Great Western Coffee Shop

Thanks to the RailFuture Campaigner Facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/12135242142/) for bringing this one to my attention.

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In the south of County Donegal, a branch line reached Bundoran on the west coast or Ireland.

The County Donegal Railway ran from (London)Derry to Strabane and Stanorlar to Donegal through the Barnes Gape to Donegal on the coast, where branches headed down the coast to Ballyshannon and up the coat to Killybegs. Inland branches to Glenties, and to the larger town of Letterkenny, completed this narrow gauge line.

The Londonderry and Loch Swilly Railway also ran from Derry, through Letterkenny where it shared a station with the County Donegal, but no regular through trains, on through wild and remote lands to Burtonpointon the west coast. From Tooban junction, a branch ran north alongside Loch Swilly via Buncrana to Cardonagh on the north coast - close by the most northerly point on the island of Ireland at Malin Head, even though it's in the south politically, emotionally and legally.

The Swilly became a bus rather than a train operation in 1954.  The Bundoran branch closed in 1957 when the Government of Northern Ireland closed the section of the line in their country, leaving it as an isolated stub. Trains staggered on until 1959 on the County Donegal. 

The countryside to this day remains remote and of great beauty – a land of wild coastline and mountains, attached to Eire / Southern Ireland by a land bridge as narrow as 5 miles.

"We need a Derry to Cork rail line.  THE PEOPLE OF DONEGAL AND THE NORTH-WEST HAVE THE SAME RIGHTS, AND WE DEMAND THEM" writes David W T Crooks, (Rev), Chairman, West Ulster Rail Initiative, in a letter to the Donegal Democrat (https://www.donegaldemocrat.ie/news/home/473211/we-need-a-derry-to-cork-rail-line.html).


Irish rail has become very much a spoked wheel with the hub in Dublin. The link from the Cork line at Limerick Junction to Athenry on the Galway line has a chequered history as described by Rev Crook but is still not really doing as great as it should - staggering along again.  Carrying on around from Limerick Junction to Rosslare on the south eastern tip, only the section to Waterford remains open with two trains a day (yeah, I know, such services can be dragged back to useful) but is the mothballed to Rosslare. And that mothballed section includes the longest rail bridge - over an estuary - in Ireland. North from AtHenry, sections to be restored and even built anew if the line is to reach the southern end of County Donegal at Bundoran.

Much of Rev Crook's long letter highlights benefits south of Bundoran, and I can't help feeling that's because north of there he's looking at a line that would be far from cheap to build through country that's beautiful for the visitor, but sparsely populated to provide his railway with its bread and butter traffic. Letterkenny has a population of under 20,000 and Buncrana just under 6,000. Stanorlar is just under 5,000 then nowhere reaches even 3,000.  For local comparison - Bude, 10,000. 

I wish the Rev Crook well – there is (I believe) an excellent case for rail all the way from Rosslare to Sligo and perhaps even Buncrana / Ballyshannon. There may be a case too for local rail transit from (London)Derry to Stranorlar and to Letterkenny, serving intermediate growth; those last suggestions mixed hideously in the politics of the area and the border.  But I do feel that a demand as the Rev put it, and a statement that it's the democratic right of the area may just lead to the answer "yes, it's your right – please feel free to go ahead and fund, build and operate it yourself"

Interesting.  One issues will be that most of the lines in Co Donegal were 3ft gauge.  So reopening them would not create through routes unless they were converted to (Irish) standard 5ft 3ins gauge, which would be rather different to the reopening of the standard gauge mothballed western corridor lines currently proposed for reopening.

Also the only rail connection between Sligo and Bundoran and between Bundoran and Ballyshannon was through Northern Ireland.  There is a very narrow strip of land between the Northern Ireland border and the west coast. 

As I wrote that original, I was very much aware of place names previously unknown on this forum cropping upland the lack of a map in the good reverend's demands.   Trawling back, I have found the Viceroy's 1906 map of railways in Ireland (https://sites.google.com/site/derprobe/ie_railmap_1906.jpg) and seeing as it's out of copyright, here it is in three sections.

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/viceroy_i_n.jpg)
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(http://www.wellho.net/pix/viceroy_i_c.jpg)
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(http://www.wellho.net/pix/viceroy_i_s.jpg)

If you wish, you can view these images in a separate frame or window, and you'll find they're at somewhat higher resolution then to make them more readable.

As ... a 2020 project (?) ... I really fancy seeing some of these places.   Taking in Dromod again, the Giant's Causeway, Listowel, Killybegs, Dingle, Burtonport (not to visit in that order); maybe a dream but should any other member share that dream, two could be company.

Coincidentally in today's edition of The i there is a picture of the railway bridge between Belcoo and Blacklion on the Sligo, Leitrim and Northern. I say bridge, in fact former bridge, as it was blown up during the troubles as an illegal border crossing.

To complete the demand the Rev. Crooks makes, I have got my crayons out to help me understand.

The green section is his county Donegal proposal.  As Ellendune suggests, much of it in on 3' gauge old road and I don't know how that would work.   Also ... what's the geography like from Sligo to Bundoran and from Stronalar to Letterkenny direct?   Bridge needed at Ballyshannon but that may be a relatively small issue.

Blue is lines currently in service.  Orange lines that he (on the way to Cork) or I (on the way to Rosslare) feel form part of the total plan - currently closed (ripped up too!) or mothballed.

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/viceroy_crayon_n.jpg)
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(http://www.wellho.net/pix/viceroy_crayon_c.jpg)
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(http://www.wellho.net/pix/viceroy_crayon_s.jpg)

Taken in Derry in 2001.

I've only been there three times since, which is a bit naughty given that my elder brother lives less than 3 miles away from this spot...

Is than in the news because of the doubts about the future border - which is now open to just drive (or take the single  remaining train line) across, or for some other reason?


Lovely picture but, sadly I suspect, a static exhibit.  The line from Belfast to Derry went through a bleak period but I believe it has been brought up to modern standard as is now safe into the future.  Propects of modern extension onwards, sadly, slim ...

A new line from Sligo to Bundoran should be OK provided you head north via Drumcliff to Grange then stick close to the coast (otherwise a long tunnel might be necessary). It would be a beautiful view from the train window on a good day and there are some lovely places along that coast!

The N15 direct road from Stranolar to Letterkenny can best be described as a mountain road - albeit one built to a good modern standard, but something may be possible.

IIRC the line from Athenry to Collooney is still there but mothballed. 

The line West from limerick seems intact according to Google maps, but the link south to Charleville is not. It may be easier to continue go vial limerick Jn as the Cork Limerick trains do today.

The article is about a report "drawn up by officials of the Northern Ireland Secretary in September 1976". Not clear whether this is the Northern Ireland Office or Stormont. Have done cursory search of National Archives without turning over anything obvious.

The analysis focused on the less obvious impacts of the Troubles and cross-border issues. So I suppose it is being used as reference to possible issues after Brexit.

If you want a larger scale view of the area of the railway bridge try http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/maps/series?xCenter=2927680&yCenter=3200960&scale=126720&viewScale=725669.6832&mapLayer=europe&subLayer=new_pop&title=British%20War%20Office%20GSGS%204127%2C%20Ordnance%20Survey%20Popular%20and%20New%20Popular%20Editions&download=true (http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/maps/series?xCenter=2927680&yCenter=3200960&scale=126720&viewScale=725669.6832&mapLayer=europe&subLayer=new_pop&title=British%20War%20Office%20GSGS%204127%2C%20Ordnance%20Survey%20Popular%20and%20New%20Popular%20Editions&download=true) which should give you part of the 1941 WO map of Sligo (Sheet 7) at Half-inch scale. The railways are far from clear, but the border is. A more general view of the roads can be found at https://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/maps/ (https://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/maps/) (I used the 1961 NI Road Map).

A list of Approved Border Crossings can be found in the Schedule to http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1968/si/117/made/en/print?q=Land+Frontier&years=1968 (http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1968/si/117/made/en/print?q=Land+Frontier&years=1968). All other crossings will have been Unapproved and rendered unusable by the British Army (for a day or so!). Military survey maps would show these but as far as I know the M825 1:25,000 Northern Ireland series of maps were always classified "Restricted" or "Confidential".

Late addition from the Belfast Telegraph https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/revealed-number-of-border-crossings-between-northern-ireland-and-republic-36850570.html (https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/revealed-number-of-border-crossings-between-northern-ireland-and-republic-36850570.html), 208 crossings in 310 mile frontier. Should be a good test of the technology.

The line from Waterford to Rosslare - "Mothballed" - updated news at http://gwr.passenger.chat/7546 .  Here is a picture taken yesterday (from a video at that link) - so still passable ...

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/suir_20190827.jpg)

I would agree that Limerick to Cork can be well served via Limerick Junction and that money saved by doing so rather than heading west then south from Limerick to Charleville would be better spend on the other orange sections, and perhaps a start on the green section.  Very much IMHO - I may just have missed some significant factor;  I have, though, travelled on all open lines from Limerick including a change at Limerick Junction and on to Charleville (then Mallow also on the proposed route) before branching off to Killarney and Tralee.