Rush and Lusk Posted March 7 Posted March 7 Super video with fabulous drone sequences - excellent progress, do you know the planned official opening date ? 2 Quote
Patrick Davey Posted March 7 Author Posted March 7 (edited) 49 minutes ago, Rush and Lusk said: Super video with fabulous drone sequences - excellent progress, do you know the planned official opening date ? 2025 I think although I heard late 2024 mentioned recently..... nothing more precise yet unless someone here knows? Edited March 7 by Patrick Davey Quote
Patrick Davey Posted March 7 Author Posted March 7 Some observations on Belfast Grand Central station, and a few questions: 1. Wow 2. The furthest left platforms are very long....presumably these are the future Enterprise platforms. 3. There is a huge blank wall to the right of the platforms - wonder will this be opened up at all as it looks a bit bland to me and potentially a bit overpowering as I think it might block out the sun.... 4. Do the platforms actually have enough capacity to accommodate future re-openings.... the only truly realistic one anyway is Armagh I think, but would Armagh trains run all the way to Belfast or instead feed into trains at Portadown? 5. Looks like it will have a very spacious concourse 6. Wonder why the platform canopies appear to continue under the overall roof of the main building? But vvvvvvery impressive overall - looking forward to arriving there by train! 4 Quote
leslie10646 Posted March 7 Posted March 7 Thanks for sharing this, Patrick. Remarkable progress on what looks like a potentially remarkable station! I leave the transport planning / timetabling experts to say whether it will cope with the lines for reopening, but would observe that 5 platforms (the old GV Street) dealt with Dublin, Armagh, Newry, Derry etc in days gone by, albeit not with such an intensive timetable as we see today. But these days - no shunting, just in and out again. If those contractors had been doing HS2, it would be open by now! Must try and have a butchers when over for Bangor. Thanks again. Leslie 5 Quote
airfixfan Posted March 8 Posted March 8 10 hours ago, Patrick Davey said: 2025 I think although I heard late 2024 mentioned recently..... nothing more precise yet unless someone here knows? GVS due to close to rail on May 24th and the rail section of the new Hub due to open early September at present 1 3 Quote
airfixfan Posted March 12 Posted March 12 Looks like Portadown line to close during the school.holidays in July and August York Road to open now end of April Quote
K801 Posted March 12 Posted March 12 Not sure whats to the left, the old station? What will happen to this area, a new freight yard? Quote
226 Abhann na Suire Posted March 12 Posted March 12 I’m not 100% sure but I think it’s earmarked for huge redevelopment as part of the new Weaver’s Cross area of Belfast, so new living and commercial buildings I think, but again I’m open to correction as I’m not 100% sure 1 Quote
jhb171achill Posted March 12 Posted March 12 3 hours ago, K801 said: Not sure whats to the left, the old station? What will happen to this area, a new freight yard? Sadly, I doubt it very much...... Which raises an issue; with Adelaide turned over to servicing 4k trams, where in the city COULD a goods terminal be built? Fortwilliam area? Quote
Mayner Posted March 13 Posted March 13 2 hours ago, jhb171achill said: Sadly, I doubt it very much...... Which raises an issue; with Adelaide turned over to servicing 4k trams, where in the city COULD a goods terminal be built? Fortwilliam area? These days freight terminals are usually set up in newly established industrial areas on the outskirts cities, close to major road/motorway junctions. Locally the recently established Ruakura Inland Port set up as a joint venture between a Port Company and a property company has sidings set up to handle 40 wagon container trains. https://www.ruakura.co.nz/explore-the-superhub/ruakura-inland-port/ 1 Quote
jhb171achill Posted March 13 Posted March 13 19 minutes ago, Mayner said: These days freight terminals are usually set up in newly established industrial areas on the outskirts cities, close to major road/motorway junctions. Locally the recently established Ruakura Inland Port set up as a joint venture between a Port Company and a property company has sidings set up to handle 40 wagon container trains. https://www.ruakura.co.nz/explore-the-superhub/ruakura-inland-port/ Indeed - thing is, though, with Belfast, one wonders where on earth they'd put it! Queens Quay, Maysfields, Grosvenor Road and York Road yards are all gone and built over. Heading out the bangor and Lisburn lines, there's just nowhere. So unless they could put some sort of facility in somewhere around Fortwilliam - then there's no chance of any freight terminal in Belfast (the second biggest city on this island, and a major port)....ever! Quote
airfixfan Posted March 13 Posted March 13 Current GVS rail station yo become bus storage and partly retail.by 2025. After last week no more Enterprise diversions planned before current station closed and cleared in May Quote
airfixfan Posted March 21 Posted March 21 (edited) GVS will now close to all rail services from May 10th which is the new confirmed date for a series of work starting with extensive line closures over Easter. Edited March 21 by airfixfan 3 Quote
skinner75 Posted March 21 Posted March 21 Here's an update from November last year that ITV did: https://youtu.be/OUbZrXcMMqY?si=k-8vWn5Uak_4qPh- Quote
jhb171achill Posted March 22 Posted March 22 Time for a “last fling” into Uncentral Station soon, methinks! Quote
irishrailways52 Posted March 22 Posted March 22 On 21/3/2024 at 6:50 AM, airfixfan said: GVS will now close to all rail services from May 10th which is the new confirmed date for a series of work starting with extensive line closures over Easter. this year? Quote
airfixfan Posted March 23 Posted March 23 Yes and rail section of the new hub due to open September 2024 1 Quote
irishrailways52 Posted March 23 Posted March 23 12 hours ago, airfixfan said: Yes and rail section of the new hub due to open September 2024 jany maher. there i was thinking i had a few more years of GVS. Quote
Colin_McLeod Posted April 16 Posted April 16 (edited) So who plans to travel on the last GVS train? Edited April 16 by Colin_McLeod 2 Quote
226 Abhann na Suire Posted April 16 Posted April 16 Is there an official timed service…? Surely the RPSI would run a special you’d think? Awful shame that the 111’s are no longer passenger-stock-certified, would’ve been the perfect outing for them Quote
Niles Posted April 17 Posted April 17 11 hours ago, Colin_McLeod said: So who plans to travel on the last GVS train? Must be a record, Great Victoria Street will have had two 'last trains' in under 50 years. 3 2 Quote
Mike Beckett Posted April 17 Posted April 17 9 hours ago, 226 Abhann na Suire said: Is there an official timed service…? Surely the RPSI would run a special you’d think? Awful shame that the 111’s are no longer passenger-stock-certified, would’ve been the perfect outing for them All they could run is a CAF. I am sure NIR would talk to any reasonable body about hiring one for an event. 2 Quote
Galteemore Posted April 17 Posted April 17 Amazing how much GN atmosphere it retained at the first closure. This is the last steam train to depart GVS in 1975 https://www.geograph.ie/photo/3393960 Quote
leslie10646 Posted April 17 Posted April 17 Indeed! An interloper in 1963! Lance King Colllection, Copyright IRRS 2 1 Quote
Niles Posted April 17 Posted April 17 Re: specials, Táilte did look at operating a tour taking in GVS but unfortunately resources and scheduled works precluded it this year, however we've had some nice chats with NIR people about the future... 3 Quote
airfixfan Posted April 17 Posted April 17 GVS closed from May 10th and new Hub opens on October 7th for hourly Enterprise 2 Quote
airfixfan Posted April 17 Posted April 17 Costs have increased from an initial 200M£ to about 345M£ in just a few years. 1 Quote
airfixfan Posted April 18 Posted April 18 Translink confirmed today as predicted. GVS closes May 10th and all Dublin/Portadown trains will serve Lanyon. Lisburn to Belfast complete closure July/August with Enterprise bus subs for Belfast using Newry. October 7th new Hub opens for hourly Enterprise for Dublin. Quote
Robert Shrives Posted April 19 Posted April 19 Just found this thread and it looks a big budget exercise! confident use of glass which I hope bodes well for the future. Tickled that worker safety concerns higher than end user with platforms fully barriered to stop falls during build - are the builders not to be trusted! Looking at bus working edge I hope some sort of double deck canopy as it seems a shame in what can be a quite damp climate at times (?) that you can alight on to a dry platform and navigate a vast concourse still in the dry but then get wet for 1m while boarding an enclosed bus. Penny of tar syndrome. Cannot wait for it to open and look forward to one day seeing OLE gracing the place. Hopefully such quality is a start for more thoughtful spending for the future. Robert 3 Quote
airfixfan Posted May 3 Posted May 3 Last week of rail services to Great Victoria Street. Last train 23.32 next Friday 10th 2 Quote
Mayner Posted May 7 Posted May 7 On 19/4/2024 at 7:39 PM, Robert Shrives said: Just found this thread and it looks a big budget exercise! confident use of glass which I hope bodes well for the future. Tickled that worker safety concerns higher than end user with platforms fully barriered to stop falls during build - are the builders not to be trusted! Robert Probably to minimise the risk of someone working at height accidentally driving an elevated work platform (EWP) off the platform edge and getting killed or seriously injured or a worker operating mobile plant on a platform. A worker can be concentrating on the task in hand and not realise they are too close to an edge until its too late. There have been cases of EWPs overturning with serious consequences, I know of a number of accidents where workers were killed seriously injured as a result of falls from less than 2m while operating plant or on foot. 2 1 Quote
airfixfan Posted May 8 Posted May 8 10 hours ago, jhb171achill said: Is the 11:20 ex-Connolly a DD or a railcar this week? Should be a DD as Translink always put a DD on the 08.00 ex Belfast as a priority 1 Quote
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