Ballaghaderreen branch line

Ballaghaderreen branch line
Island Road Station on the branch line
Overview
Other name(s)	The Kilfree line
Type	Heavy rail
System	Córas Iompair Éireann
Status	Ceased operation
Locale	County Sligo and County Roscommon, Ireland 53°56′19″N 8°29′21″W / 53.938500°N 8.489056°W / 53.938500; -8.489056  (Island road station line midpoint)Coordinates: 53°56′19″N 8°29′21″W / 53.938500°N 8.489056°W / 53.938500; -8.489056  (Island road station line midpoint)
Termini	Kilfree Junction Ballaghaderreen
Stations	4
Operation
Opened	1874
Closed	1963
Owner	Sligo & Ballahaderreen Railway Company Midland Great Western Railway Great Southern Railways Córas Iompair Éireann
Operator(s)	Midland Great Western Railway Great Southern Railways Córas Iompair Éireann
Character	Secondary
Technical
Line length	9.75 miles (15.69 km)[1]
Track length	9.75 miles (15.69 km)
Number of tracks	Single track
Track gauge	1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in) Irish gauge
Electrification	Not electrified
Route map Ballaghaderreen branch line Dublin–Sligo line to Ballymote and Sligo Kilfree Junction Dublin–Sligo line to Boyle and Dublin Island Road Edmondstown Ballaghaderreen

The Ballaghaderreen branch line was a railway line that opened in 1874 and closed in 1963. The branch ran from the Kilfree Junction railway station on the Dublin to Sligo main line and terminated at Ballaghaderreen.^[1]

History

Following the extension of the Midland Great Western Railway (MGWR) from Longford to Sligo in 1862 the Sligo & Ballaghaderreen Railway Company was incorporated in 1963 with the purpose of creating the Ballaghaderreen branch.^[1]

The line opened in 1874 and was operated by the MGWR.^[1][2] In 1924 MGWR was part of a merger forming the Great Southern Railway company which became Great Southern Railways in 1925 when joined by the Dublin and South Eastern Railway.

The line was bought in 1877 by the Midland Great Western Railway.

In the adjournment debate Portlaoighise-Mountmellick Railway in 1944 indicated the Ballaghaderreen branch line had closed but was re-opened on the behest of a member of the house.^[3]

The line closed in on Saturday 2 February 1963. The last return trip from Ballaghaderreen at 11:50 was hauled by 0-6-0 steam locomotive 574, and on the return from Kilfree Junction a local band played a farewell. The last train was a special cattle train at hauled by B133 leaving Ballaghadereen at 15:22.^[4]

Route

The route begins at Kilfree Junction at milepost 112½ (181.1 km) on the Dublin-Sligo line. Branch line trains have their own platform. Freight and special trains from Sligo can enter the branch without reversing. The branch curves off from the main line on an embankment and goes down steeply to milepost 2(3.2 km). Excellent views of Lough Gara are visible to the south east until reaching Island Road station serving Monasteradin at 5 miles (8.0 km). This stationed was only opened in 1909. Edmondstown station is reached at milepost 6¾ (10.9 km) and thereafter line crosses wild boggy country until at 9.75 miles (15.69 km) the end of the line is reached at Ballaghaderreen.^[1]

Services

The basic passenger service level was three or four round trips per day apart from a period of one round trip per day during the "Emergency". Between 1947 and closure service decreased to two round trips in the morning and early afternoon. They were designed to connect with services on the main line at Kilfree Junction. Most services were mixed passenger and freight. There was some limited working of diesel locomotives on special and freight trains with the single ended 121 class being noted; these would be turned on the turntables as required. The 2600 class AEC-engineed railcars were also used on some Sunday specials.^[1]

Rolling Stock

Regular scheduled passenger services on the branch line were always steam operated until the end. The William Fairbairn & Sons built MGWR Class 8 No. 35 Wren was allocated to working the branch from the outset until withdrawal in 1885.^[5] Thereafter J26 0-6-0T (GSR 551 Class) seemed to be used up to the 1940s. G2 2-4-0 (GSR 650 Class) took over in the 1950s with 666 and 667 typically used in rotation. From about 1955 until closure the J18 0-6-0 (GSR 573 Class) became the designated locomotive. In later years special trains and freight were sometimes operated by diesel.^[1]

Incidents

During the Irish War of Independence trains were regularly stopped on the branch line with British soldiers and Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) disarmed and goods for Belfast confisticated. In one particularly serious incident in May 1921 a train was hi-jacked and used to shoot at the RIC Barracks in Ballaghaderreen.^[6]

Kilfree line community greenway proposal

In October 2016 the Ballaghaderreen chamber of commerce put forward a proposal for the route to be developed as a community greenway.^[2]

Media

St. Aiden's National School in Monasteraden produced a 32-minute movie entitled "The Train" bringing together rare footage and interviews with local people.^[7]

References