The history of rail transport in Ireland began only a decade later than that of Great Britain. By its peak in 1920, Ireland had 3,500 route miles (5,630 km). The current status is less than half that amount, with a large unserviced area around the border area between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Rail transport in Ireland is provided by Iarnród Éireann in the Republic of Ireland and by Northern Ireland Railways in Northern Ireland.
Iarnród Éireann, or Irish Rail, is the operator of the national railway network of Ireland. Established on 2 February 1987, it is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ). It operates all internal InterCity, Commuter, DART and freight railway services in the Republic of Ireland, and, jointly with Northern Ireland Railways, the Enterprise service between Dublin and Belfast. In 2019, IÉ carried a record peak of 50 million passengers, up from 48 million in 2018.
West Cork is a tourist region and municipal district in County Cork, Ireland. As a municipal district, West Cork falls within the administrative area of Cork County Council, and includes the towns of Bantry, Castletownbere, Clonakilty, Dunmanway, Schull and Skibbereen, and the 'key villages' of Baltimore, Ballydehob, Courtmacsherry, Drimoleague, Durrus, Glengarriff, Leap, Rosscarbery, Timoleague and Union Hall.
Connolly station or Dublin Connolly is the busiest railway station in Dublin and Ireland, and is a focal point in the Irish route network. On the North side of the River Liffey, it provides InterCity, Enterprise and commuter services to the north, north-west, south-east and south-west. The north–south Dublin Area Rapid Transit (DART) and Luas red line light rail services also pass through the station. The station offices are the headquarters of Irish Rail, Iarnród Éireann. Opened in 1844 as Dublin Station, the ornate facade has a distinctive Italianate tower at its centre.
Heuston Station, also known as Dublin Heuston, is one of Dublin's largest railway stations and links the capital with the south, southwest and west of Ireland. It is operated by Iarnród Éireann (IÉ), the national railway operator. It also houses the head office of its parent company, Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ). The station is named in honour of Seán Heuston, an executed leader of the 1916 Easter Rising, who had worked in the station's offices.
York Road railway station served the north of Belfast in Northern Ireland. It was formerly one of the three terminus railway stations in Belfast. The others were Great Victoria Street, and Queen's Quay.
The Great Southern and Western Railway (GS&WR) was an Irish gauge railway company in Ireland from 1844 until 1924. The GS&WR grew by building lines and making a series of takeovers, until in the late 19th and early 20th centuries it was the largest of Ireland's "Big Four" railway networks. At its peak the GS&WR had an 1,100-mile (1,800 km) network, of which 240 miles (390 km) were double track.
Cork, Bandon and South Coast Railway (CB&SCR), was an Irish gauge railway in Ireland. It opened in 1849 as the Cork and Bandon Railway (C&BR), changed its name to Cork Bandon and South Coast Railway in 1888 and became part of the Great Southern Railway (GSR) in 1924.
Turners Cross is a ward on the south side of Cork City in Ireland, and home to the Roman Catholic parish of the same name.
The Midland Great Western Railway (MGWR) was the third largest Irish gauge railway company in Ireland. It was incorporated in 1845 and absorbed into the Great Southern Railways in 1924. At its peak the MGWR had a network of 538 miles (866 km), making it Ireland's third largest network after the Great Southern and Western Railway (GS&WR) and the Great Northern Railway of Ireland.
Waterford railway station is a railway station which serves the city of Waterford in County Waterford, Ireland. The station is located across Rice Bridge on the north side of the city.
The Schull and Skibbereen Railway was a minor narrow gauge railway in County Cork, Ireland. It opened in 1886 and closed in 1947. The track gauge was a 3 ft narrow gauge. The formal name of the company was The West Carberry Tramways and Light Railways Company Ltd.
The Cork, Blackrock and Passage Railway (CB&PR) was a 3 ft narrow gauge railway in County Cork, Ireland. The line originally opened in 1850 as a 5 ft 3 in Irish standard gauge railway between Cork and Passage West and operated steam feeder ferries to other locations round Cork Harbour. The company was heavily dependent on summer tourist traffic for a considerable proportion of its revenue. The railway was converted to 3 ft narrow gauge in 1900 in conjunction with extensions southwards to Crosshaven which were completed in 1904. The railway closed in 1932 and has since been replaced by a public pathway and nature area.
The second largest city in Ireland, Cork, has an economy focused on the city centre, which as of 2011, supported employment for 24,092 people. According to 2006 figures, the top five employers in the area were public sector organisations, and included Cork University Hospital, University College Cork, Collins Barracks, Cork City Council and Cork Institute of Technology. Apple Inc. was the sixth largest employer, followed by Supervalu / Centra Distribution Ltd, Mercy University Hospital, Bon Secours Hospital and Boston Scientific.
The Cork City Railways were constructed in 1911 and opened in 1912 to connect the Irish standard gauge systems north and south of the River Lee in Cork, Ireland.
The CBSCR Bandon Tanks were a class of 4-6-0T mixed-traffic locomotives built for the Cork, Bandon & South Coast Railway (CB&SCR) between 1906 and 1920. The Bandon Tanks were the only 4–6–0 tank locomotives to be built by Beyer, Peacock & Company. The class went on to serve with the CB&SCR's successors: the Great Southern Railways from 1925 and CIÉ from 1945.
The Cork and Macroom Direct Railway (CMDR) was an Irish gauge railway in Ireland which ran the 24 miles (39 km) from Cork to Macroom.
Downpatrick Loop Platform railway station is a junction station owned and operated by the Downpatrick and County Down Railway, heritage railway in Northern Ireland.
The Cork and Youghal Railway (C&YR) was a company that built and operated a short 27 miles (43 km) railway built in the early 1860s in Ireland linking Cork with Youghal, a small resort with harbour at the mouth of the Munster Blackwater. There was an additional 6-mile (9.7 km) branch to Cobh (Queenstown), a deepwater port in Cork Harbour associated with transatlantic liners. The railway was forced into administration within a few short years due to the bankruptcy of major shareholder David Leopold Lewis and was taken over by the much larger Great Southern and Western Railway (GS&WR). The branch to Cobh became the main line and by the late 1980s was the only part of the previously extensive rail network around Cork City to remain operational apart from the main line to Dublin. 2009 saw the Midleton branch re-open to Cork while the remainder of the route is being converted to a greenway in the 2020s.
