Waterford & Suir Valley Railway Company CLG
Waterford
& Suir Valley Railway Company CLG ( operating as Waterford Suir Valley
Railway) is a social enterprise and registered charity. It was set up to
preserve and promote Irelands rich railway heritage. It has done this by preserving a 10 kilometre
section of the abandoned Waterford to Cork railway from Kilmeadan Station to
Bilberry outside Waterford City. It has developed a heritage narrow gauge
railway on the line and has operated it as a tourist attraction since 2003. The
Company has restored Kilmeadan Station to a vibrant operating station. Storyboards
around the station and on its website tell the Story of Rail.
where your money goes
Waterford & Suir Valley Railway Company CLG has
finally achieved its ambition to own a steam locomotive following the decision
of the National Trust UK to donate a steam locomotive to the charity.
The locomotive known as Kettering Furnaces No. 3, is 3 foot narrow gauge, built by Black Hawthorn & Co in 1885. It spent the whole of its working life on the 3 foot Kettering Coal and Iron Company Ltd system in Northamptonshire. The railway closed in 1962 and the locomotive was soon after transferred to the Penrhyn Castle Museum where it has since been preserved indoors by the National Trust. The Kettering Furnaces No. 3 locomotive, last fired up in the early 1960’s, is complete including all brass work. However, it will require considerable work to bring it back to full operating condition so that it meets all the current safety requirements of the Commission for Railway Regulation in relation to the operation of steam on a heritage railway.
WSVR Board has entrusted the restoration of this
unique locomotive to an engineering works in the North of England which has
extensive experience in the manufacture of new build locomotives as well as the
restoration of steam locomotives similar to the Kettering Furnaces No. 3
locomotive.
The restoration
will be carried out in several phases, each to be determined following
assessment. It will be an expensive but rewarding project. For instance, if a new boiler is required,
which is very likely, the cost will be in region of €100,000.00. The total
restoration is estimated to be €250,000.00. Along with the considerable cost of restoring the
Kettering Furnaces No. 3 locomotive a number of infrastructural changes at
Kilmeadan Station will be required to facilitate operating with steam.
Waterford &
Suir Valley Railway Company CLG will fundraise for each phase of the work. If you would like to see a steam locomotive
once again journey along the banks of the River Suir, please support this
exciting project. As a registered
charity all revenue generated is invested into the development of the project.
history
Waterford Suir Valley Railway Company CLG was established in 2000 and has since developed one of the most successful tourist attractions in the South East, attracting close to 30,000 visitors annually as well as providing welcome rest facilities for visitors to Waterford Greenway.