If Armagh-Portadown is to be the first of the old Great Northern Railway lines to get reopened, it's vitally important that we get it right so that we prove the concept and serve as an example to how to get railway service restored to other towns and cities that lost it in the 1950s. The location of the station has major implications for passenger numbers, the viability of the line, and also future development and land-use in the area surrounding the station. Putting the station on the edge of town and hoping that people drive to it is not going to cut it. The station needs to be in town where people can walk to and from it. If visitors to Armagh have to take a bus or taxi from the station to get into town, Newry style, they're going to be more likely to just drive all the way.
If we get it right, we may be able to open up the possibility of re-establishing rail services farther down the line to Keady-Castelblayney-Dundalk, and Monaghan-Clones. As breathtaking as it would be to see Translink DMUs running on the Tassagh Viaduct that has lain dormant for too long, this is not about nostalgia. Connecting Armagh to other towns in its hinterland will further improve the viability of the Portadown-Armagh line. This is about a solid economic and business case for putting this station back where it was. The GNR got it right first time.
Items discussed in the video:
Berryessa BART station urban village, City of San Jose:
www.sanjoseca.gov/your-govern...
Article by SPUR on Berryessa station:
www.spur.org/news/2018-07-12/...
Rail + Property Development: A model of sustainable transit finance and urbanism
escholarship.org/uc/item/6jx3...
The Public Wealth of Cities
How to Unlock Hidden Assets to Boost Growth and Prosperity
By Dag Detter and Stefan Fölster
www.brookings.edu/book/the-pu...