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Yorkgate railway station

Coordinates: 54°36′38″N 5°55′20″W / 54.6105°N 5.9223°W / 54.6105; -5.9223
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Yorkgate
NI Railways
Yorkgate station in 2009
General information
LocationBelfast
Northern Ireland
Coordinates54°36′38″N 5°55′20″W / 54.6105°N 5.9223°W / 54.6105; -5.9223
Owned byNI Railways
Operated byNI Railways
Platforms2
Tracks2
Construction
Structure typeAt-grade
Other information
StatusClosed
Key dates
1992Opened
27 April 2024[1]Closed, replaced by York Street railway station
6 May 2024Station buildings demolished
Passengers
2022/23533,882 [2]
2023/24Increase 647,022 [3]
Location
Yorkgate is located in Northern Ireland
Yorkgate
Yorkgate
Location within Northern Ireland
Map

Yorkgate railway station served the north of the city of Belfast, Northern Ireland. The station opened in 1992, replacing the previous York Road railway station nearby. The station was in turn replaced by the nearby York Street station in 2024, with the new station re-using the existing platforms of Yorkgate.[4][1]

History

[edit]

Following the demolition of York Road station in 1992, a new station had to be constructed to serve the in-development Cross Harbour Rail Link.

Yorkgate station was therefore constructed to the side of the original site of York Road station and served as a temporary terminus for Larne Line services until the completion of the high-level Dargan Bridge, which joined the Larne Line to the rest of the NIR network at Lanyon Place, allowing services to run from Yorkgate directly through to the city.

The rest of the site of York Road station is now occupied by Northern Ireland Railways' central maintenance depot, while the old works remain, a few yards to the north and backing onto York Road itself. The majority of the depot is visible when passing by train.

Following the opening of York Street railway station, the buildings of Yorkgate station were demolished in May 2024.[5]

Service at closure

[edit]

From Monday to Friday, there was a half-hourly Larne Line service, with the outbound terminus alternating between Whitehead and Larne Harbour every half an hour. All inbound Larne Line services terminated at Great Victoria Street, except for some early morning and late night services which only travelled as far as Lanyon Place.

Larne Line services on Saturday retained their half-hourly operation, but there were fewer peak-time trains. On Sundays, the service reduced to hourly operation.[6]

Weekday services on the Derry~Londonderry Line also called at Yorkgate on an hourly basis. All inbound services operated to Great Victoria Street, with some peak time services terminating at Lanyon Place. Outbound trains alternated hourly between services to Derry~Londonderry, and services to Coleraine, most of which continued on to Portrush via the Coleraine-Portrush railway line.

On Saturdays, there was a slightly reduced number of Derry~Londondery Line trains, but remains largely similar. On Sundays, the service reduced to seven trains in each direction operating on a two-hourly basis. All services operated between Great Victoria Street and Derry~Londonderry, except for the final train of the day, which only operated as far as Coleraine.[7]

Preceding station   Northern Ireland Railways   Following station
Lanyon Place   Northern Ireland Railways
Belfast-Derry
  Whiteabbey
  Northern Ireland Railways
Belfast-Larne
 

Port of Belfast

[edit]

Yorkgate was the nearest station to the Port of Belfast. Sailings travelled from here to Cairnryan, where there was a bus link to Stranraer or Ayr.[8] From here, onward connections can be made along the Glasgow South Western Line to Glasgow Central.

Preceding station   Ferry   Following station
Port of Belfast
(via Metro Service 96)
  Stena Line
Ferry
  Stranraer or Ayr
(via bus link from Cairnryan)
Port of Belfast
(via Metro Service 96)
  Stena Line
Ferry
  Port of Liverpool
Port of Belfast
(via Metro Service 96)
  Isle of Man Steam Packet
Ferry(seasonal)
  Douglas

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "York Street: New train station opens in north Belfast". BBC News. 29 April 2024. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  2. ^ "FOI1317 NIR Footfall 2223.xlsx". www.whatdotheyknow.com. 17 April 2023. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  3. ^ "FOI Footfall 2023 2024 figures PDF.pdf". www.whatdotheyknow.com. 7 May 2024. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
  4. ^ "IN PICTURES: Plan to raze one of Belfast's main train stations to the ground". www.newsletter.co.uk. 16 May 2021.
  5. ^ "New train station at Belfast's York Street will now cost more than £10m, Translink boss confirms". 13 March 2024.
  6. ^ "Timetable: Larne Line" (PDF). Northern Ireland Railways. 6 January 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2013.[permanent dead link]
  7. ^ "Timetable: Derry~Londonderry Line" (PDF). Northern Ireland Railways. 24 March 2013. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
  8. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 21 October 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)