Tuam railway station

Coordinates: 53°30′41″N 8°51′13″W / 53.51139°N 8.85361°W Tuam railway station is a planned railway station intended to serve the town of Tuam in County Galway.

History

The station was originally opened in 1860 as part of the Waterford, Limerick and Western Railway route between Limerick and Sligo, and was the major stop on the section between Athenry and Claremorris, being the only station on this section with two platforms and a passing loop. In 1901, the WLWR was purchased by the Great Southern and Western Railway, and thus became part of the GSWR's network. Tuam also featured an extensive goods yard and locomotive facitilities. The station was closed, along with the whole route, in 1976 during Córas Iompair Éireann's rationalisation of the rail network.^[1]

After its closure to passenger trains, the goods facilities at Tuam continued to be heavily used, as the route remained a significant one for freight. The carriage and locomotive sheds were also used by a group called Westrail. This was a railway preservation group that operated trains between Athenry, Tuam and Claremorris until 1993, when Tuam station was closed as a block post.

Future

As part of the Transport 21 plan, the Limerick-Sligo route is to rebuilt in stages as the Western Railway Corridor. The reopening of the Athenry-Claremorris section has been planned in two sections.

Section 1 will see the section between Athenry and Tuam reopen, with an intermediate stop at Ballyglunin; the section between Tuam and Claremorris will open as Section 2.^[2] Due to financial constraints in public finances both sections are indefinitely postposed but Irish Rail's Rail Vision 2030 report recommends Galway-Tuam to be a priority for review when finances become available.^[3]

Preceding station	Iarnród Éireann			Following station
	Future : WRC Phase 2
Ballyglunin		Commuter Limerick-Tuam		Terminus
	Future : WRC Phase 3
Ballyglunin		Commuter Limerick-Claremorris		Milltown

Railfreight

The line through the station has been used to transport intermodal containers.

The former Asahi liner train bringing intermodal containers through the station.

References

1. Tuam station - eiretrains.com
2. Western Rail Corridor - Transport 21
3. Irish Rail 'Rail Vision 2030' Report