Derry ~ Londonderry railway station

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Derry ~ Londonderry
Logomark NI Railways.svg NI Railways icon.svg
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Derry ~ Londonderry Station frontage as of 2023
General information
Other namesWaterside
Location Derry
Northern Ireland
Coordinates 54°59′31″N7°18′50″W / 54.992069°N 7.313788°W / 54.992069; -7.313788
Owned by NI Railways
Operated byNI Railways
Line(s) Belfast–Derry line
Platforms2
Tracks2
Construction
Structure typeAt-grade
ParkingYes
History
Previous namesLondonderry Waterside
Original companyLondonderry & Coleraine Railway
Pre-groupingBelfast & Northern Counties Railway, Midland Railway (Northern Counties Committee)
Post-groupingLondon Midland & Scottish (Northern Counties Committee)
Pre-nationalisationUlster Transport Authority, Northern Ireland Railways
Key dates
1852Opened
1874Relocated to second (current) station
1980Relocated to third station
2019Relocated to second station
Passengers
2022/23Increase2.svg 723,776
[1]
Track layout
Legend
Track and
platform layout
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to Belfast
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Location
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Derry ~ Londonderry
Location within Northern Ireland
Derry ~ Londonderry railway station

Derry ~ Londonderry railway station, also known as North West Transport Hub [2] or Waterside railway station [3] [4] [5] (and formerly just Londonderry railway station), is a railway terminus in Derry, Northern Ireland, on the east bank of the River Foyle, operated by Northern Ireland Railways and its 8th biggest station across the network with 723,776 passengers in the 22/23 year. [6] It is on the Belfast–Derry railway line, terminating at Belfast Great Victoria Street. Derry/Londonderry has the longest platforms on the NIR Network, at 258.3 meters in length. [7]

Contents

History

The original Londonderry Waterside Station was opened on 29 December 1852 by Steven Alfred John Campbell, a well-known banker of the time. It was rebuilt into the current building by the Belfast & Northern Counties Railway in 1874.

Derry historically had four passenger termini. On the west side of the river, Graving Dock station served the Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway and destinations to the west and Foyle Road station (which replaced the short-lived Cow Market station) served the Londonderry and Enniskillen Railway to Enniskillen via Strabane and Omagh. On the east side of the river, Victoria Road station served the alternative Donegal Railway Company (later Great Northern Railway) line to Strabane and Waterside station served the line to Belfast via the north coast. Although passenger trains terminated at these respective stations, all four railways were linked by freight lines through the city and the Craigavon Bridge.

As a result of a series of closures of the other lines, Waterside was the only station to have survived closure by 1965. Services were reduced and the track layout was severely rationalised. The line now consists of a single track with passing loops at Bellarena and Coleraine stations. The station name was changed to Londonderry, as the suffix Waterside became redundant upon closure of the city's two other railway termini. Although this is the station's official name the platform signs at the station read Derry~Londonderry [8] while the destination signs on Northern Ireland Railways trains read Derry/Londonderry.

The 1980 station, in use until 2019. Londonderry Station 04.jpg
The 1980 station, in use until 2019.

The station was damaged in two terrorist attacks in the 1970s forcing it to be closed on 24 February 1980. A third station of the same name replaced the larger terminus in 1980. [9]

Prior to Derry becoming the inaugural UK City of Culture in 2013, [10] the railway line was upgraded with re-laid track, a track relay and sections of continuous welded rail [11]

In 2010, the Minister for Regional Development, Conor Murphy, mooted the possibility of building a new railway station that would connect the railway with a planned foot and cycle bridge across the Foyle, bringing it closer to the centre of the city. [4]

On 6 October 2016, Translink confirmed that the railway would be returning to the former BNCR Waterside station which will be used as a new transport hub for the city. [12] As part of this work, platform 2 was taken out of use in September 2018 and the block section to Bellarena converted to One Train Working operation. The 1980 station closed on 8 October 2019 to allow the completion of work on the new station on the former site just to the north. [13]

The new station is part of the North West Transport Hub and is on the site of the old Waterside Station. [14] It opened for rail traffic on 21 October 2019, with the 1980s station being demolished on 5–6 December 2019.

Design

The station uses the former train shed as a waiting room, café, [15] and ticket hall for NIR services to and from Coleraine and Belfast. Two platforms are provided one on the river side of the former train shed, the other approximately on the site of the old arrival platform, with a siding adjacent to it for stabling empty stock.

The site of the former departure platform, next to the riverside greenway is unoccupied. [16]

Services

From Mondays to Saturdays as of 2024, an hourly service operates to Belfast Great Victoria Street, reduced to every two hours on Sundays. Buses also serve the location which is being marketed as the North West Transport Hub. [17]

Preceding station  Logomark NI Railways.svg Northern Ireland Railways  Following station
Bellarena   Northern Ireland Railways
Belfast-Derry
 Terminus
  Historical railways  
Culmore
Line open, station closed		  Londonderry and Coleraine Railway
Coleraine–Londonderry		 Terminus

See also

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. ↑ "NIR Footfall 22-23". whatdotheyknow. 17 April 2023. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  2. ↑ "North West Hub Key Facts". www.translink.co.uk. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  3. ↑ "Waterside is least monitored railway station in Ulster". Londonderry Sentinel . 10 June 2010. Archived from the original on 3 August 2012.
  4. 1 2 "New Waterside rail station at Peace Bridge mooted". Londonderry Sentinel . 25 February 2010. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012.
  5. ↑ "Waterside Station, Londonderry © Wilson Adams cc-by-sa/2.0". Geograph Ireland. Archived from the original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 3 October 2010.
  6. ↑ "FOI1317 NIR Footfall 2223.xlsx". www.whatdotheyknow.com. 17 April 2023. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  7. ↑ https://trn-prd-cdn-01.azureedge.net/mediacontainer/medialibraries/translink/publications-and-documents/policies-and-procedures/network-statement/network-statement-2025-final.pdf#page=15.08.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  8. ↑ "Multimodal Transport Hub". Premier Construction News. 28 January 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
  9. ↑ "Disused Stations: Londonderry station history". www.disused-stations.org.uk. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  10. ↑ "Derry / Londonderry named UK City of Culture 2013". GOV.UK. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  11. ↑ ""Londonderry Line" Andy Milne, RailStaff, May 2012". 8 May 2012. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  12. ↑ Translink. "McGuinness and Hazzard confirm Old Waterside Station as site for Derry transport hub - Translink". www.translink.co.uk. Archived from the original on 10 October 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  13. ↑ North West Multi-Modal Transport Hub (NWMTH) Derry – Londonderry webinar , retrieved 6 February 2024
  14. ↑ "North-West Transport Hub". www.translink.co.uk. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  15. ↑ McAree, Anna (11 September 2022). "Great places to stop for a coffee as you walk Derry's two bridges". Belfast Live. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  16. ↑ "Derry Urban Greenways". Northern Ireland Greenways. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  17. ↑ "Derry Line Timetables". www.translink.co.uk. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
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