Bantry

The large west Co.Cork town of Bantry was the terminus of the Cork Bandon & South Coast Railway's main line from Cork. The line to Bantry had been opened by the Illen Vallery Railway in July 1881, and was latterly operated by the CBSCR. The railway terminated at Bantry Hilltop, but in October 1894 the line was extended further into the town to terminate at this station which was much closer to the town centre and the harbour. The station had one long platform, on which a single storey wooden station building stood. In June 1909 the CBSCR constructed a platform at the pier at the west end of the station, where trains could connect with a steam ship serving Glengarriff and Castletownbere. These pier services were terminated by the Great Southern Railway in 1937. The main line to Bantry, along with the entire West Cork railway system was closed by CIE in March 1961. Today, only the roofless locomotive shed at Bantry survives, along with the pier adjacent to the harbour, the rest of the station buildings having been demolished after closure.
This is the site of Bantry Station, terminus of the CBSCR line from Cork. The terminus had a single platform and wooden station building. Today only the small loco shed remains. The single road locomotive shed is the only railway building left at Bantry Station. There was once a water tank mounted above the structure. A view from inside the roofless loco shed at Bantry Station. The cast iron beams above the entrance once supported the water tank used by steam locos. A view of the station site at Bantry, now a car park. The station was opened by the Cork Bandon & South Coast Railway in October 1892, and replaced the original hiilltop terminus located on the east side of the town.
This is Bantry Pier, located just west of the station terminus. The CBSCR opened a single platform here in 1909 to serve boats operating to and from the scenic holiday spots at Glengarriff and Castletownbere. On the horizon is the Caha Mountain range. The edges of the platform on Bantry Pier can still be discerned. The Great Southern Railway withdrew the pier services in September 1938, and was eventually closed to goods traffic in 1949. This is the site of the station level crossing at Bantry, located on the approach to to the terminus. This view is looking towards Cork along the former trackbed, now a laneway. The Cork Bandon & South Coast Railway style gate post remains in situ at the former Bantry Station level crossing.
A ¼ milepost of the CBSCR, located adjacent to the former level crossing at Bantry Station. This was the first of a series of rail overbridges in Bantry town on the line towards Cork. The large stone abutments remain here at Marina Lane. This was the former rail overbridge spanning the narrow Marina Terrace. The line through here was constructed in 1892 and travelled around the rear of Bantry town. This is the large stone abutment of the bridge which once spanned the Glengarriff Road in Bantry town. The other bridge abutment has been demolished.
This is an aquaduct bridge spanning the former railway trackbed at the rear of Bantry town. This view is looking towards the station terminus. The trackbed along here is considerably overgrown. This is the western side of the acquaduct bridge on the former line to the rear of Bantry town. This side of structure has been replaced by a concrete deck though a steady stream of water flows from a broken pipe beneath the bridge.