Carrick-on-Suir

Carrick-on-Suir, Co.Tipperary, is located on the cross country line between Waterford and Limerick, which only has a limited passenger service. The line was opened by the Waterford & Limerick Railway in 1853, latterly taken over by the Great Southern & Western. The station has up & down platforms, with main building located on the up side, which is a single storey W&LR structure with a minor brick built extension added by the GSWR. The tall GSWR signal cabin stands on the down side of the line adjacent to the 19th century footbridge. At the Limerick end of the station is a goods shed and loading bank, disused since 1978. A level crossing is also located at the western end of the station, operated by the signalman.

The goods shed is now used as the Irish Traction Group's southern based, where CIE locomotives C Class Metrovick No.226, Sulzer engined B Class loco No.B103 and G Class loco N.G601 are currently stored and awaiting restoration by the ITG.
141 Class locomotive No.162 pauses briefly at Carrick-on-Suir Station with a summers evening service from Limerick to Waterford in 2002. This service is nowadays operated by diesel railcars. No.162 has since been withdrawn from Irish Rail service. 162 leaves Carrick-on-Suir, with just one craven coach and a generator van. The siding in the foreground leads to the goods shed, home of the Irish Traction Group. The remaining 121 Class locomotives, Nos.134+124 are seen crossing the Irish Traction Group's 'Docklands Pioneer' tour at Carrick-on-Suir, with the Limerick to Waterford cement. Both these 1962 built locos have since been preserved. 134+124 depart Carrick-on-Suir with its Limerick to Waterford cement train. This freight flow has since ceased and the 1960s vintage bulk cement wagons have been scrapped.
Another railtour and another chance to photographed the Limerick to Waterford cement train, this time head by 071 Class loco No.082 in black and silver livery. 082 entered service with CIE in May 1977. The railtour concerned here is the Railway Preservation Society of Ireland's 'Comeragh Railtour', hauled by 141 Class locomotives Nos.171+141, operating from Waterford to Limerick Jct. Both these locos are still in service. A view looking east towards Waterford from the footbridge at Carrick-on-Suir. On the left is the Great Southern & Western signal cabin, dating from the 1880s. Within the Great Southern & Western built signal cabin at Carrick-on-Suir Station is the 15-lever frame. The station still retains two sidings, both of which diverge from the loop.
The present track layout displayed within Carrick-On-Suir signal cabin. Also included within the panel is the level crossing west of the town at Ballydine, which is an automatic crossing. The staffs, or tokens, hung within Carrick-on-Suir signal cabin. The leather pouch holds the key tokens extracted from the machines. One of the 19th century heavy token machines inside Carrick-on Suir signal cabin, used for issueing the staffs to trains for either Waterford West or Clonmel. General view of Carrick-on-Suir Station, looking towards Limerick from the up platform, showing the station building, goods shed, footbridge and signal cabin, the latter two been of Great Southern & Western origin.
The Waterford & Limerick Railway single storey station building at Carrick-on-Suir, dating from 1853. The building is no longer accessable. A CIE, or possibly earlier Great Southern Railway, bi-lingual sign mounted on the GSWR footbridge at Carrick-on-Suir Station. The scene at the western end of Carrick-on-Suir, has changed since a previous visit; the wooden sleeper track with bullhead rails have been replaced by modern long welded rails with concrete sleepers. A view looking west towards Limerick from the level crossing at Carrick-on-Suir Station.
A two lever ground frame located adjacent to the level crossing at Carrick-on-Suir, which unlocks the crossing gates. A view of Carrick-on-Suir, looking east towards Waterford from the station level crossing. On the left is the stone built goods shed. Preserved at Carrick-on-Shannon is former Metrovick 201 Class loco, No.226, seen under restoration within the goods shed, complete with its ITG headboard. Sulzer engined B Class loco B103 is stored at Carrick-on-Suir by the ITG. She was withdrawn in 1977 but survived the cutter's torch long enough to be preserved.
CIE G601, a member of the numerous class of Deutz diesels employed to work on lightly used branchlines. G601 was repainted in silver livery (first livery to be applied to these locos in 1956). She remains at Carrick-on-Suir awaiting restoration. On the up platform at Carrick-on-Suir Station. The brick built structure which is the present waiting room was an extension built by the GSWR. An ancient feature at Carrick-on-Suir Station is the former goods crane, which remains remarkably intact. This is one of NIR's three DH locos, No.2, built by English Electric at Vulcan Foundry at Newton le Willows in England. She was one of the first diesels ordered by the then new NIR in 1969, and was withdrawn in 1986.
This is the cab of one of the three DH locos which were stored at Carrick-on-Suir. The locos were generally underpowered for the work NIR required and they were relegated to shunting duties in and around Belfast in Northern Ireland. The third member of the DH locos is seen here at Carrick-on-Suir, and was the unique loco of the class painted in white with maroon stripe, rather than all over maroon livery. This is DH No.1. All three of the NIR locos were eventually sold to Beaver Power Limited, Wales. The DH locos had a Dorman 12QVT of 620 hp engine. Lamp huts were once a common feature at all railway stations, this corrugated iron built one remains at Carrick-on-Suir Station.
The goods crane and platform furniture on the down platform at Carrick-on-Suir Station.