, not as high IIRC. It is in the Irish Rail network statement somewhere FYI.

The growth in rail in Ireland is commuter traffic and the 'bypass line' is to make the commuter lines more viable as well as make Belfast-Cork easier to serve.


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## 437.001 (Mar 27, 2009)

sponge_bob said:


> My idea is a single tunnel diving *around 6-7km west of Heuston then >Heuston>Airport>North of Drogheda. Stations at Heuston and the Airport, underground, should have 2 platforms*. There should be no further stations on this section south of Drogheda.


Sounds kind of expensive.


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## sponge_bob (Aug 11, 2013)

437.001 said:


> Sounds kind of expensive.


Yeah it would be 2% of GDP spread across a number of years worth of project. Then again the existing heavy rail network in / to Dublin is heading for 200 years old and was designed to serve a city of ~400000 and a small rural hinterland population. The station sites on the near 200 year old network are highly constrained and Pearse Station is going to be 200 years old in a decade while Connolly and Heuston date from the late 1840s. 

That greater Dublin area has a population of around 1.7m now and is growing strongly. It will reach 2m by the time they build it.


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## sponge_bob (Aug 11, 2013)

People should remember that_ it ain't tunnels that cost money_, what gets you is underground city centre stations.

Crossrail Tunnels ..most of them or 18km, cost UK£1.25bn ish where Crossrail overall cost £18bn. Some_ individual Crossrail _stations cost as much as all the bored tunnels did. See this.






Crossrail awards major tunnelling contracts worth £1.25bn


Crossrail Limited today announced its intention to award the major tunnel contracts for Europe’s largest infrastructure project.




www.crossrail.co.uk





SW of Heuston to north of the Swords is a tad longer, around 20km. So add 2 stations that are not hideously site constrained and the ballpark @Stuu price of €5bn including overground sections along the M1 is not that far away from the end cost. Metro North is being built to the airport before any HS bypass is built and that is how most people will continue their journey into Dublin.


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## MrHombre (Aug 11, 2020)

sponge_bob said:


> There is only one station from Dublin to Drogheda where a fast/slow conflict can be resolved with more than 2 tracks, it is called Clongriffin.


And Irish Rail seem to refuse to use that third track at Clongriffin to let Northern Commuter services overtake a DART crawling along right in front of it.


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## sponge_bob (Aug 11, 2013)

Clongriffin is to get lots of love in the next few years though.  The northern commuters will be no more after Dart+ 



> *the station is one of not many that are located in not a very densely urbanized area* and has a potential of the future junction with lines serving the northern part of Dublin; both passing sidings are prolonged to serve as turn-back/stabling tracks. Additionally, service sidings are proposed.


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## Stuu (Feb 7, 2007)

sponge_bob said:


> People should remember that_ it ain't tunnels that cost money_, what gets you is underground city centre stations.


Absolutely, which is why you wouldn't want one at Heuston. Should the DART underground ever happen, that effectively quadruples the main line into Heuston. There is space between the end of the platforms and the Phoenix Park lines for a tunnel portal, so reversing the trains in the existing platforms is the most sensible. Reversing in a modern EMU doesn't take much longer than a normal station call, and as Dublin would need long dwelling times anyway it's pretty irrelevant. Saves some tunneling and most importantly the cost of an inner city underground station.

On the line to the north, how many trains per hour are there ever going to need to be north of Balbriggan? That looks a sensible terminus for all-stations metro service, would Drogheda get more than 2-3 tph? There seems little need for extra tracks if that is the case, and Drogheda is a major enough settlement in the context of Ireland that inter-city trains should be stopping anyway


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## sponge_bob (Aug 11, 2013)

Dart frequencies in Drogheda will be more like 8-12tph is the problem. See infographic.






DART+ DART+ Coastal North







www.dartplus.ie





I think a tunnel portal in Heuston yard would be shortsighted. A tunnel bypassing Dublin would entirely replace Dart Underground but it is possible that an east west Metro could be built following the river liffey in the long distant future, in its place.

Your Balbriggan idea may work Stuu if you also quad from North of Balbriggan to near Drogheda and consider sending a pair of tracks northward, east of Drogheda on a new bridge, to join the line to Belfast at a point north of Drogheda. The existing rail bridge in Drogheda is a listed single track structure with some weight limitations despite upgrades over the year since it was built....c 1850.


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## Stuu (Feb 7, 2007)

sponge_bob said:


> Dart frequencies in Drogheda will be more like 8-12tph is the problem. See infographic.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I'm surprised the frequency is planned to be that high so far out, and to such a small place. But fair enough, that would not be doable on a double track line.

If you were going to build an underground station at all then it would be better off nearer the actual city centre. That would add to the expense of course, but would be a better outcome. I guess in theory you could run most of the service that comes into Heuston through the tunnel and terminate it at the airport instead, so have 10-12tph doing that which gives the whole of the bottom half of the country direct access to Dublin city centre and the airport


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## sponge_bob (Aug 11, 2013)

Stuu said:


> I'm surprised the frequency is planned to be that high so far out, and to such a small place. But fair enough, that would not be doable on a double track line.





> The depot will be 'out there'.
> I guess in theory you could run most of the service that comes into Heuston through the tunnel and terminate it at the airport instead, so have 10-12tph doing that which gives the whole of the bottom half of the country direct access to Dublin city centre and the airport


You could through run them Cork - Belfast via Dublin airport. Some would still go to Heuston and terminate there.

The growth in rail travel in Ireland is mainly Dublin commuter so pathing in long distance services will be a problem on all of the 4 lines into Dublin. North and SW would be the most problematic.

When services were concentrated into Heuston 50 years ago there was no commuter service on the ex Heuston SW line. There is now, since the late 1980s, and it is growing.


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## MrHombre (Aug 11, 2020)

Anyone know what is happening with the Malahide signal cabin? This morning the track facing side of it was completely removed and was empty inside, with 3 non-Irish Rail workers doing something with it. Then this evening it looked like this:


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## arkoniusz (Apr 18, 2010)

Hello. I have one question and I hope someone will be able to answer it. I have a ticket like in the picture below.









Which booking or additional ticket do I need for this ticket to travel by trains in Ireland. On the CIÉ website, I saw that this corporation also owns a Dublin bus and whether it is also possible to travel for free on the basis of this ticket. It's hard to find any information about traveling with this coupon on the irish rail or Dublin bus website.


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## geogregor (Dec 11, 2006)

arkoniusz said:


> Hello. I have one question and I hope someone will be able to answer it. I have a ticket like in the picture below.
> View attachment 3958084
> 
> 
> Which booking or additional ticket do I need for this ticket to travel by trains in Ireland. On the CIÉ website, I saw that this corporation also owns a Dublin bus and whether it is also possible to travel for free on the basis of this ticket. It's hard to find any information about traveling with this coupon on the irish rail or Dublin bus website.


Seat reservation is optional in Ireland so you should be able to travel just showing your FIP cupon.






Train travel in Ireland | A beginner's guide


A guide to train travel in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.



www.seat61.com







> Reservation is optional on Irish intercity trains and not possible at all on local & suburban trains (including all Northern Irish domestic trains), if you choose not to reserve a seat you just board the train and sit where you like, in any empty unreserved seat. just as on trains in Great Britain.


I'm not sure about buses though.


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