Dundalk Clarke railway station

For other uses, see Dundalk (disambiguation).

Dundalk Clarke Stáisiún Uí Chléirigh Dún Dealgan
Dundalk Clarke Railway Station
General information
Location	Carrickmacross Road, Dundalk, County Louth, A91 TD61 Ireland
Coordinates	54.002°N 6.413°W / 54.002; -6.413
Owned by	Iarnród Éireann
Operated by	Iarnród Éireann
Transit authority	TFI
Line(s)	DublinNorthern Commuter
Platforms	3
Tracks	3 (At Platforms) 8 (In Total)
Train operators	Iarnród Éireann, NI Railways
Bus routes	4
Bus operators	Bus Eireann Halpenny Travel TFI Local Link
Connections	169 170 171 918
Construction
Structure type	At-grade
Platform levels	2
Parking	Yes
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Station code	DDALK
Fare zone	E
Website	irishrail.ie/en-ie/Station/Dundalk-Clarke
History
Opened	15 February 1849 (1849-02-15)
Key dates
1849	Dundalk Junction opened
1894	Dundalk Junct. Station closed
1894	Dundalk opened
1966	Renamed as Dundalk Clarke Station
Iarnród Éireann CIÉ IÉ railway stations
Route map Year closed Great Victoria Street 2024 Belfast Grand Central Westlink / Central Junction to Lanyon Place 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
Location Dundalk Clarke Location within island of Ireland

Dundalk Clarke railway station (Irish: Stáisiún Uí Chléirigh Dún Dealgan) serves Dundalk in County Louth, Ireland.

It consists of an island platform, with a bay facing south. It is served by the Dublin-Belfast Enterprise intercity trains as well as local Commuter services to and from Dublin. There is a small museum located in one of the station buildings, displaying various railway artefacts and photographs.

History

Early days

The original station, known as Dundalk Junction, opened on 15 February 1849. It was so named because it served as the junction between the Dublin & Belfast Junction Railway and the Dundalk & Enniskillen Railway, which operated between Dundalk and Castleblayney before being extended to Clones, Enniskillen, and Cavan. This station, located south of the current one, was designed by Sir John MacNeill. The Dundalk & Enniskillen Railway line originally terminated at Quay Street and crossed the Belfast line on the level at a location known as Dundalk Square Crossing.

Great Northern Railway and a new station

In 1875, the Dublin & Belfast Junction Railway merged with the Dublin & Drogheda Railway, and the following year, it combined with the Irish North Western Railway and the Ulster Railway to form the Great Northern Railway (Ireland) (GNR). The current Dundalk Clarke station was built in June 1894 and designed by William Hamilton Mills, featuring his signature polychromatic brick style, predominantly in yellow, which is also found in stations like Lisburn, Malahide, and Howth.

With the partition of Ireland in 1921, customs controls were introduced at Dundalk for cross-border routes operated by the GNR. A police station was created on the platform with suspect, good smugglers stopped for questioning and detained. The railway also played a role in tourism and commuter transport, with services such as the Bundoran Express linking Dublin with the Donegal resort town via Dundalk.

Dundalk, Newry & Greenore Railway

In 1873, the Dundalk, Newry & Greenore Railway was established, operating from Quay Street station. It was run by the London & North Western Railway (LNWR), which influenced the locomotives, rolling stock, and station architecture. The line was absorbed into the London Midland & Scottish Railway (LMS) in 1922 and later managed by the GNR in 1933. Services ceased in 1951, though rolling stock retained LNWR colors long after they had disappeared from English tracks. One of these historic carriages is preserved at the Ulster Transport Museum in Cultra.

End of the Great Northern Railway

The GNR's financial struggles led to government control in 1952 with the formation of the Great Northern Railway Board (GNR(B)), jointly overseen by the Dublin and Stormont governments. Passenger services to Enniskillen ceased in 1957, while freight continued to Clones until 1960, with the last freight operations from Barrack Street Yard lasting until 1995.

In 1958, the GNR(B) was disbanded, and its assets were divided between Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ) in the Republic and the Ulster Transport Authority (UTA) in Northern Ireland. This led to the peculiar arrangement where locomotives were swapped at Dundalk for cross-border operations.

Memorial to the Easter Rising leader Tom Clarke in the Station

On 10 April 1966, as part of the 50th anniversary of the Easter Rising, the station was renamed "Dundalk Clarke Station" in honor of executed Rising leader Thomas Clarke.

Modern developments

CIÉ was reorganised in 1987 into separate operational entities, with Dundalk Clarke station coming under Iarnród Éireann. In January, 1995 Iarnród Eireann announced the closure of their goods yard in Barrack Street and all goods traffic would be re-located to a new £2.5m depot on the old Irish North line alignment on the Ardee Road. After this freight traffic, particularly for the Harp Brewery, was reduced significantly and in the mid-2000s, Dundalk became a passenger-only station. Which left the new freight depot abandoned and disused.

In 1996, during a renovation of the station, the track layout was simplified, leading to the removal of the sidings on the downside (line from Newry heading to Dublin), which were subsequently converted into a car park.

On 31 May 2024, the "All-Island Rail Review" was launched at Dundalk Station by Transport Minister Eamon Ryan and Northern Ireland Infrastructure Minister John O'Dowd.

Design

Dundalk Clarke railway station was designed by the first chief engineer of the Great Northern Railway, William Hemingway Mills. Known for its polychromatic brickwork featuring Italianate and Spanish stylistic influences, the station has a lattice-style footbridge connecting the elevated ticket office to the island platform below. Historically, sliding windows in the Victorian walkway let ticket office staff have direct communication with the platform and trains below.

At road level, the station houses the ticket office and waiting area, while the main station resides beneath at track level. These areas are connected by a Victorian-era covered walkway and a 21st-century lift for accessibility. The station's combination of iron, glass, and brickwork has led to it being described, by Archiseek.com, as the "finest station on the main Belfast–Dublin line".

The island platform, constructed using granolithic concrete supplied by Stewart's of Glasgow, mirrors the material's application on London streets.

GNR Railway Works

Dundalk was home to the GNR’s major engineering works, responsible for maintaining and rebuilding locomotives, carriages, wagons, and road vehicles. One of its key innovations was the railbus, designed by works managers George Howden and R.W. Meredith, featuring a unique steel-and-rubber wheel design.

After the GNR(B) was dissolved, much of the engineering facility was taken over by the Dundalk Engineering Company, which produced Heinkel Bubble Cars in the 1960s. The site also built steam heat generator vans for CIÉ using imported Dutch components, leading to them being called both "Dutch vans" and "Dundalk vans." Parts of the former depot are now used by Bus Éireann.

Services

Rail services

The station is served by Northern Commuter and Enterprise services, with destinations to Belfast Grand Central, Portadown, Dublin Connolly, and Drogheda MacBride.

Bus services

Buses serve the station from the road outside the station gate, with destinations including Carrickmacross, Inniskeen, Cavan, Shercock, and Dundalk Bus Station.

Gallery

• 
  Station exterior
• 
  Ticket barriers in the main building
• 
  View to the south from Platform 2
• 
  Platform 2 station name board
• 
  Staffed ticket office in the main building
• 
  The up platform
• 
  Museum in Dundalk Clarke station
• 
  Entrance
• 
  Station car park
• 
  Old Dundalk Central signal cabin

See also

• List of railway stations in Ireland
• Great Northern Railway of Ireland

External links

• Irish Rail Dundalk Station Website
• Eiretrains - Dundalk Station