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Auto-Train Original

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  1. yes that is more sensible than a direct link to Derry. Most passengers would be going south from Letterkenny anyway.
  2. I honestly can't see the Derry to Letterkenny thing as just talk. The Derry Road is the only game in town for serious reopening and would technically, provide rail service to 'Donegal'.
  3. This is not a political post, and I hope I am posting this in the correct forum. Over the Christmas I met a gentleman who was in government (as a senior civil servant) in the 1980s and is now retired. Turned out he is a railfan and we had a great chat. Anyway, during the course of the discussion he told me how close the country came to having no railways left after 1990. It was literally unofficial policy to dismantle the network. Worst of all CIE management were actually enthusiastic to the point of literally lobbying for this to happen. The initial stage was to terminate all lines west of the Shannon. The station in Athlone was moved to the Leinster side to deliberately sabotage the Mullingar to Athlone route. After a while, all Intercity services were to be terminated. Including Cork and Belfast. CIE management tried to bamboozle ministers with replacing these with a 'state of the art inter-city bus guideway'. All that was to be left was the DART between Howth and Bray. That was it. He described the CIE managers as 'headcases'. If it were not for the community groups in Sligo who started to fight back against the closure all this may well have happened. At one point a government press release in 1987 categorically stated that no further investment of any significance was to be made. Ostensibly allowing it to die naturally. It is almost terrifying to think that we would have lost just about everything. Now I am not saying he was spoofing me, but I was actually in shock by what he told me. Can anyone here confirm this. Was the anti-rail faction literally that out of control?
  4. Early 1970s my father took me to the shop on Monck Place in Phisborough and told me to pick out a carriage. I picked a Hornby/Triang Mk1. A few days later for Christmas I got a Hornby starter set with an O8 and some wagons. Still with the hobby now.
  5. I have seen the CIE Roundel on both brown and grey painted goods vans. But was there ever brown painted goods vans with the Flying Snail logo on it? Thanks in advance.
  6. This is a useful site. Loads of photos of factories with rail sidings. This is Ballyshannon. https://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/en/search?country=ireland&year=all&view=grid&page=2
  7. They come in hard envelopes and are a quality product at an excellent price. Huge fan here.
  8. Just listening to the radio the other day. As sure as rain some of the people along the line are predicted genocide, the wrath of Jehovah and tempests if a few gates are closed.. I suppose this being Ireland it is to be expected. Still great to see this line coming back.
  9. Wow! I am simply blown away by everyone graciously sharing their information. Thank you all indeed. Delighted I joined this forum.
  10. Did any Irish operator have coaches with two axles and four wheels? If so, are there any photos or drawings on line. Thanks.
  11. Waste of time, West on Track already exists in 1/1 scale.
  12. Has to be the most interesting train I have seen on Irish railways. Has anyone every tried to model one? Apparently they had some tractive effort and could haul a surprising amount of wagons. Freight train at Downhill - 1979 Built by the Ulster Transport Authority (UTA) 1966-68, the eight 70-class DEMUs were used by the UTA and its successor Northern Ireland Railways (NIR) for both passenger and freight haulage. Their most notable working was the evening Monday - Friday freight service from Londonderry (Waterside) to Lisburn, operated on behalf of CIE whose own locomotives would then take the train on to Dublin. Headed by No. 71 "River Bush", the train is about to enter Downhill tunnel on its way to Lisburn via Antrim and Knockmore Junction. With improved roads in Donegal and Sligo, this service simply petered-out in the 1980s. For a 1977 view of this working, see: C7436 : Freight train at Downhill - 1977. © Copyright The Carlisle Kid and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
  13. I will get this book and looking forward to it. The line to Bandon at least should have been retained. It was the Harcourt Street of the south. That photo above with the railcars says it all.
  14. it is a great idea and would be a good product for some people - but it would be like EM; a kind of ghetto demanding full commitment. While on a survey like this it costs people nothing to say 'bring it on' but that is not the same thing as this percentage answer actually buying it. Also the kind of people who really want this will just take something like Peco bullhead rail and cut it in two and fill in the sleeper gaps, as well as build their own points.
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