Tentacles of Doom - or, if you prefer, the death of a railway network

[Horsetan]

Some fascinating footage of the state of the railway network in the North, provided by the BBC Archive service. Includes views of the erstwhile NCC, GNRI, BCDR and SLNC lines. By 1956, the writing was already on the wall in terms of purely economic viability, with some methods of service improvement being tried. Road transport gained its stranglehold, which remains to this day.

There are some very rare views of the dismantling and scrapping process on BCDR, NCC and GNRI routes - see, in particular, the brief views of County Down engines (spot the Baltic tank) awaiting cutting-up, the auctioning-off of redundant engines to a crowded room of scrap dealers, and a plaintive appeal to keep the SLNC in operation; we all know what happened there.

 

 

[Galteemore]

Thanks @Horsetan. I’ve seen this many times but it repays repeated viewing; quite apart from anything else, the broadcast-quality footage of railway operations shows some fascinating details. I suspect this was filmed before the IRA’s 1956 ‘Operation Harvest’ campaign - the unarmed Royal Irish Fusilier travelling solo across County Armagh reveals a truly lost world. 

[Horsetan]

17 minutes ago, Galteemore said:

Thanks @Horsetan. I’ve seen this many times but it repays repeated viewing; quite apart from anything else, the broadcast-quality footage of railway operations shows some fascinating details....

This is the first time I've seen this one. We don't often see details of Northern Irish engines in that limbo between withdrawal and ultimate scrapping, so this was quite a useful watch - especially the glimpse of the Baltic tank.

[Galteemore]

1 hour ago, Horsetan said:

This is the first time I've seen this one. We don't often see details of Northern Irish engines in that limbo between withdrawal and ultimate scrapping, so this was quite a useful watch - especially the glimpse of the Baltic tank.

Rare footage too of a QL in action. The district manager at Portadown will no doubt have descended on Trew and Moy station in high dudgeon after watching that incident with the hanging carriage door!