END OF THE ROAD FOR CASTLE DEMUS
Published at 00:00 on Wednesday 25th January 2012
Tags: Irish Rail
On Sunday 18th February the Modern Railway Society of Ireland (MRSI) will be commemorating the anticipated end of Class 450 DMUs in Northern Ireland.
The '450s', otherwise known as the Castle class, have been a fixture on the Larne line since their introduction in 1989. The DMUs were constructed in Derby using the then standard BT Mk 3 Sprinter 20-metre body and mounted on underframes recovered from redundant Mk1 coaches together with their bogies. The engines, DC generators and control equipment used were those recovered from the withdrawn 70 class units. Although named after castles in Northern Ireland, the general title of Castle class has never really caught on.
As the units were essentially intended for suburban use, their interiors were basic, but this did not prevent the sets seeing network usage as well as 'Derry' trains, but the introduction of the CAF 3000 units has recently resulted in the '450s' being confined to Larne and Portrush trains, and the subsequent introduction of the CAF 4000 stock will mean the end of the road for the Derby-built units. Presently there are just three sets remaining in traffic, the MRSI having taken the opportunity to operate a rail tour featuring lines that will never see the units in action again. One of the highlights of the tour is planned to be the first visit of a member of the class, in passenger service, to Dundalk for 10 years, as well as taking in the 'mothballed' Antrim to Lisburn, via Crumlin line, and the return to routes that have not seen a '450' since the introduction of the CAF sets.
The intended route is a departure from Belfast Central at around 08.55 for Dundalk, Belfast, Bangor, Belfast Central, Antrim, and Lisburn and back to Belfast Central. For more details and booking arrangements, see the MRSI website.
