Newry railway station

Newry Iúr Cinn Trá
Newry station in August 2016
General information
Location	Newry Northern Ireland
Coordinates	54.1885°N 6.3625°W / 54.1885; -6.3625
Owner	NI Railways
Line	Dublin–Belfast
Distance	Belfast Lanyon Place: 44¼ Miles Dublin Connolly: 69¼ miles
Platforms	2
Tracks	2
Train operators	NI Railways, Iarnród Éireann
Bus routes	341
Bus stands	1
Bus operators	Ulsterbus
Construction
Structure type	At-grade
Parking	Large park & ride facility
Cycle facilities	Yes
Other information
Station code	NIR: NY IÉ: NEWRY
Fare zone	4
Website	translink.co.uk/Newry
Key dates
1855	Opened as Newry Main Line
1942	Closed as Bessbrook
1984	Re-opened as Newry
2009	New station building opened
2024	Dublin commuter services cease
Passengers
2015/16	242,870
2016/17	260,033
2017/18	282,212
2018/19	307,288
2019/20	279,213
2020/21	50,542
2021/22	179,835
2022/23	307,551
2023/24	356,269
2024/25	397,919
2025/26	571,532
Services
Preceding station NI Railways Following station Dundalk Clarke towards Dublin Connolly Enterprise Portadown towards Belfast Grand Central Poyntzpass towards Belfast Grand Central Portadown Line Terminus
Former services
Preceding station Iarnród Éireann Following station Dundalk Clarke towards Dublin Connolly Commuter Northern Commuter (1 train per day in each direction; until September 2024) Terminus
NI Railways Translink NI railway stations
Route map (Click to expand) 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 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 Belfast–Dublin line United Kingdom Ireland border Dundalk Clarke to Navan (freight only) Drogheda MacBride Laytown Mosney 2000 Gormanston Balbriggan Skerries Rush and Lusk Donabate Malahide Portmarnock Clongriffin DART Howth Branch Howth Junction & Donaghmede Kilbarrack Raheny Harmonstown Killester Clontarf Road The Royal Canal Dublin Connolly Luas Red Line to Tallaght or Saggart Loopline Bridge Tara Street Dublin Pearse Dublin-Rosslare line to Bray and Rosslare Europort
Location Newry Location within Northern Ireland Newry Location within island of Ireland
Notes Passenger figures do not include Iarnród Éireann Northern Commuter services

Newry railway station (Irish: Stáisiún Traenach Iúr Cinn Trá) serves the city of Newry and the village of Bessbrook in Northern Ireland. The station is located in the northwest of Newry, County Armagh on the Dublin-Belfast line close to the Craigmore Viaduct. It is the most southerly railway station in Northern Ireland.

The current station building (constructed in 2009) features 2 platforms that are accessible by a footbridge with lifts and inside the station concourse there is a ticket office and ticket machines, as well as toilets, vending machines and seats. The entrance to the platforms from the station concourse is closed off by a gate which is only opened by staff members around 10 minutes before scheduled departures.

Translink Ulsterbus operates a free of charge bus service from outside the station to Newry city centre for rail ticket holders.

History

Newry rail lines c. 1910

The port of Newry was already a transport hub by 1742 with the opening of the Newry Canal to Lough Neagh. By the start of the twentieth century Newry had become a railway hub, with the Belfast to Dublin line passing to the west of the town, while lines from the ports of Warrenpoint and Greenore either side of Carlingford Lough converged closer to the centre of town where stations were more conveniently situated. All converged at Goraghwood to the north of Newry where a line also diverged off to the north-west towards Armagh.

The current Newry station originally opened in 1855 as Newry Main Line, renamed Bessbrook & Newry Main Line in 1866, renamed again as Bessbrook in 1880 before closing in 1942.

With this closure Newry was served by the Edward Street station, however this was to close with the Warrenpoint branch in 1965, leaving Newry with no railway station.

The station re-opened in 1984 as an NIR Intercity station, with basic facilities such as a temporary booking office. These facilities remained in place for over 20 years from the station's opening by which time their condition was deteriorating. In order to improve facilities for passengers a modern new station building was constructed and officially opened on 26 November 2009.

Other stations in Newry

• Albert Basin, on the canal branch.
• Armagh Road, temporary station at Mullaghlass on main line. Opened as Newry, Armagh Road 6 January 1852, renamed 'Mullaghglass' 1 April 1854, closed 1 January 1856.
• Bridge Street, Dundalk, Newry and Greenore Railway station. Opened 1 August 1876, closed 10 August 1882 to 1 April 1884, reduced to halt status 1 November 1932, closed 1 January 1952.
• Dublin Bridge, Newry, Warrenpoint and Rostrevor Railway (NW&RR). Opened 2 September 1861, closed 4 January 1965.
• Edward Street, Opened by the Newry and Armagh Railway (then Newry and Enniskillen) on 1 March 1854 and closed 4 January 1965.
• Kilmorey Street, Original terminus of NW&RR. Opened 9 May 1849. All traces gone by 1903 as not in Railway Clearing House listings for that year.

Service

The station is a calling point on the Enterprise express service, which operates between Belfast Grand Central and Dublin Connolly. These trains call at Newry for both destinations, operating approximately hourly throughout most of the day. There are also a limited number of local services to and from Belfast Grand Central, operated by NI Railways, with additional services terminating at or originating from Portadown.

On Sundays, Enterprise services operate at a reduced frequency, alongside a limited number of local NI Railways services between Newry, Portadown and Belfast Grand Central.

Additionally, until September 2024, two peak-time services were operated each day to and from Newry by Iarnród Éireann. The first was the 06:30 service to Dublin Connolly, stopping at Commuter stations between Newry and Dublin Connolly, except Gormanston, Portmarnock, Clongriffin, and Howth Junction & Donaghmede. The first peak service to Newry began in January 2018, when the 17:13 service from Dublin Pearse was extended to Newry from Dundalk Clarke. These services were discontinued following the timetable change in September 2024.

Gallery

• 
  Newry station in August 2009
• 
  Enterprise train arrives at Newry on a Dublin bound service in 2006
• 
  Craigmore Viaduct with the Mournes in the distance, seen from Bessbrook near Newry station
• 
  Former platform sign at Newry station
• 
  The modern day Enterprise departing Newry station
• 
  Station entrance
• 
  Station building (2024)
• 
  Wall plaques commemorating the opening of the new station building in 2009

References

Sources

• Campbell, John (1988). "The Newry and Armagh Railway and Lissummon Tunnel" (PDF). Lest we Forget... No. 2. Poyntzpass: Poyntzpass and District Local History Society. pp. 67–83. Archived (PDF) from the original on 11 November 2020.
• Office of Department for Regional Development (26 November 2009). "Northern Ireland's Transport Minister opens Newry railway station" (Press release). Washington D.C.: HT Digital Streams Limited. ProQuest 470960276. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
• Patterson, Edward Mervyn (2003). The Great Northern Railway (Ireland). Oakwood. ISBN 0-85361-602-7. OCLC 53393781.
• Sinclair, Ian McLarnon (2009) [2002]. Along Uta Lines — Ulster's Rail Transport in the 1960's (2 ed.). Newtownards: Colourpoint Books. ISBN 9781906578497. OCLC 1280784854. OL 32804763M.