Track-lifting in Dundalk

Hungerford · 03-05-2013 05:13PM #1

The remaining stub of the Barrack Street branch in Dundalk has been lifted in recent days by Irish Rail. I wonder if they will be targeting any other stray pieces of track in the near future?

Judgement Day · 03-05-2013 06:52PM

Limerick/Ballybrophy and Limerick Junction/Waterford? :rolleyes:

Losty Dublin · 03-05-2013 07:08PM

Hungerford wrote: »

The remaining stub of the Barrack Street branch in Dundalk has been lifted in recent days by Irish Rail. I wonder if they will be targeting any other stray pieces of track in the near future?

That stub has been disused since the mid 1990's. High time it was taken out.

belcampprisoner · 03-05-2013 07:12PM

http://mikes.railhistory.railfan.net/r051.html

dowlingm · 03-05-2013 07:54PM

Is there any announced plan to reuse that section as a walk/cycleway or other public use?

Losty Dublin · 03-05-2013 08:29PM

dowlingm wrote: »

Is there any announced plan to reuse that section as a walk/cycleway or other public use?

It is unlikely. All that was lifted at the weekend was a long disused siding and the access points on the "Up" line. It led to the old Barrack Street yard and the Greenore line; it and most of the line towards it has been build over for years now. A path on what remains of the trackbed would only lead from an industrial estate to the former GNR works; it is used as a bus depot.

davidlacey · 05-05-2013 07:56AM

why do IE take so long to pull up areas which have no chance of being used again but disconnect/pullup areas that could be of use?

Hungerford · 05-05-2013 01:59PM

davidlacey wrote: »

why do IE take so long to pull up areas which have no chance of being used again but disconnect/pullup areas that could be of use?

The scorched earth policy only applied to freight lines and closed passenger routes so as to discourage troublesome customers from seeking services.

Sligo Quay · 05-05-2013 09:26PM

dowlingm wrote: »

Is there any announced plan to reuse that section as a walk/cycleway or other public use?

I think we are losing the run of ourselves with walk ways, walk ways by all means in the scenic west or a place of natural beauty, but Dundalk :eek:, next we'll be calling for a walk way on that coastal line in Dublin Docks.

dowlingm · 06-05-2013 02:34AM

Not a tourist route but something to improve the permeability of the urban area for cycling and pedestrians. Alternatively, a busway to give additional access from the bus garage. Just not a public mixed traffic road.

Losty Dublin · 06-05-2013 10:06PM

Hungerford wrote: »

The scorched earth policy only applied to freight lines and closed passenger routes so as to discourage troublesome customers from seeking services.

Because lifting a 1/4 mile of a siding that led to a freight yard that has been closed since 1994 is discouraging customers :rolleyes:

Sligo Quay · 06-05-2013 10:25PM

dowlingm wrote: »

Not a tourist route but something to improve the permeability of the urban area for cycling and pedestrians. Alternatively, a busway to give additional access from the bus garage.

A very good point, yes an urban area for cycling and pedestrians, infact it would have been a good idea for the old Broadstone line, but thats now for LUAS.

ted1 · 06-05-2013 10:28PM

Look at what happened the old harcourt line in Dublin, it cost them a good bit to buy back the land for the green line. I don't think they ever envisaged the luas when they tore up the old line, I guess they didn 't learn there lesson

Captain Chaos · 07-05-2013 12:51AM

Losty Dublin wrote: »

Because lifting a 1/4 mile of a siding that led to a freight yard that has been closed since 1994 is discouraging customers :rolleyes:

You missed the point completely. Read the quoted post in the post you quoted.

That's why it's been left in place for long and not touched because it was of no use to anybody. If it had some value to someone outside IE it would have been lifted no later than 1995.

Look how quickly North Esk was disconnected from the network. It was not left in place for 20 years. Same for the former North Wall yard and gantry cranes, no it was better to stuff an unused and unwanted commuter station in there.

Losty Dublin · 07-05-2013 12:59PM

Captain Chaos wrote: »

You missed the point completely. Read the quoted post in the post you quoted.

That's why it's been left in place for long and not touched because it was of no use to anybody. If it had some value to someone outside IE it would have been lifted no later than 1995.

Look how quickly North Esk was disconnected from the network. It was not left in place for 20 years. Same for the former North Wall yard and gantry cranes, no it was better to stuff an unused and unwanted commuter station in there.

I read it, several times in fact, but aside from his anti CIE overtones it is irrelevant and effectively pointless. North Esk had its points removed during a relay and resignaling project on the Cobh line so it wasn't needing any extra costs.

A few weeks ago, I said to a friend of mine last week (Who posts on here, he knows who he is

) that the innoffensive work at Barrack Street would rare up all manner of rabble rousing and tangents aplenty from some of the nay sayers on here; As can be seen with most of the posts on here, I was right

They lifted long disused track and points; big deal.

Hungerford · 07-05-2013 09:45PM

Losty Dublin wrote: »

I read it, several times in fact, but aside from his anti CIE overtones it is irrelevant and effectively pointless.

It wasn't irrelevant - the fact is that Irish Rail appears to have prioritised the disconnection and removal of potentially valuable infrastructure from the network over the understandable removal of curious historical artefacts such as the stub in Dundalk.

shamwari · 07-05-2013 11:07PM

Here's some pics on the excellent Eiretrains website.

http://eiretrains.com/Photo_Gallery/Railway%20Stations%20D/Dundalk%20South%20Junction/IrishRailwayStations.html

And without wishing to inflame opinions, I have to say that I feel this work in Dundalk is much ado about nothing. The juicy bits were removed 20 years ago. There's no other freight out of Dundalk, the last being the liners (down to 1 short train a week on a Friday) which ceased a few years ago.

The question that needs to be asked is this: What present or future expansion or operational enhancements are compromised by the recent work.

Answer: none.

davidlacey · 07-05-2013 11:16PM

shamwari wrote: »

Here's some pics on the excellent Eiretrains website.

http://eiretrains.com/Photo_Gallery/Railway%20Stations%20D/Dundalk%20South%20Junction/IrishRailwayStations.html

And without wishing to inflame opinions, I have to say that I feel this work in Dundalk is much ado about nothing. The juicy bits were removed 20 years ago. There's no other freight out of Dundalk, the last being the liners (down to 1 short train a week on a Friday) which ceased a few years ago.

The question that needs to be asked is this: What present or future expansion or operational enhancements are compromised by the recent work.

Answer: none.

its not really about the lifting in dundalk its the fact it takes years for them to do that and other areas such as north esk being disconnected as soon as they could!

shamwari · 07-05-2013 11:22PM

davidlacey wrote: »

its not really about the lifting in dundalk its the fact it takes years for them to do that and other areas such as north esk being disconnected as soon as they could!

My comments are in the context of Dundalk and that's the topic of this thread, and not North Esk! I'm afraid I don't know a whole lot about North Esk but it was mentioned here earlier that its disconnection was during work associated with Cobh (or Midleton??)

In any event, the elephant in the room is why freight disappeared at all....and it was this which legitimised the dismantling of all of the aforementioned freight facilities.

davidlacey · 07-05-2013 11:27PM

shamwari wrote: »

My comments are in the context of Dundalk and that's the topic of this thread, and not North Esk! I'm afraid I don't know a whole lot about North Esk but it was mentioned here earlier that its disconnection was during work associated with Cobh (or Midleton??)

In any event, the elephant in the room is why freight disappeared at all....and it was this which legitimised the dismantling of all of the aforementioned freight facilities.

why get rid of the facilities so fast though? as hungerford said earlier it is to make sure where there is a demand IE make sure they get rid of that so that that demand disapears...

shamwari · 07-05-2013 11:35PM

davidlacey wrote: »

why get rid of the facilities so fast though? as hungerford said earlier it is to make sure where there is a demand IE make sure they get rid of that so that that demand disappears...

But again, this topic is about Dundalk, and I don't see subterfuge or anything sinister in the work that has just taken place there.

North Esk is North Esk and is a different set of circumstances, but has no connection with Dundalk. If we want to talk about North Esk, why not start a separate thread about it??

davidlacey · 07-05-2013 11:44PM

never said anything sinister just strange how they suddenly decide to do it now

shamwari · 07-05-2013 11:48PM

davidlacey wrote: »

never said anything sinister just strange how they suddenly decide to do it now

Have you asked anyone in IE why it was done? Even someone working in the station?

davidlacey · 07-05-2013 11:56PM

shamwari wrote: »

Have you asked anyone in IE why it was done? Even someone working in the station?

who is there to ask? anyone in a station would either a)have no idea b)no interest

shamwari · 07-05-2013 11:59PM

davidlacey wrote: »

who is there to ask? anyone in a station would either a)have no idea b)no interest

Put it this way, if I were to offer you €1000 to try find out, what would you do?

Victor · 08-05-2013 12:22AM

Doing things costs money. Presumably disconnecting North Esk was cheaper than installing the required new signalling.

Presumably keeping the Barrack Street connection was cheaper than removing it, until now, although having points in place on an operational does cost a modest amount of money in maintenance and supervision.

This pic from about 2005 shown some wagons being stored there: http://maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/#V1,704191,806232,7,0 while the container depot appears busier: http://maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/#V1,703948,806432,7,0

Losty Dublin · 08-05-2013 01:22AM

Victor wrote: »

Presumably keep the Barrack Street connection was cheaper than removing it, until now.

That's pretty much it, Victor. PW teams could have been sent to lift 30 metres of a non used trailing point that causes no safety or speed benefit or to relay, tamp and pack 600 metres of track at a time when track renewal was unrgently needed.

shamwari · 08-05-2013 04:14PM

This “rationalisation” work is happening at several locations around the network recently and not just Dundalk. Crossovers and sidings that are not in use are being removed. For example, Church Rd sidings in North Wall were lifted last month. The Limerick Cement Factory branch was disconnected 2 weeks ago just before the gang moved to Barrack St Dundalk. Limerick station is going to be re-signalled and the Limerick Cement Branch was part of this downsizing. I’ve also discovered that when they where relaying the Cobh line last year they took the opportunity to remove the old crossover into the yard and replaced it with new straight track.

It’s like a ''tidy up operation'': there’s no other major work going on elsewhere at the mo, so instead of the PWD staff sitting on their backsides, they are sent out to do this work and removing old bits ‘n’ pieces that are unlikely to be used again in the near future.

Behind this work, I’d imagine there is an accountancy exercise of sorts to what’s been removed and ultimately everything done will translate into a cost saving of one sort or another. This is some respects is no bad as everything has to accounted for and cost saving is absolutely paramount in the current climate.

To sum up, there is nothing sinister about what has happened in Dundalk. All they did was lift a road going to nowhere.

davidlacey · 08-05-2013 04:23PM

shamwari wrote: »

This “rationalisation” work is happening at several locations around the network recently and not just Dundalk. Crossovers and sidings that are not in use are being removed. For example, Church Rd sidings in North Wall were lifted last month. The Limerick Cement Factory branch was disconnected 2 weeks ago just before the gang moved to Barrack St Dundalk. Limerick station is going to be re-signalled and the Limerick Cement Branch was part of this downsizing. I’ve also discovered that when they where relaying the Cobh line last year they took the opportunity to remove the old crossover into the yard and replaced it with new straight track.

It’s like a ''tidy up operation'': there’s no other major work going on elsewhere at the mo, so instead of the PWD staff sitting on their backsides, they are sent out to do this work and removing old bits ‘n’ pieces that are unlikely to be used again in the near future.

Behind this work, I’d imagine there is an accountancy exercise of sorts to what’s been removed and ultimately everything done will translate into a cost saving of one sort or another. This is some respects is no bad as everything has to accounted for and cost saving is absolutely paramount in the current climate.

To sum up, there is nothing sinister about what has happened in Dundalk. All they did was lift a road going to nowhere.

That makes sense when its all put into context. just sounded strange that they decided to do barrack st by itself....until you uncovered the rest

Eiretrains · 08-05-2013 07:10PM

To add to the list mentioned by shamwari, points and sidings at Rathpeacon north of Cork are being removed. Also in the south we have seen the points and headshunts at Kilmastulla and Silvermines on the Nenagh branch also removed. Soon the network will appear neat, tidy and clinical, without any rusty sidings or unused pieces of track!

davidlacey · 08-05-2013 08:46PM

Eiretrains wrote: »

To add to the list mentioned by shamwari, points and sidings at Rathpeacon north of Cork are being removed. Also in the south we have seen the points and headshunts at Kilmastulla and Silvermines on the Nenagh branch also removed. Soon the network will appear neat, tidy and clinical, without any rusty sidings or unused pieces of track!

neat and nothing of interest for enthuasists...

Track-lifting in Dundalk

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