[24-04-2007] Evening herald article on Broadstone station

[ThomasJ]

I know we are going into unchartered territory in relaying herald stories but this article in Yesterdays (Tuesday) evening might be of interest. Whether its believeable or not is another story!!!!

The train now arriving at Broadstone Station is ... 40 years late by Caroline Crawford

A new generation of Dubliners may soon see the opening of one of the city's oldest stations.
The Broadstone station, which has been closed for over 40 years, is set for a revival under ambitious plans from Iarnrod Eireann.
The move could see the beautiful station reopen it's doors within the next eight years, according to a spokesperson for Iarnrod Eireann.
"We are are in the process of planning at the moment for future development. We have such huge growth at the minute that we need all the City Centre capacity that is possible." Barry Kenny told the Evening Herald.

Mr Kenny added that the railway tracks servicing the line were "largely" still intact but added that alot of work had to be done.
The reopening of the Broadstone station would also tie in well with plans for the new Navan line which is due to open in 2015.
Mr Kenny said he expected to see the opening of the station in the "medium-term future" and suggested that it could be completed within the next five to eight years.

Broadstone is one of the city's oldest rail stations and the old building has won much praise for it's architectural style.
It was described as the most monumental of the four main railway termini in Dublin.
However passenger services at the station were withdrawn in 1937 and it was turned into a maintenance depot. The station was slosed up completely in 1961 when steam locomotives ended.

Now the historical building acts as a bus depot for Dublin Bus and Bus Eireann and its forecourt is a surface carpark.
For years now the building is better known for its grand appearance than its appearance as a railway station.
Sited on a hill, its most dramatic feature is the railway shed with huge columns. The station was designed in a neo-egyptian style and constructed of granite.

In the past there have been calls to turn it into a transport museum. However the owners of the building have been criticised by a top architectural website for allowing it to fall into such disprepair.
The news about Broadstone comes a week after the opening of the new €10m railway station in Adamstown, west Dublin.