Laois train station in line for major award

18th February 2019

One of Ireland’s busiest regional rail stations is in line for recognition this week as one of the top train stations in the country.

The Irish Rail Awards will be announced on Thursday and Portlaoise has been nominated in the Best Station of the Year category.

It’s good news for Station Manager, Ray Delaney and his team at Portlaoise.

“We are delighted to be nominated. It puts us in the top ten stations in the country and it’s something positive and that’s welcome,” says Ray, who has worked for Irish Rail for over 30 years.

These days he not only heads up a five man team in Portlaoise but also has responsibility for all the mainline stations between Portlaoise and Sallins, that’s six in all.

That’s a far cry from when stations like Portlaoise and Portarlington had dozens of staff in their own right and were major freight centres.

“These days it’s all about commuters,” explains Ray, who is also glad that there is some progress in sight for the station’s chronic shortage of car parking.

Laois County Council recently announced plans to provide 100 new parking spaces adjacent to the station on the former CBS grounds.

Portlaoise station is operational from 5am to midnight, seven days a week.

“The first train every morning is at 5.40am and there could be up to 50 people taking that service,” explains Ray.

With 55 trains servicing Portlaoise daily it is by far one of the busiest in the country.

An early morning commuter service arrives at Portlaoise

“We are very much in the commuter belt now,” says Ray, while as part of the changing times, operations like the parcels office and the Fastrack service at the station have closed.

Gone too are the days of the signals and signals men. Everything is automated and computerised now.

Station Manager, Ray Delaney with his colleague Ger O’ Connor. Ger’s father was formerly station master in Portlaoise.

This a far cry from when the station was first established in 1847. Portlaoise too has a strong association with the birth of the Irish railway network through Laoisman, William Dargan (1799-1867) renowned as the Father of Irish Railways and commemorated by a special plaque at Portlaoise.

The station building itself retains much of its original stonework and architecture from that era, as well as its old footbridge, although no longer in use

Staff at Portlaoise train station pictured in the 1920’s. Much of the station’s original buildings and architecture remain intact.

The station of the year awards will be announced in Inchicore this Thursday, February 21. Customer satisfaction, facilities, cleanliness and punctuality will all be taken in to consideration.