The Harcourt Street Line: Back on Track

Brian Mac Aongusa revisits the Harcourt Street Line of his youth and reviews its operation through steam, Drumm battery and diesel trains. He recalls the Line's patrons from 'Boss Croker' to Samuel Beckett and from Brendan Behan to the thousands of men, women and excited children who thronged Harcourt Street station to join the 'Sea Breeze' excursions to Wicklow and Arklow. Illustrated by many of his own photographs, the author captures a bygone era when Station Masters had plenty of time to tend their prize-winning hedges and workers were able to travel home from Dublin and back again during their lunch-break.
The author poses the question 'Why was the Harcourt Street Line closed in 1958?' An answer is suggested in the context of that time, but the validity of that answer was continually questioned up until 1994 when Luas was born. Few would have believed forty years ago that any kind of train could ever again run along the trackbed of the Harcourt Street Line. Yet, by 2004, Luas Line B will have been built along half its length as far as Sandyford, in what is hoped to be the first stage in the reopening of most of the old railway route by 2008. This is truly a story of 'back on track'.

Brian Mac Aongusa has lived all his life in south County Dublin and has been keenly interested in railway policy and operation since he first joined the Irish Railway Record Society in 1949. Educated at Colaiste Mhuire and University College Dublin, he pursued a public service career for over forty years in the Department of Finance and RTE, becoming Controller of Programmes, RTE Radio I in 1983. He was the first Chief Executive of Gael-Linn in 1988-1996. Through his public service career, he gained a valuable insight into public transport policy in Ireland.