J3574 : Train near Bridge End, Belfast (3)

taken 32 years ago, near to Belfast, Co Antrim, Northern Ireland

Train near Bridge End, Belfast (3)
Train near Bridge End, Belfast (3)
An empty set, running from Central to the Service Depot, approaching Bridge End station. The former Belfast and County Down workshops (now demolished) are in the background. J3574 : Train near Bridge End, Belfast (2) shows approximately the same scene from a different viewpoint.
The Belfast and County Down Railway



The Belfast and County Down Railway ran from Queen’s Quay station in Belfast to Castlewellan via Comber, Downpatrick and Newcastle. There were also lines from Comber to Donaghadee via Newtownards, Belfast to Bangor and branches from Ballynahinch Jct to Ballynahinch and Downpatrick to Ardglass. The lines opened between 1848 and 1892. All closed by 1950 except for Castlewellan – Newcastle which survived until 1955 as part of the GNR(I) route from Belfast via Banbridge and the Bangor line which remains open but from Belfast Central.

The Belfast – Bangor railway line

The Belfast & County Down Railway (BCDR) opened its railway line from Belfast (Queen’s Quay) to Holywood on 2 August 1845. This line was extended to the seaside resort of Bangor by the Belfast Holywood & Bangor Railway (BHBR), which opened on 18 May 1865. The BCDR absorbed the BHBR in 1884.

While double-track throughout, the BCDR always regarded its Bangor line as a branch off the main line to Newcastle. However, creation of the nationalised Ulster Transport Authority (UTA) in 1948 changed matters somewhat as only the Belfast – Bangor line survived the mass closures implemented by the UTA in 1950. The old BCDR Bangor line received a further blow in 1965 when it was isolated from the rest of the Irish railway system by closure of the Belfast Central Railway line from Ballymacarrett Junction (east of Queen’s Quay station) to Central Junction, just west of the former GNR(I) Great Victoria Street station (see: LinkExternal link ). However, on a positive note, introduction of UTA built MED railcars gave Belfast – Bangor the distinction of being the first main railway line in the British Isles to be operated solely by diesel traction.

In 1976, the Belfast Central Railway reopened as part of a project to replace both the GNR(I) Great Victoria Street station and the BCDR Queen’s Quay with a “central” station situated in east Belfast. Today (2013), Belfast – Bangor is an important part of the Northern Ireland Railways’ system, with services to Bangor originating from Portadown or the reinstated Great Victoria Street station. While diesel locomotives may occasionally visit with engineer’s trains, all passenger services are in the hands of Spanish built 3000 or 4000 class railcars.

For photographs of the former line to Newcastle, please see: LinkExternal link . For photographs at Queen's Quay station and Central Services Depot, please go to: LinkExternal link

Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   © Copyright Albert Bridge and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
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J3574, 533 images   (more nearby search)
Photographer
Date Taken
Wednesday, 6 May, 1992   (more nearby)
Submitted
Friday, 10 February, 2012
Geographical Context
Railways 
Subject Location
Irish: geotagged! J 352 746 [100m precision]
WGS84: 54:36.0918N 5:54.5008W
Camera Location
Irish: geotagged! J 352 746
View Direction
WEST (about 270 degrees)
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Other Tags
Belfast  Railway  Railway Workshops  Train  Northern Ireland Railways 

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Image classification(about): Geograph
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