Shelton Abbey

Shelton Abbey, in the Avoca Valley of Co.Wicklow, was the principal originating point for fertilizer traffic on Irish Rail. The Irish Fertilizer Industries opened the factory plant here beside the Dublin to Rosslare line in 1964, and later extensive sidings for handling inbound anhydrous ammonia trains from Marino Point near Cork were built on the down side of the line. There was also a siding that ran into the plant where bagged fertiliser traffic was loaded and featured a bridge crossing the Avoca River. Unfortunately the factory ceased production at the end of 2002, with the loss of both ammonia and the one time regional bagged fertilizer trains on Irish Rail. The sidings at Shelton Abbey were lifted shortly after and today the site, along with the factory, remains derelict.
29000 Class railcar No.29416 heads north past the former Shelton Abbey sidings, which served the adjacent IFI fertlizer plant until closure its closure in late 2002. No.29116 was the trailing railcar on this northbound service at Shelton Abbey. The train is passing over the former level crossing at the entrance to the IFI plant. Shelton Abbey, looking south where once sidings fanned out to the left serving the now closed IFI plant in the distance. Up to 2002, six sidings where located here, serving the IFI plant in the distance, which also had a siding leading directly into the plant for loading bagged fertilizer traffic.
The site of the former automatic barrier crossing at Shelton Abbey, which was the first type of its type to be installed on a single track line in Ireland.