Peel Road Raad Purt ny h-Inshey | |
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The Isle of Man Railway Co., Ltd. The Manx Northern Railway Co., Ltd. | |
General information | |
Location | Poortown Road, Glenfaba |
Coordinates | 54.215°N 4.660°W |
Owned by | Isle Of Man Railway Co. |
Line(s) | North Line |
Platforms | One, Raised |
Tracks | One, Running Line |
Construction | |
Structure type | Timber Building |
Parking | None Provided |
History | |
Opened | 1 June 1883 |
Closed | 30 June 1951 |
Previous names | Poortown |
Passengers | |
By Request | |
Services | |
Office / Store / Shelter |
Peel Road Railway Station (Manx: Stashoon Raad Yiarn Raad Purt ny h-Inshey) was a station on the Manx Northern Railway, later owned and operated by the Isle of Man Railway. It served the area known as Poortown in the Isle of Man and was an intermediate stopping place on a line that ran between St. John's and Ramsey.
The station opened as Poortown in June 1883 and served the hamlet of the same name on the outskirts of the westerly hamlet of Peel. It was the closest station on the Manx Northern Railway to the hamlet and prior to its establishment the company considered either a spur or terminus station there, ultimately selecting a route to St. John's which connected with the Peel Line of the Isle of Man Railway Company. The station was renamed Peel Road in 1885 to reflect the fact that it was the railway's station closest to Peel, although it is also thought that the original title was derisory to the local inhabitants and the railway had received a number of requests to re-title the station.
The station was a request stop and appeared erratically on the company's timetable literature throughout its early years. The station was officially closed in June 1951 and removed from all timetable literature after this point. Trains did however still stop at the station upon request. Despite remaining open until this time, it became an unstaffed halt as early as 1937. It was still in evidence during the final season of operation in 1968 but its remote location in comparison to the locale from which it took its name ensured that it was very little used in later years.
The facilities here consisted of a simple wooden station building with corrugated iron roof which sat next to short raised platform, this consisted of a waiting room ladies facilities, staff accommodation, parcels room and small canopy. This was later accompanied by a grounded brake van body which was used as a permanent way store which was based on a plinth beside the nearby road bridge at the northern extent of the site.
At one time there was a sharply curving siding off the running line which facilitated the collection of stone from the nearby quarry, but the opening and closure dates are unknown. A smaller gauge tramway ran between the line and quarry, arriving beside a tall stone wall at the station's northern end beyond the bridge, where tipper trucks deposited stone into wagons.
Other than the vague outline of the old platform in the undergrowth and the bridge that carries the Poortown Road over the railway line at its northern end, there is little to remind us of the station here today. The buildings which were derelict when the railway closed in 1968 were demolished in 1975 at the same time as the rails were lifted. It forms part of a public footpath and may still be accessed by a sloping driveway above.
In 2023 the Isle of Man Steam Railway Supporters' Association erected a replica running in board (station sign) at the platform side as part of an ongoing project to mark former railway sites; prior to this some clearance works had also been carried out on the site to expose the brick platform edging.
Preceding station | Disused railways | Following station | ||
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St. John's towards Douglas | Manx Northern Railway later Isle of Man Railway | St. Germain's towards Ramsey |
Douglas railway station is the main terminus of the Isle of Man Railway and is located at the landward end of the quay in Douglas, the capital of the Isle of Man. It was once the hub for now closed lines to Peel, Ramsey and Foxdale.
Ballabeg Station is a diminutive request stop near the village of Ballabeg in the south of the Isle of Man, on the island's steam railway, the sole remaining section of the former network which covered 46 miles across the island. There is another station with the same name, but serving a different village, on the Manx Electric Railway to the north.
Colby railway station is a small railway station on the southern edge of the village of Colby in the south of the Isle of Man served by the Isle of Man Railway; it forms part of the sole remaining section of the network which once covered over 46 miles island-wide.
Santon railway station is a request stop near Newtown in the parish of Santon, Isle of Man; it forms part of the sole remaining line of the Isle of Man Railway which once encompassed over 46 miles of network and retains its original station building. The halt sometimes plays host to Santa's Grotto each December as part of the railway's Santa Trains service although between 2010 and 2013 it was not utilised for this purpose. The railway station is situated off the A5 Port Erin to Douglas road, between the railway stations of Ballasalla and Port Soderick.
Ballasalla railway station is located in the village of Ballasalla in the south of the Isle of Man, close to the airport, and is served on a seasonal basis by the Isle of Man Railway. It forms part of the sole remaining section of the once extensive network that operated across the island. Ballasalla was the usual crossing point for trains, making it popular with photographers, until the introduction of the 2015 timetable which saw all trains passing at Castletown.
The Level is a seasonally operated request stop on the Isle of Man Railway located in the sheading of Rushen on the Isle of Man. This is the sole remaining section of the railway which once spanned over 46 miles with lines to Peel in the west, Ramsey in the north and the mining village of Foxdale in the centre of the island.
Port Erin railway station is the western terminus of the Isle of Man Railway in the village of Port Erin on the Isle of Man; it is the sole remaining outer terminus of the railway.
The Manx Northern Railway (MNR) was the second common carrier railway built in the Isle of Man. It was a steam railway between St John's and Ramsey. It operated as an independent concern only from 1879 to 1905.
Union Mills Railway Station was an intermediate stop on the Isle of Man Railway; it served the village of Union Mills in the Isle of Man and was a stopping place on a line that ran between Douglas and Peel. It was part of the island's first railway line and the first official stopping place.
Crosby Railway Station was an intermediate stop on the Isle of Man Railway; it served the village of Crosby in the Isle of Man and was a stopping place on a line that ran between Douglas and Peel. It was part of the island's first railway line.
Peel Railway Station was a terminus on the Isle of Man Railway; it served the hamlet of Peel in the Isle of Man and was the final stopping place on a line that ran between the city of Douglas and the hamlet. It was part of the island's first railway line.
Ramsey Station was a station on the Manx Northern Railway, later owned and operated by the Isle of Man Railway; it served the town of Ramsey in the Isle of Man, and was the terminus of a line that ran between St. John's and this station, which was the railway's headquarters. The station opened to traffic on 23 September 1879
Ballaugh Railway Station was a mandatory stopping place on the Manx Northern Railway that ran between St. John's and Ramsey in the Isle of Man. It opened when the line was opened and was later owned and operated by the Isle of Man Railway; it served the village of Ballaugh.
One of the characteristics of the Isle of Man Railway is the numerous level crossings and farm crossings along the various routes; many smaller crossing places are marked only by gates that criss-cross farm land and provide access to private roads connecting the farms to the main roads. Being largely rural in nature the railway has many of these scattered along the existing South Line, and there were many more on the closed sections of the railway. These can be summarised as follows, along with other points of interest along the line not covered in the Isle of Man Railway stations section:-
St Germain'sRailway Station was a station on the Manx Northern Railway in the Isle of Man, later owned and operated by the Isle of Man Railway; it served the small village of the same name and was an intermediate stopping place on a line that ran between St John's and Ramsey.
Lezayre Railway Station was an intermediate stopping place on the Manx Northern Railway, a line that ran between St. John's and Ramsey in the Isle of Man. It was the first halt outside the terminus at Ramsey. It was later owned and operated by the Isle of Man Railway. It served the small village known as Churchtown centred on the parish church, Kirk Christ Lezayre.
Ballacraine Halt was an infrequent request stop on the Isle of Man Railway.
Peel Marina is a marina at Peel Harbour in the town of Peel, Isle of Man. It was constructed in 2009 as an expansion of Peel Harbour. Since construction, the site has had continuous issues with silt buildup and toxic materials contamination.
Ballabeg Station is a rural intermediate request stop on the coastal route of the Manx Electric Railway on the Isle of Man with a small station house constructed in 1905.
Laxey Old Road is a diminutive request-only stop on the northern side of the valley on the climb out of Laxey on the Manx Electric Railway on the Isle of Man, and serves the local community rather than visiting tourists. It, like many of the other small stops on the line established itself over a number of years as a requested stop for local traffic but despite this, and in common with many similar halts, it has never been included on the timetable for any of the line's services. Its location is above an area known locally as "Little Egypt" because it was used as a tipping ground for the ore spoils of the Great Laxey Mines, giving the area the appearance of what looked like pyramids. These spoils have long-since disappeared and the area is a desirable residential area.