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  Frequently Asked Questions...

ArrowDo I have to book?
ArrowDo trains only run on the days listed here?
ArrowCan I visit outside of advertised running days?
ArrowAre dogs allowed?
ArrowCan you take Visa/Mastercard/etc.?

ArrowYou say you're the only steam railway in Ireland, what about...?
ArrowAre you part of the RPSI?
ArrowWhere does the train go?
ArrowDo you have a circle of track?
ArrowI thought you were called...
ArrowI've heard of the Belfast and County Down Railway Museum Trust, are you them?
ArrowAre you getting any of NIR's old trains?
ArrowHow are you funded?
ArrowAre you really all volunteers?
ArrowHow can I join/volunteer?
ArrowI'm researching my family history, and a member of my family worked on the railways, do you have any records?

 

Do I have to book?
No! All our fares are payable directly at the ticket counter in Downpatrick station - all you have to do is turn up. If you're bringing a large group down, however, of say over 30 people, then it is probably advisable to ring ahead in order to reserve your seats. We cannot take advance bookings for groups below 10 people.

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Do trains run only run on the days listed here?
Well, it depends on what you mean by a train! Passenger trains are limited to those days listed on the Visitors' Information page. However, in between public running days there is plenty of maintenance to be done and a works train is usually out every week, usually on Wednesdays, Mondays, Fridays or Saturdays. There are also numerous private charters throughout the year. So, the railway is quite busy with trains, but not necessarily always ones that carry passengers!
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Can I visit outside of advertised running days?
Absolutely! We work on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, so our gates are always open - just come on in and someone will take you around the site. Please don't be upset if the first person you speak to can't do this - there's usually a good reason, like drying paintbrushes, glue drying, or someone left up a ladder looking a tool!
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Are dogs allowed?
Dogs are welcome, the only restriction is the buffet carriage, for obvious reasons. Guide dogs are most welcome, and travel free.
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Can you take Visa/Mastercard/etc.?
Yes, we can now take credit cards.
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You say you're the only steam railway in Ireland, what about so and so?
No, we say that we're the only operating full-size heritage railway in Ireland, our friends at the RPSI in Whitehead operate on NIR and Irish Rail tracks - they don't have their own line, and our friends in the Giant's Causeway and Bushmills Railway, Fintown, etc., are all narrow gauge railways (i.e. the width between the rails is 3ft, not 5ft 3in). For instance, an NIR train could run on our lines but not at the Giant's Causeway.
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Are you part of the RPSI?
No, we're an independent organisation although many of our members have RPSI membership and vice versa, since we all love the same thing - just in a different context. Our two organisations do belong to the umbrella Heritage Railway Association.
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Where does the train go?
From 2005 the trains have been running just over two miles to the ruins of the Cistercian Inch Abbey, and when this opened it was the first time we actually had a destination, rather than just stopping the train in the middle of a field.
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Do you have a circle of track?
No! Our line is built on an original railway line that was closed in 1950 - so the lines did go somewhere back in the past - it's not like a toy train set! Although we do have a triangle of track, which is an original feature of the BCDR layout.
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I thought you were called...
You're probably right. We've had various names over the past. We started off life as the Downpatrick and Ardglass Railway (D&AR) as we had originally to completely reopen the old BCDR branch line to Ardglass. This was then dropped and Downpatrick Steam Railway adopted in its place (although D&AR remained as the official company name for sometime) but with perfect timing the boiler ticket on 'Guinness' expired and we had to adopt "Downpatrick Railway Museum" which was used from 1996-2005. There was also a supporter's association known as the Downpatrick Railway Society (DRS).

In 2003 a Down District Council sponsored survey into the railway concluded that quite a few potential visitors thought that the railway was a smaller version of the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum, and as they had visited there, why would they want to visit another? A similar result was discovered by a University of Ulster student's thesis.

An opinion poll was carried out amongst our membership about what name they would like the railway to be called - the choices ranged from retention of the current name, re-adoption of Downpatrick Steam Railway, a name that provided a link to the old railway companies of the past - Downpatrick & Co. Down Railway (DCDR) or something else entirely. Downpatrick Railway Museum only secured 3% of the vote, while DCDR secured a massive 52%.

Following amalgamation of the two organisations that ran the railway (the DRS and the D&AR Co. Ltd. - see Latest News) the newly elected Management Committee's first decision was to ratify the members' choice as the new name for the organisation, with DAR Co. Ltd. officially being dropped and "Downpatrick & County Down Railway Society" registered with Companies House.

A new crest for the DCDR has been designed, and the new name was officially "launched" at the beginning of March 2005.
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I've heard of the Belfast and County Down Railway Museum Trust, are you them?
No, we're not. The BCDRMT was set up in the early 1970s with the aim of restoring the BCDR Ballynahinch branch, from Ballynahinch Junction to the town. However, the scheme was unable to get off the ground, and while the BCDRMT still does issue various announcements and proposals, we are in no way connected with these ventures.
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Are you getting any of NIR's old trains?
80 Class
You're probably referring to what are officially called the 80 Class railcars. The simple answer is: we don't know. First of all, NIR have retained a number for continued service, and secondly there are other issues that we have to consider, such as cost of purchase and transport, the usefulness of the vehicle and the availability of spare parts to keep the unit operational.
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How are you funded?
Mostly from the fares we charge our passengers. We also benefit greatly from donations and sponsorship from ordinary people and local businesses. For major projects we usually try to source grant aid from organisations such as the Northern Ireland Museums Council, the Heritage Lottery Fund, amongst others.
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Are you really all volunteers?
Yes, we have around 40-50 volunteers who do everything, from restoring coaches to rebuilding locomotives to manning the ticket office. We only have one employee, a part time administrator funded by Down District Council who keeps us on the right track...!
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How can I join/volunteer?
Joining couldn't be easier, just print off the form available here and send it in to us! To volunteer, just bring yourself along any Wednesday or Saturday and introduce yourself. Usually you'll given a tour of the various projects being undertaken and you're free to work on any that take your fancy. We know it's hard giving up a day of your weekend, and that you mightn't be able to make it every single week, so don't let that stop you! We don't mind how often you come down, as long as you do!
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I'm researching my family history, and a member of my family worked on the railways, do you have any records?
If you are contacting us regards research into a member of your family who might have worked on the old BCDR, we will be happy to hear from you but cannot guarantee that we will be able to help - most of the official records of the BCDR went to the Public Records Office in Belfast, and they tended not to have employment records as we would understand them.

However for any of the other railway companies the Irish Railway Record Society has opened an email service at irrsie@gmail.com. This address should be used in the first instance for anyone who might wish to contact them with enquiries about realtives who have most of the surviving archive material from old railway companies in their care. The IRRS also publishes their 'Records of the Irish Transport Genalogical Archive' which is a great help to those researching their family history. They do not possess BCDR records however.

Other sources of information include the 1911 census from the Irish National Archive, which has recently placed on-line a free searchable edition of the census, which includes images of the original census forms filled in by heads of households. It was the last census before 1926, owing to the War of Independence and the Civil War. It is hoped to have the 1901 census on-line by the late spring of 2010. Records from all 32 counties are accessible, as this was conducted by the British Government before the partition of Ireland.
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