IARNROD EIREANN / IRISH RAIL

■ TRAFFIC AND TRACTION: GM No. 081 hauled a Belview Yard to Portlaoise PW Yard train of new rail on January

25, while the next day retro-liveried

No. 071 was in charge of a Platin (Drogheda) to North Wall train of eight High Output Ballast wagons.

On January 27, the 19.05 Heuston to Portlaoise was failed at Clondalkin Fonthill, while the 19.25 Cork to Heuston was failed at ParkWest & Cherry Orchard. Passengers of both trains were transferred to alternative services.

A signalling fault on the morning of January 28 saw bustitution introduced between Cork and Mallow. Normal services resumed around 13.30 the same day.

The 05.30 Galway to Dublin Heuston service on January 30 was failed at Woodlawn and its passengers were transferred to the 06.25 ex-Galway. There were significant knock-on delays that saw the 07.30 Athlone to Galway running around 30 minutes late, while the 08.40 Galway-Athenry was cancelled.

The Ireland v Scotland and

Ireland v Wales Six Nations Rugby International matches at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on February 1 and 8 respectively saw the Belfast Lanyon Place to Dublin Connolly ‘Enterprise’ service augmented. Two NIR six-car 3000 series DMUs each worked return extras on the two occasions, with the units laying over on the Navan branch at Drogheda. Some trains on February 1 were deferred to accommodate supporters returning home. These were the 19.35 Heuston to Galway and 19.15 Connolly to Sligo, while an extra 20.50 Heuston to Limerick was also scheduled to run. On February 8, the following were planned to run through to Heuston: 08.00 Cork to Mallow and 09.50 Limerick to Limerick Junction.

The 17.32 Grand Canal Dock

(GCD) to Newbridge was failed at Clondalkin Fonthill on February 3. The following 18.05 Heuston-Portlaoise service was halted at Parkwest & Cherry Orchard because of the failure. The passengers on both trains were transferred to the 18.30 Heuston to Galway, which additionally served all stations to Newbridge. The 19.11 GCD to Hazelhatch was cancelled because of the failure of the 17.32.

Bridge strikes continued during the period under review, which included one that led to the suspension of services between Newbridge and Kildare on February 6. IR is investigating solutions to the issue, which saw 69 incidents reported in 2019. One option – the development of an over-height vehicle detection system – is being progressed.

Disruption due to Storm Ciara on February 9 included delays on the Dublin to Galway, Sligo and Rosslare routes.

Dedicated Belmond locomotive

No. 216 was active on Heuston to Cork services in late January. This loco and No. 087 each received refurbished replacement bogies in Inchicore Works during early February.

Points failures in the Monasterevin/Kildare area during the period February 10-12 saw disruption to services on the Heuston to Cork and Waterford routes.

Locomotives noted on driver training runs were No. 084 in the

Dublin area on February 12 and

No. 232 between Cork and Charleville on February 13.

Storm Dennis caused disruption on February 15, with services on the Heuston to Cork line delayed because of an obstruction on the line at Portarlington. Obstructions were also reported the next day on the Kildare (Cherryville Junction) to Waterford line.

The 05.30 Galway to Heuston on February 18 was delayed by around an hour because of a signalling problem between Galway and Athenry. The same issue saw the 06.25 Galway to Heuston cancelled.

■ FREIGHT: All timber continued to be dispatched from Westport to Waterford during the period under review. Locomotives used on this flow included Nos. 072, 073, 074 and 082, while locomotives used on IWT container traffic between Ballina and Dublin Port included Nos. 075, 078, 082, 216 and 225.

Belmond loco No. 216 worked the 09.30 Dublin Port to Ballina IWT service on February 19, and hauled a North Wall-bound IWT train the next day.

No. 216 worked another North Wall to Ballina IWT train on February 21.

Locomotives noted on bulk ore traffic between Tara Mines (Navan) and Alexandra Road Dublin included Nos. 075, 083 and 084.

■ INFRASTRUCTURE: Around a quarter of a mile of the siding that extends beyond the PW yard at Portlaoise is to be reinstated.

Cut back in 1997 to facilitate construction of a motorway, this siding is the stub of the closed (1963) Portlaoise to Kilkenny line. After the closure of the 28¼-mile single track line, three miles were retained at the Portlaoise end as a siding to serve the Bord na Mona peat factory at Coolnamona. This was also an interchange between the narrow gauge (three-foot) industrial system and the mainline network.

After freight traffic declined, the siding was used for storage purposes and latterly for the calibration of the Sperry train’s equipment prior to the train’s tour of the system. The siding will continue to be used primarily for test purposes.

■ PRESERVATION: The reinstatement of the station and yard at Maam Cross in County Galway as a heritage railway centre is the objective of a group of preservationists.

The ‘Connemara Railway Project’, which is based at the former station on the closed (1935) and lifted Galway to Clifden line, has seen around 400m of track laid at the site.