The Timoleague and Courtmacsherry Railway was a long

light railway A light railway is a railway built at lower costs and to lower standards than typical "heavy rail": it uses lighter-weight track, and may have more steep gradients and tight curves to reduce civil engineering costs. These lighter standards allow ...

connecting Timoleague station and Courtmacsherry station. It was the last roadside railway operating in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

History

The railway was incorporated in October 1888 and opened on 21 April 1891. It was originally considered to be built as a

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

track but then executed as a

standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), International gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge and European gauge in Europe, and SGR in Ea ...

light railway, partly running along a road. There were two companies, the ''Timoleague & Courtmacsherry Light Railway'' and the ''Ballinascarthy & Timoleague Junction Light Railway'' which were both worked by the ''Timoleague & Courtmacsherry Extension Light Railway''. It became a constituent of ''Great Southern Railways'' in 1925. or according to other sources on 23 February 1891<--> It was originally operated by two locomotives, both from the

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

works of the

Hunslet Engine Company The Hunslet Engine Company is a locomotive-building company, founded in 1864 in Hunslet, England. It manufactured steam locomotives for over 100 years and currently manufactures diesel shunting locomotives. The company is part of Ed Murray & S ...

, named ''

Slaney Slaney is a surname. Notable people with this surname include: * Geoffrey Slaney (1922–2016), British surgeon and academic * Ivor Slaney (1921–1998), England musical composer and conductor * John Slaney (born 1972), Canadian ice hockey player ...

'' and '' St. Molaga''. These two were joined in 1894 by a third locomotive, again from Hunslet, with the name '' Argadeen''. Passenger services were withdrawn on 24 February 1947 due to the coal shortages. Thereafter it operated only for summer excursions and the winter beet harvest. Summer passenger excursions operated every Sunday from

Cork Albert Quay railway station Cork Albert Quay railway station was on the Cork, Bandon and South Coast Railway in County Cork, Ireland. History The station opened on 8 December 1851 with services to Bandon, County Cork. From 1866 to 1879 and 1925 to 1935 it was also the ...

and they were well supported from the small stations on route. The pace at which the trains rounded the sharp curves of the roadside track contributed to the atmosphere for which these excursions were renowned. The entire West Cork Railway terminated without warning in the autumn of 1960.Plaque near the signal post on the causeway.
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Gallery

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Timoleague and Courtmacsherry Railway Defunct railway companies of Ireland Transport in County Cork Railway companies disestablished in 1960 Closed railways in Ireland Railway lines opened in 1891 Railway lines closed in 1960