Irish Railway Record Society
Mayo Line Modernisation
OLIVER
DOYLE, Operations Schemes Development Manager, Irish Rail
At
one time or another, there were some 16 block posts between Athlone West
Junction and Westport Quay 1 While not all of these were required for
passenger services, which even today amount to only three in each direction on
weekdays, they were needed for goods trains and cattle specials, which formed an
important part of the MGWR's business. The earliest rationalisation of signal
cabins was in 1941 when the three at Claremorris and a substantial ground frame
were amalgamated. The closure of many intermediate stations led to the
subsequent closure of some block posts, while the growth of CTC in the 1970s saw
the end of mechanical signals between Athlone and Knockcroghery.
It
was the derailment mid-section near Knockcroghery, on the Mayo line, on 8
November 1997 that led to major investment in the IÉ system, including the Mayo
line. This included track re-laying, an extensive program of station layout
renewal and a re-signalling programme. In addition to the track and signalling
renewals, all platforms are being brought up to current standards and the
attended level crossings on the route are being converted to 4-barrier
CCTV-type, remotely monitored from the Athlone Level Crossing Control Centre
(LCCC). When these works are complete, the new 22000-class InterCity railcars
will replace the locomotive-hauled stock currently in use and service
frequencies will also increase.
CLOSURE
The
line between Athlone West Junction, Westport and Ballina was closed from Monday
morning 16 April to Friday afternoon 4 May to facilitate the completion of the
track work and the installation and testing of the signals. The opportunity was
taken to carry out extensive platform works at Castlerea and Manulla Junction
working long days. The platform work at Manulla was critical on the Branch Bay
as there was a total repositioning of the track and a minimum of 42m of usable
platform was required for the re-opening.
There
were three train movements on the morning of the closure. The 2600-class railcar
on the Ballina Branch departed at 05:25 for Athlone and later onward to
Drogheda. At 06:20 the spare train locomotive in Westport, No. 220, worked to
Athlone and finally the 07:00 Westport-Dublin scheduled service (226 + 8 Mk IIIa
+ EGV), with Driver Colm O’Reilly, became the last train to operate on the
ETS/mechanical signalling system on the Mayo line – an historic occasion.
After the train passed Claremorris, the signalman at Manulla Junction withdrew a
train staff for each section, Westport, Ballina and Claremorris and handed them
to District Traffic Executive John Butler, Athlone, who then proceeded to
Castlerea by road where he collected a staff for the Claremorris (Long Section)
and Roscommon sections from the signalman. Driving directly to Knockcroghery, he
then collected a Knockcroghery-Roscommon staff from the signalman at 09:15,
formally closing the line to Westport and Ballina. At 09:45, the Knockcroghery
signalman granted the Divisional Engineer, Athlone, possession of the railway
between the Knockcroghery Down Home signals and Westport and Ballina buffer
stops. At 09:46, the signalman granted possession of the section to Athlone West
Junction.
The
1051/4 miles from
Athlone to Westport and Manulla Junction to Ballina is the longest of the
re-signalling systems to be completed in one job, the Sligo Line having been
commissioned in two sections.
By
mid-morning on Monday 16 April, the scene at Castlerea was impressive. Two earth
moving machines and a tamper were working on the new layout at the Athlone end
of the station. A large tracked earth moving machine had worked its way into the
disused goods store and removed the roof in the process. By noon the wooden
trusses were removed, broken into manageable pieces loaded in a skip. The walls
were demolished later in the day and the rubble was taken away for sorting - the
cut stone for re-use and the fill and broken slates for disposal. Two
mini-diggers were working! One on each platform, removing the existing coping
stones and platform surface and loading the spoil into a rail-mounted dumper on
each track. The level crossing gates and piers were removed by a machine by
10:00 and by noon the same machine had erected the two down starting signals.
The other major work site on the closure day was Manulla Junction where earth
moving machines were removing the old junction turnout, slewing the branch track
to create the new bay platform track, and finalising the new Westport line to
Ballina branch connection. A tamping machine was also in attendance to maximise
track quality.
STATION
LAYOUTS
The
track layout at each station was reviewed and redesigned to suit the proposed
passenger train timetable post the introduction of the 22000-class railcars in
2008. To maximise station approach speed, the main route through Roscommon,
Castlerea, and Claremorris was engineered to be through the main platform with
the relevant passenger facilities. Loops are adjacent to the second platform.
Each of the locations has a turnout leading to one or more sidings. Due to the
geography of Ballyhaunis, this was not possible.
The
layout at the Knockcroghery end of Roscommon was altered on 1 April when the
Long siding, a remnant of the former Up line, was lifted. This allowed a new
loop turnout to be installed in advance without interfering with the existing
loop turnout. The old turnout was removed after the closure and the new one
connected, thereby increasing the loop length somewhat.
Prior
to the closure of the line on Monday 16 April, much permanent way work had been
carried out. Considerable track slewing was needed at Castlerea, and the
majority of this was carried out in an overnight possession on Saturday
night/Sunday morning 15/16 April. However, it was not possible to signal the
loop, so no trains could cross at Castlerea on Sunday. The 13:05
Heuston-Westport (226 + 6 hauled P/P coaches) was deferred to leave Roscommon 40
minutes later than advertised, having crossed the 14:25 Westport-Heuston (078 +
7 Mk IId) service there. Ballyhaunis cabin, which normally opened only on
Fridays, was specially switched in to permit the 13:05 cross the 15:30
ex-Westport (213 + 8 Refurbished Mk IId). The 13:05 arrived at Westport 20
minutes late, passengers having been pre-advised of the deferred arrival.
Locomotive No. 076 was then attached to the rear to work the set back as the
17:55 to Heuston. At 17:00 Ballyhaunis cabin switched out for the final time.
This was the last IÉ signal cabin to regularly use ETS switching out apparatus,
the facility at Gorey being rarely used these days.
The
new layout at Claremorris was completed by the end of March with the removal of
the freight sidings, latterly only used by Guinness traffic, before it was
finally withdrawn. The former Kiltimagh siding, a stub of the closed line to
Sligo, is no longer connected. In the event of the line being re-opened, this
could be easily re-connected by the installation of a turnout.
The
layout at Westport was altered to suit the side loading of timber trains without
the need to divide the train as heretofore. The disused locomotive fuelling
facility was demolished to lengthen the loading area. The crossover between the
Quay sidings was moved towards the former Quay Station to allow locomotives run
around timber trains while the main passenger platform is occupied. To
facilitate a total redesign of the western end of the station, the area was
given to the engineers on Wednesday 11 April and as a result no locomotive run
round was possible. To assist, a spare locomotive was allocated to Westport, and
as each train arrived, the spare engine was placed on the rear of the arrived
train leaving it ready for departure. Westport Cattle Bank siding
was removed on 31 January.
Manulla
Junction was redesigned to allow trains arrive simultaneously from Westport and
Ballina, and at the same time have through running possible between Ballina and
Athlone. The new connection from the Westport line to the Ballina line was
completed by 30 March. At Ballina, the modern freight layout was retained, while
on the passenger side the locomotive release was abandoned, as, in a railcar
only environment, it is no longer required. However, run round facilities are
available in the freight yard and will be used by the 16:20 Fridays Only
Heuston-Ballina.
PLATFORMS
The
platforms on the route will be 174m except Castlerea Down, Ballyhaunis Down and
the Ballina branch platforms. Manulla Junction bay platform and Foxford will be
90m and Ballina will remain at 106m. Castlerea and Ballyhaunis Down platforms
will be 90m – allowing a 3-car and a 6-car InterCity railcar train to cross.
These lengths are sufficient for the projected timetables using a combination of
6- and 3-car 22000-class InterCity railcars with commuter type units on the
Ballina branch. All platforms are being finished in black tarmacadam except
where there is an extension of an existing cobble lock surface in which case the
extension will be also cobble lock. At Castlerea the former goods store had to
be demolished to permit the platform extension to be constructed, there being no
space at the Westport end due to the level crossing.
At
Claremorris, the Island platform Nos. 2 & 3, will have coping and tactile on
both faces and this will facilitate the possible re-opening of the line to
Athenry in the future. However, this track had also coping on the Ballinrobe
side platform and this was removed in March to give clearance for the storage of
Mk II and Mk III carriages, the former normally working the 16:20
Heuston-Ballina, Fridays Only, since the withdrawal of the Cravens carriages.
The reverse curve on this platform is being improved.
Work
on the Manulla Junction platforms started at the Westport end on Thursday 12
April. However, the Permanent Way had previously cleared an area on the
non-platform side of the Ballina line to allow the track be slewed as soon as
the line closed. A gabion wall was constructed to act as a retaining wall since
the adjacent lands are some 3m higher than the track. Such was the progress made
during the closure with the contractor working long days, that the full length
Bay platform was available from the re-opening.
SIGNALLING
The
new signalling system is controlled by a Westinghouse Solid State Interlocking
(SSI) similar to those used in the Galway, Waterford, Tralee and Sligo line
projects. Because of the number of stations involved there are two SSIs working
in tandem – one controls Athlone to Ballyhaunis inclusive and the second
Claremorris to Westport and Ballina. To the signalman they appear as a single
system. This is IÉ’s first major re-signalling scheme with no track-circuits.
The station areas, as well as the sections between the stations, are all worked
by axle counters, whereas previous schemes had track circuits in the station
areas. In addition the 32 manned level crossings on the route were all converted
to colour light signalling, again using axle counters to monitor train
movements. The five existing AHBs continue to use track circuits, while the
Athlone-Knockcroghery section, heretofore worked by track circuits, was
converted to axle counters. Distant signals are of the now standard 3-aspect
type, except Roscommon down. All signals on the line have the prefix ML (Mayo
Line). At Ballina, the freight area had all power points worked from the signal
cabin, a safety requirement from the days of the Asahi Acrylonitrile transport.
It was decided to retain these, operated from simple switches on the ground near
each points motor, worked by the shunters.
Trap
points are provided on the main platform lines at both Westport and Ballina to
allow the safe stabling of trains overnight. The signalling does not have CAWS
as is also the case on the other lightly used lines recently re-signalled.
The
control console is located temporarily in the Athlone LCCC and has three screen
displays to cover the line. The area of control is from the Down Home signals at
Knockcroghery to Westport and Ballina.
Culleen
level crossing, which previously was within Knockcroghery Station area, is now a
mid-section level crossing. The station level crossings at Roscommon, and
Castlerea, were converted to 4-barrier CCTV-monitored type, with remote
monitoring from the Athlone LCCC. The station level crossing at Knockcroghery
was already a 4-barrier level crossing worked by the adjacent signalman and this
was taken over by the Athlone LCCC upon re-opening of the line. In addition,
seven mid-section level crossings had already been converted to the 4-barrier
CCTV-monitored type and control of these was transferred to the Athlone LCCC
during the closure – Kiltoom, Fuerty, Corrastoona, Carrick, Garryredmond,
Mossbrook and Foxford. Three other crossings, also 4-barrier CCTV-monitored
type, which are close to stations and incorporated into the station signalling,
were transferred to Athlone LCCC upon commissioning of the signalling system –
Ballymartin, Lisnolan, and Barrackland.
The
closure of the eight Mayo line signal cabins, three electric and five
mechanical, reduced the number of signal cabins on IÉ by nearly 25%. There now
remain 21 mechanical and 6 electric cabins as well as one emergency frame at
Rosslare Europort.
REOPENING
At
16:45 on Friday 4 May 2007, the signalman at Knockcroghery cancelled the
possessions between Athlone and Knockcroghery and Knockcroghery-Westport-Ballina
and handed over control to the Mayo Line signalman at Athlone, thereby
permanently closing Knockcroghery cabin. At 17:29, the new signalling on the
Mayo Line was signed in, worked by signalman Paul Kelly. The first train was the
16:15 Heuston-Ballina which left Athlone at 18:08 (081 + 8 Mk lld). This was
followed by the empty Ballina branch railcar set (2611/12) which left at 18:30
and ran to Manulla Junction where it propelled to the new Bay platform to await
arrival of the 17:50 from Heuston to Westport.
1 Athlone West
Junction, Kiltoom, Knockcroghery, Roscommon, Donamon, Ballymoe, Castlerea,
Ballinlough, Ballyhaunis, Claremorris (South), Claremorris (North), Balla,
Manulla Junction, Castlebar, Westport, Westport Quay. In addition there were
signal cabins at Claremorris (Ballinrobe Cabin), Ballyvary, Foxford and Ballina.
|
Copyright © 2007 by Irish
Railway Record Society Limited
Revised: August 12, 2007
.
