Enniskillen and Bundoran Railway
Encyclopedia
The Enniskillen and Bundoran Railway (E&BR) was an Irish gauge
railway company in north-west Ireland. It linked Bundoran
and Ballyshannon
on the Atlantic coast of Donegal
with the Londonderry and Enniskillen Railway
(L&ER) at in Fermanagh
. The line was opened in 1868 and closed in 1957.
passed an Act authorising a railway to link the L&ER near Enniskillen
with the Midland Great Western Railway
(MGW) at . Construction began in 1866 and the section between Bundoran Junction and Bundoran opened in 1868. The Irish North Western Railway
(INW), which since 1866 had worked the L&ER, also provided the train service on the E&BR. The journey between Bundoran and Enniskillen was about 43 miles (69.2 km). Bundoran Junction was triangular, giving the branch access northwards to and Derry as well as southwards to and Dundalk.
The E&BR renamed itself the Enniskillen, Bundoran and Sligo Railway in anticipation of its extension to Sligo
. This would have given stations on the E&BR a direct main line link with Dublin via the MGW instead of the INW’s indirect and rather meandering route to Dundalk
where it connected with the Dublin and Drogheda Railway
’s main line to the city. A direct link to Sligo would have benefitted not only Bundoran and Ballyshannon but also the considerable pilgrim traffic to , the nearest station for St Patrick's Purgatory on Lough Derg. It would also have enabled the E&BR to carry substantial cattle traffic from the west of Ireland to the north-east, both for domestic consumption in and around Belfast and for export to Scotland and England.
However, construction of the section from Bundoran to Sligo was delayed, and in 1875 Parliament authorised a rival project, the Sligo, Leitrim and Northern Counties Railway
(SL&NCR), which took an inland route from Enniskillen via Manorhamilton to Collooney Junction on the MGWR line about 5 miles (8 km) south of Sligo. In 1878 the E&BR obtained an Act allowing it to abandon its extension to Sligo, and the SL&NCR opened in phases between 1879 and 1883.
The SL&NCR adopted as its company seal a picture of two steam locomotive
s colliding, with one derailed and the other remaining on the track. This commemorated the SL&NCR's success in reaching Sligo and the E&BR's failure to do the same. The SL&NCR route attracted the cattle traffic to the east coast but it was too circuitous to carry much of the passenger traffic to Bundoran, Ballyshannon or Lough Derg. This was to the permanent disadvantage of both the SL&NCR and the E&BR.
and the Ulster Railway
to form the Great Northern Railway
(GNR), which continued the INW’s undertaking to work the E&BR. The GNR absorbed the E&BR in 1896. At first the GNR did not operate through trains between Bundoran and Dublin. However, by 1916 the GNR ran the Great Northern Hotel at Bundoran and was running through coaches that were attached a main line train between Dublin and Dundalk and to an INW line train between Dundalk and Enniskillen.
The partition of Ireland
in 1922 turned the boundary between counties Donegal and Fermanagh into an international frontier. This imposed three border crossings on the E&B line: one each side of Pettigo and a third just west of Belleek. It also placed a border crossing on the road between Pettigo and the pilgrims’ destination of Lough Derg. Partition also imposed a border crossing on the SL&NCR — a fate that would not have befallen the E&BR’s proposed line between Bundoran and Sligo if it had been built.
Stops for customs
examinations delayed trains for unpredictable lengths of time, which added to the E&B line’s existing disadvantage of circuitous connections to the centres of trade and population on Ireland’s east coast. Growing road transport was able to take more direct routes with which GNR trains found it increasingly difficult to compete.
The E&B line had five intermediate stations between Bundoran Junction and Bundoran. In Fermanagh the GNR added four railmotor halts to the line and in 1934 it introduced a railcar
to serve all stations between Enniskillen and Bundoran, including the railmotor halts. The railcar was a great success, covering between eight and 12 miles per gallon of fuel and costing only 4d
per mile to run — far less than an equivalent steam train.
During The Emergency the GNR introduced the seasonal Bundoran Express, one of Ireland’s relatively few named trains. It was not a fast train but it was a through service via Dundalk between Dublin Amiens Street station
and Bundoran. The train ran non-stop between and Pettigo, which allowed it to pass through Northern Ireland without stopping for customs checks.
The Second World War created new traffic for the GNR in Northern Ireland. Fuel rationing in the UK impeded road competition in Northern Ireland from 1939, and was further tightened from 1942. Many passengers and GNR staff exploited shortages and rationing of commodities in the UK by smuggling goods across the border from the Republic into the UK. On one occasion in July 1942, when the 1700 hrs departure from Bundoran to Belfast reached the border it was detained so long while customs officers searched its passengers that it was 0400 hrs the next morning that it reached .
After the war the GNR’s fortunes declined again. In 1953 the governments of Northern Ireland and the Republic jointly nationalised the ailing company as the GNR Board.
. Lines including the Enniskillen and Bundoran, the Dundalk and Enniskillen and the Omagh – Enniskillen section of the Londonderry and Enniskillen were closed on 1 October 1957. Closure of these lines and the Northern Ireland government’s withdrawal of grant aid gave the SL&NCR no option but to close as well.
The closures conceded holiday traffic to Bundoran and Ballyshannon to road competition, but the railway strove to retain pilgrim traffic to Lough Derg. The Bundoran Express was replaced by a service from Dublin via and the Portadown, Dungannon and Omagh Junction Railway
(PD&O) to Omagh in Northern Ireland, which then became the railhead
for Lough Derg. In 1958 the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland dissolved the GNR Board and divided its assets between Córas Iompair Éireann
and the Ulster Transport Authority
. However, CIÉ continued the pilgrim service to Omagh until 1964. In February 1965 the UTA closed the PD&O as recommended by the Benson Report of 1963.
Irish gauge
Irish gauge railways use a track gauge of . It is used in* Ireland * Australia where it is also known as Victorian Broad Gauge* Brazil where it is also known as Bitola larga no Brasil....
railway company in north-west Ireland. It linked Bundoran
Bundoran
Bundoran is a town in County Donegal, part of the Province of Ulster in the north of Ireland. The town is located on the N15 road near Ballyshannon, 3 hours drive from Dublin and around two and a quarter hours drive from Belfast...
and Ballyshannon
Ballyshannon
Ballyshannon is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is located where the N3 and N15 cross the River Erne, and claims to be the oldest town in Ireland.-Location:...
on the Atlantic coast of Donegal
County Donegal
County Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
with the Londonderry and Enniskillen Railway
Londonderry and Enniskillen Railway
The Londonderry and Enniskillen Railway was an Irish gauge railway in Ireland.-Construction and opening:The Londonderry and Enniskillen Railway was incorporated in 1845. Construction began at Derry and followed the west bank of the River Foyle southwards to Strabane, which was reached in 1847...
(L&ER) at in Fermanagh
County Fermanagh
Fermanagh District Council is the only one of the 26 district councils in Northern Ireland that contains all of the county it is named after. The district council also contains a small section of County Tyrone in the Dromore and Kilskeery road areas....
. The line was opened in 1868 and closed in 1957.
Development
In 1862 the UK ParliamentParliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
passed an Act authorising a railway to link the L&ER near Enniskillen
Enniskillen
Enniskillen is a town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is located almost exactly in the centre of the county between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne. It had a population of 13,599 in the 2001 Census...
with the Midland Great Western Railway
Midland Great Western Railway
The Midland Great Western Railway was the third largest Irish gauge railway company in Ireland. It was incorporated in 1845 and absorbed into the Great Southern Railway in 1924. It served part of Leinster, County Cavan in Ulster and much of Connaught...
(MGW) at . Construction began in 1866 and the section between Bundoran Junction and Bundoran opened in 1868. The Irish North Western Railway
Irish North Western Railway
Irish North Western Railway was an Irish gauge railway company in Ireland.-Development:The company was founded as the Dundalk and Enniskillen Railway and opened the first section of its line, from to , in 1849...
(INW), which since 1866 had worked the L&ER, also provided the train service on the E&BR. The journey between Bundoran and Enniskillen was about 43 miles (69.2 km). Bundoran Junction was triangular, giving the branch access northwards to and Derry as well as southwards to and Dundalk.
The E&BR renamed itself the Enniskillen, Bundoran and Sligo Railway in anticipation of its extension to Sligo
Sligo
Sligo is the county town of County Sligo in Ireland. The town is a borough and has a charter and a town mayor. It is sometimes referred to as a city, and sometimes as a town, and is the second largest urban area in Connacht...
. This would have given stations on the E&BR a direct main line link with Dublin via the MGW instead of the INW’s indirect and rather meandering route to Dundalk
Dundalk
Dundalk is the county town of County Louth in Ireland. It is situated where the Castletown River flows into Dundalk Bay. The town is close to the border with Northern Ireland and equi-distant from Dublin and Belfast. The town's name, which was historically written as Dundalgan, has associations...
where it connected with the Dublin and Drogheda Railway
Dublin and Drogheda Railway
Dublin and Drogheda Railway was an Irish gauge railway company in Ireland.The D&D constructed the railway line between Dublin and Drogheda. The company presented the scheme to parliament in 1836 and received royal assent on 13 August 1836. John MacNeill was appointed as the line's engineer in...
’s main line to the city. A direct link to Sligo would have benefitted not only Bundoran and Ballyshannon but also the considerable pilgrim traffic to , the nearest station for St Patrick's Purgatory on Lough Derg. It would also have enabled the E&BR to carry substantial cattle traffic from the west of Ireland to the north-east, both for domestic consumption in and around Belfast and for export to Scotland and England.
However, construction of the section from Bundoran to Sligo was delayed, and in 1875 Parliament authorised a rival project, the Sligo, Leitrim and Northern Counties Railway
Sligo, Leitrim and Northern Counties Railway
The Sligo, Leitrim and Northern Counties Railway was an Irish gauge railway in counties Cavan, Fermanagh, Leitrim and Sligo in north-west Ireland.-History:...
(SL&NCR), which took an inland route from Enniskillen via Manorhamilton to Collooney Junction on the MGWR line about 5 miles (8 km) south of Sligo. In 1878 the E&BR obtained an Act allowing it to abandon its extension to Sligo, and the SL&NCR opened in phases between 1879 and 1883.
The SL&NCR adopted as its company seal a picture of two steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s colliding, with one derailed and the other remaining on the track. This commemorated the SL&NCR's success in reaching Sligo and the E&BR's failure to do the same. The SL&NCR route attracted the cattle traffic to the east coast but it was too circuitous to carry much of the passenger traffic to Bundoran, Ballyshannon or Lough Derg. This was to the permanent disadvantage of both the SL&NCR and the E&BR.
Under the Great Northern Railway
In 1876 the INW merged with the Northern Railway of IrelandNorthern Railway of Ireland
Northern Railway of Ireland was an Irish gauge railway company in Ireland.It was formed by a merger of the Dublin and Drogheda Railway with the Dublin and the Belfast Junction Railway in 1875. In 1876 it merged with the Irish North Western Railway and Ulster Railway to form the Great Northern...
and the Ulster Railway
Ulster Railway
The Ulster Railway was a railway company operating in Ulster, Ireland. The company was incorporated in 1836 and merged with two other railway companies in 1876 to form the Great Northern Railway .-History:...
to form the Great Northern Railway
Great Northern Railway (Ireland)
The Great Northern Railway was an Irish gauge railway company in Ireland.The Great Northern was formed in 1876 by a merger of the Irish North Western Railway , Northern Railway of Ireland, and Ulster Railway. The Ulster Railway was the GNRI's oldest constituent, having opened between Belfast and...
(GNR), which continued the INW’s undertaking to work the E&BR. The GNR absorbed the E&BR in 1896. At first the GNR did not operate through trains between Bundoran and Dublin. However, by 1916 the GNR ran the Great Northern Hotel at Bundoran and was running through coaches that were attached a main line train between Dublin and Dundalk and to an INW line train between Dundalk and Enniskillen.
The partition of Ireland
Partition of Ireland
The partition of Ireland was the division of the island of Ireland into two distinct territories, now Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland . Partition occurred when the British Parliament passed the Government of Ireland Act 1920...
in 1922 turned the boundary between counties Donegal and Fermanagh into an international frontier. This imposed three border crossings on the E&B line: one each side of Pettigo and a third just west of Belleek. It also placed a border crossing on the road between Pettigo and the pilgrims’ destination of Lough Derg. Partition also imposed a border crossing on the SL&NCR — a fate that would not have befallen the E&BR’s proposed line between Bundoran and Sligo if it had been built.
Stops for customs
Customs
Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting and safeguarding customs duties and for controlling the flow of goods including animals, transports, personal effects and hazardous items in and out of a country...
examinations delayed trains for unpredictable lengths of time, which added to the E&B line’s existing disadvantage of circuitous connections to the centres of trade and population on Ireland’s east coast. Growing road transport was able to take more direct routes with which GNR trains found it increasingly difficult to compete.
The E&B line had five intermediate stations between Bundoran Junction and Bundoran. In Fermanagh the GNR added four railmotor halts to the line and in 1934 it introduced a railcar
Railcar
A railcar, in British English and Australian English, is a self-propelled railway vehicle designed to transport passengers. The term "railcar" is usually used in reference to a train consisting of a single coach , with a driver's cab at one or both ends. Some railways, e.g., the Great Western...
to serve all stations between Enniskillen and Bundoran, including the railmotor halts. The railcar was a great success, covering between eight and 12 miles per gallon of fuel and costing only 4d
£sd
£sd was the popular name for the pre-decimal currencies used in the Kingdom of England, later the United Kingdom, and ultimately in much of the British Empire...
per mile to run — far less than an equivalent steam train.
During The Emergency the GNR introduced the seasonal Bundoran Express, one of Ireland’s relatively few named trains. It was not a fast train but it was a through service via Dundalk between Dublin Amiens Street station
Dublin Connolly railway station
Dublin Connolly, commonly called Connolly station , is one of the main railway stations in Dublin, Ireland, and is a focal point in the Irish route network. Opened in 1844 as Amiens Street Station, the ornate facade has a distinctive Italianate tower at its centre...
and Bundoran. The train ran non-stop between and Pettigo, which allowed it to pass through Northern Ireland without stopping for customs checks.
The Second World War created new traffic for the GNR in Northern Ireland. Fuel rationing in the UK impeded road competition in Northern Ireland from 1939, and was further tightened from 1942. Many passengers and GNR staff exploited shortages and rationing of commodities in the UK by smuggling goods across the border from the Republic into the UK. On one occasion in July 1942, when the 1700 hrs departure from Bundoran to Belfast reached the border it was detained so long while customs officers searched its passengers that it was 0400 hrs the next morning that it reached .
After the war the GNR’s fortunes declined again. In 1953 the governments of Northern Ireland and the Republic jointly nationalised the ailing company as the GNR Board.
Nationalisation and closure
In 1957 the Northern Ireland Government made the GNR Board close all its lines across or near the border except the Dublin – Belfast main line and its branch to NewryNewry
Newry is a city in Northern Ireland. The River Clanrye, which runs through the city, formed the historic border between County Armagh and County Down. It is from Belfast and from Dublin. Newry had a population of 27,433 at the 2001 Census, while Newry and Mourne Council Area had a population...
. Lines including the Enniskillen and Bundoran, the Dundalk and Enniskillen and the Omagh – Enniskillen section of the Londonderry and Enniskillen were closed on 1 October 1957. Closure of these lines and the Northern Ireland government’s withdrawal of grant aid gave the SL&NCR no option but to close as well.
The closures conceded holiday traffic to Bundoran and Ballyshannon to road competition, but the railway strove to retain pilgrim traffic to Lough Derg. The Bundoran Express was replaced by a service from Dublin via and the Portadown, Dungannon and Omagh Junction Railway
Portadown, Dungannon and Omagh Junction Railway
The Portadown, Dungannon and Omagh Junction Railway was an Irish gauge railway in County Armagh and County Tyrone, Ulster, Ireland .-Early development:...
(PD&O) to Omagh in Northern Ireland, which then became the railhead
Railhead
The word railhead is a railway term with two distinct meanings, depending upon its context.Sometimes, particularly in the context of modern freight terminals, the word is used to denote a terminus of a railway line, especially if the line is not yet finished, or if the terminus interfaces with...
for Lough Derg. In 1958 the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland dissolved the GNR Board and divided its assets between Córas Iompair Éireann
CIE
-Organizations:* Cambridge International Examinations, an international examination board* Cleveland Institute of Electronics, a private technical and engineering educational institution — the International Commission on Illumination...
and the Ulster Transport Authority
Ulster Transport Authority
The Ulster Transport Authority ran rail and bus transport in Northern Ireland from 1948 until 1966.-Formation and consolidation:The UTA was formed by the Transport Act 1948, which merged the Northern Ireland Road Transport Board and the Belfast and County Down Railway...
. However, CIÉ continued the pilgrim service to Omagh until 1964. In February 1965 the UTA closed the PD&O as recommended by the Benson Report of 1963.