Portadown railway station

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Portadown
Portadown station platform 2 (on the left) and 3 (on the right) in December 2014
General information
Location	Portadown Northern Ireland
Coordinates	54°25′30″N6°26′46″W / 54.425°N 6.446°W / 54.425; -6.446
Owned by	NI Railways
Operated by	NI Railways
Line(s)	Dublin Portadown/Newry
Distance	Belfast Lanyon Place: 26¼ Miles Dublin Connolly: 87¼ miles [1]
Platforms	3
Tracks	3
Train operators	NI Railways, Iarnród Éireann
Bus routes	5
Bus stands	1
Bus operators	Translink Ulsterbus & Translink Goldliner
Construction
Structure type	At-grade
Architect	1862: John MacNeill [2]
Other information
Station code	PDA
Fare zone	3 [3]
Website	translink.co.uk/Portadown
History
Previous names	Portadown - Craigavon West
Key dates
1842	Opened
1848	Moved to present location
1863	Returned to original location
1970	Returned to present location
2013	Refurbished
2024	Ticket machines installed
2025	Automatic ticket barriers installed
Passengers
2015/16	908,113 [4]
Route map (Click to expand) Show NI Railways Network map Legend Year closed Great Victoria Street 2024 Belfast Grand Central Westlink / Central Junction to Lanyon Place Adelaide Depot Adelaide Balmoral Finaghy M1 Dunmurry Derriaghy Lambeg Hilden Lisburn Knockmore 2005 Lisburn-Antrim line 2003 Banbridge, Lisburn & Belfast Jn Rly to Banbridge 1956 Maze 1974 Broomhedge Halt 1973 Damhead 1973 Moira M1 Pritchard's Bridge 1844 Lurgan Goodyear Halt 1983 Seagoe 1842 River Bann Portadown to Dungannon, Omagh and Londonderry 1965 to Armagh, Clones and Cavan 1957 Tanderagee 1965 Banbridge Jn Rly to Banbridge 1955 Scarva Acton Crossing 1954 Poyntzpass Augheranter Crossing 1954 Knockarney Crossing 1965 Newry and Armagh Railway to Armagh 1955 Goraghwood 1965 to Warrenpoint 1965 Mullaghglass 1901 Bessbrook and Newry Tramway Craigmore Viaduct Newry MacNeill's Egyptian Arch Wellington Inn 1852 Adavoyle 1933 Northern Ireland Ireland border Mt. Pleasant 1965 M1 Castletown River Dundalk Clarke Dundalk Junct. station 1894 ← to Clones and Enniskillen│to Greenore → 1957/1952 Dundalk Railway Works 1958 Castlebellingham 1976 to Ardee 1975 Dromin Junction 1975 Dunleer 1984 Newfoundwell Boyne Viaduct Drogheda MacBride Oldcastle branch line (freight only) Bettystown 1847 Laytown Laytown Viaduct Mosney 2000 Gormanston Balbriggan Ardgillan 1867 Skerries Skerries Golf Club Halt 1960 Baldongan 1847 Rush and Lusk Rogerstown Viaduct Donabate Broadmeadow viaduct Malahide Portmarnock Clongriffin Baldoyle 1852 to Howth Howth Junction & Donaghmede Kilbarrack Raheny Harmonstown Killester Clontarf 1956 Clontarf Road Fairview DART depot River Tolka North Wall Yard to Alexandra Road Western Commuter & Sligo Line Docklands The Royal Canal Dublin Connolly Luas Red Line to Tallaght and Saggart Loopline Bridge Trans-Dublin Line & Rosslare Line = Northern Commuter = Newry/Portadown Line This diagram: view talk edit Show Dublin line route diagram Legend Year closed Great Victoria Street 2024 Belfast Grand Central Westlink / Central Junction to Lanyon Place Adelaide Adelaide Depot Balmoral Finaghy Dunmurry Derriaghy Lambeg Hilden Lisburn Knockmore 2005 Lisburn-Antrim railway line to Antrim (disused) Maze 1974 Moira Lurgan River Bann Portadown Tanderagee 1965 Scarva Poyntzpass Goraghwood 1965 Newry Belfast-Dublin railway line to Dublin Connolly = Northern Commuter This diagram: view talk edit Show Newry line route diagram
Location Portadown Location in Northern Ireland Show map of Northern Ireland Portadown Location on the island of Ireland Show map of island of Ireland

Portadown Railway Station serves the town of Portadown in County Armagh, Northern Ireland.

The station is located on the Belfast-Dublin railway line. The original station opened in 1842, and the present station opened in 1970. It is currently County Armagh's busiest station and Northern Ireland's 6th busiest station with over 1 million passengers in the 2024/25 financial year ^[10]

History

The station, c. 1879.

The original Portadown station was sited half a mile east of the present station and opened on 12 September 1842, replacing a temporary station at Seagoe that had opened the preceding year. The Portadown station was moved to the present location in 1848 then reverted to its original site between 1863 and 1970. Goods traffic ceased on 4 January 1965.

The present station opened in 1970, replacing a large and largely redundant station. At the time (1970) the station was called Portadown - Craigavon West, a title that was quietly dropped after the "new city" Craigavon failed to materialise. The layout of the 1970 station was modified in 1997 to allow bi-directional working on all three platforms. The lines to Cavan via Armagh (closed 1957), and Derry via Dungannon and Omagh (closed 1965) diverged immediately west of the present station. ^[11]

Portadown's new station in 1970

In 2012, work began on a major refurbishment of the station. A new, modern building was constructed and a footbridge replaced the subway. The refurbishment was completed in 2013. ^[12]

Layout

The station has three platforms, which are all fully accessible via lifts, and a footbridge connects platform 1 with platforms 2 and 3. The modern station building features ticket machines as well as a ticket office, departure boards, a shop and plenty of seating both in the station's main concourse and on the platforms. There are automatic ticket barriers at the entrance to the platforms from the station concourse. Platform 1 is used mostly for Southbound Enterprise services and terminating Translink N.I. Railways services from Belfast, platform 2 is used mostly for northbound Enterprise services and platform 3 is used for terminating Translink N.I. Railways services from Newry or Belfast, and sometimes empty trains are stored at platform 3 as well. There are two sidings South of platform 1 sometimes used for storing track machinery e.g. tampers.

Service

This is the terminus for most services on the Belfast-Newry railway line. Four services operate beyond here to Newry on weekdays and Saturdays. There is a half-hourly service to Belfast Grand Central in the other direction. On Sundays, this service reduces to hourly toward Belfast Grand Central, with no NIR services to Newry.

An hourly Enterprise service runs to Dublin Connolly or Belfast Grand Central every weekday and Saturday, while a bi-hourly service operates on Sundays.

This line can be popular with rugby fans connecting at Dublin Connolly for the DART to Lansdowne Road. The line is also used by rail passengers changing at Dublin Connolly onto the DART to Dún Laoghaire for example or travelling to Dublin Port for the Irish Ferries or Stena Line to Holyhead, and then by train along the North Wales Coast Line to London Euston and other destinations in England and Wales.

Preceding station		NI Railways		Following station
Lurgan		Northern Ireland Railways Belfast-Newry		Terminus or Scarva
Belfast Grand Central or Lurgan (Sundays only)		Enterprise Belfast-Dublin		Newry
	Proposed Services
Terminus		All-Island Strategic Rail Review Mullingar-Portadown Line		Armagh
Terminus		All-Island Strategic Rail Review Derry-Portadown Line		Dungannon
	Historical railways
Lurgan Line and station open		Ulster Railway Belfast-Portadown		Terminus
Terminus		Ulster Railway Portadown-Clones		Richhill Line and station closed
Terminus		Portadown, Dungannon and Omagh Junction Railway Portadown-Omagh		Annaghmore Line and station closed
Terminus		Dublin and Belfast Junction Railway Portadown-Drogheda		Tanderagee Line open station closed

Future

Link to Armagh City

There is a possibility of re-opening of the line from Portadown to Armagh railway station. ^[13] Government Minister for the Department for Regional Development, Danny Kennedy MLA indicates railway restoration plans. ^[14]

The Armagh railway line has been listed in proposed plans to reopen the line. ^[15]

All-Island Rail Review

The all-island rail review draft suggested that Portadown once again become a major interchange between the current Dublin-Belfast Main line, proposed lines such as the single tracked Mullingar-Portadown Line via Armagh, Monaghan, Clones, and Cavan and the dual tracked Derry~Londonderry-Portadown Line via Dungannon, Omagh and Strabane. Portadown would also become an inland freight terminal serving connections to Rosslare Europort, Dublin Port and Larne Harbour.

The All-Island Rail Review draft also includes 29 other recommendations for railways across the Island of Ireland and it is said that it will take at least 25 years to complete. It would cost in the range of €36.8bn/£30.7bn (as of 2023) and be split between both regions. 75% by the Republic of Ireland and 25% by Northern Ireland. ^{[16] [17]}

No plans as of May 2024, have gone about implementing this review.

Bus connections

Translink's Ulsterbus and Goldliner services operating from just outside Portadown railway station: ^[18]

Preceding station		Ulsterbus		Following station
Portadown Church Street		Ulsterbus 61 Armagh-Portadown		Seagoe Craigavon Area Hospital
Terminus		Ulsterbus 75 Portadown - Dungannon		Portadown High Street
Portadown High Street		Ulsterbus 75a Dungannon - Craigavon Hospital		The Birches Roundabout
Terminus		Ulsterbus 65 Portadown - Loughgall - Armagh		Portadown Church Street
Preceding station		Goldline		Following station
Lurgan Loughview Park & Ride Lough Road		Goldline 271 Belfast - Cavan		Richhill Village
Lurgan Loughview Park & Ride Lough Road		Goldline 251 Belfast - Armagh		Richhill Village
Lurgan Loughview Park & Ride Lough Road		Goldline 251a Belfast - Armagh		Richhill Village

Gallery

• 
  Class 3000 awaiting departure to Bangor 9 May 2012
• 
  Cross Border Mail Train in Portadown 15 July 1972
• 
  The Enterprise Train approaching Portadown from Dublin on the 15 April 2014
• 
  Portadown Platform 1 and Car Park 28 August 2015
• 
  Entrance to Portadown Station May 2016
• 
  The Enterprise Train arriving into Portadown (Craigavon West) from Dublin on 10 June 1972
• 
  NIR extended 4017 on test after receiving 3 additional intermediate carriages.

References

1. "Rail Mile posts Ireland" (PDF). irishrail.ie. Irish Rail. 27 March 2024. Retrieved 26 March 2025.
2. "1862 Railway Station". archiseek.com. archiseek. 15 November 2011. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
3. "iLink Zone information". translink.co.uk. Translink. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
4. "NIR Footfall 1518.xlsx". www.whatdotheyknow.com. 20 December 2018. Archived from the original on 17 June 2024. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
5. "NIR Footfall 1819.xlsx". www.whatdotheyknow.com. 15 January 2020. Archived from the original on 17 June 2024. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
6. "NIR Footfall 1920.xlsx". www.whatdotheyknow.com. 11 August 2020. Archived from the original on 17 June 2024. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
7. "FOI1317 NIR Footfall 2021.xlsx". www.whatdotheyknow.com. 25 February 2021. Archived from the original on 17 June 2024. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
8. "FOI1317 NIR Footfall 2122.xlsx". www.whatdotheyknow.com. 26 April 2022. Archived from the original on 17 June 2024. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
9. "NIR Footfall 22-23". Whatdotheyknow. 17 April 2023. Archived from the original on 2 June 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
10. "FOI Footfall 2023 2024 figures PDF.pdf". www.whatdotheyknow.com. 7 May 2024. Archived from the original on 2 June 2024. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
11. Allen, Jonathan M (2003). 35 Years of N.I.R.: 1967 to 2002. Colourpoint Books.
12. "Translink leads the way in sustainable station development - Global Railway Review". Global Railway Review. 4 December 2013. Archived from the original on 2 June 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
13. The Ulster Gazette. 16 May 2013
14. "Kennedy has hopes for Armagh line restoration - Portadown Times". Archived from the original on 21 August 2013. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
15. "New lines proposed in Northern Ireland rail plan". railjournal.com. 3 May 2014. Archived from the original on 2 June 2024.
16. "PDF.js viewer" (PDF). www.gov.ie. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 June 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
17. "Rail review recommends reviving old tracks and raising top train speeds". BreakingNews.ie. 25 July 2023. Archived from the original on 2 June 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
18. "Translink". www.translink.co.uk. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 June 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2024.