Port Soderick Railway Station (

Manx Manx (; formerly sometimes spelled Manks) is an adjective (and derived noun) describing things or people related to the Isle of Man: * Manx people **Manx surnames * Isle of Man It may also refer to: Languages * Manx language, also known as Manx ...

: ''Stashoon Raad Yiarn Phurt Soderick'') is the first station on the Port Erin line of the

Isle of Man Railway The Isle of Man Railway (IMR) ( gv, Raad Yiarn Vannin) is a narrow gauge steam-operated railway connecting Douglas with Castletown and Port Erin on the Isle of Man. The line is narrow gauge and long. It is the remainder of what was a mu ...

and is located near the settlement of the same name on the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = " O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europ ...

. It forms part of the sole remaining section of the railway which once served a 46-mile network across the island.

Access

The B23 road between Douglas and the village provides vehicular access to the station and passes through a tunnel underneath the line after which the station driveway is directly to the left of the road.

Locale

To the eastern end of the station the railway passes over the main road by means of a large stone bridge; at the southerly end the line passes into Crogga Woods from where can be seen the large house and miniature railway.

Development

The station was originally provided with a basic wooden building but by 1898 it had become clear that the popularity of the nearby resort demanded a more substantial building; to this end, the current grandiose station was erected and included station masters' residence, refreshment rooms and booking facilities; the latter has been retained as part of the private house but only as a feature and the station is no longer staffed.

Origins

The station was built primarily to serve the popular coastal resort which is a short walk from the station via one of the

Manx National Glens Manx National Glens is a collective term for a series of glens in the Isle of Man which have been officially designated as tourist attractions. They are maintained by the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture. The island is known for ...

. Although largely derelict today, this resort was once a hugely popular destination for tourists

Electric Tramway

The resort was also once served by the

Douglas Head Marine Drive and Electric Tramway Douglas Southern Electric Tramway (Manx: ''Raad Yiarn Lectragh Jiass Ghoulish'') was a standard gauge tramway between the top of Douglas Head on the Isle of Man and the nearby resort of Port Soderick. The route ran atop the cliffs and crossed a ...

which took a spectacular coastal route from

Douglas Head Douglas Head (Manx: ''Kione Ghoolish'') is a rocky point on the Isle of Man overlooking Douglas Bay and harbour. Views extend to include Snaefell Mountain and Laxey. General Until 1870, the headland was owned by The Nunnery Estate when Sir ...

to a point above the beach; this tramway was established in 1896 and closed in 1939 upon the outbreak of war. A landslide on part of the route saw that it never opened again although the route was modified and operated by omnibuses for a number of years.

Other Transport

Owing to the popularity of the venue it was also served by ferry boats,

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s and of course the railway. So popular was the place that the station boasts the only full-height platform at an intermediate station on the south line other than Port St. Mary which, at one time, was intended as the southern terminus.

Improvements

In 2002 all stations received platforms, and the little used passing loop at this station received another (seldom used) full-height platform on the "down" side, together with waiting shelter, indicative of the management policy to provide passenger facilities at each station, seemingly regardless of how well patronised the stations were.

Crogga Valley Railway

To the south of the station is a 7¼ inch gauge miniature railway which is visible from the land side of passing trains. The railway, that runs around the grounds of the house of the same name, is not open to the public.

Manx Nameboards

For the start of the 2008 season the station was adorned with new bi-lingual station nameboards; differing from all other stations on the line insofar as one side (the "up" platform) has the name in English, and the other (the "down" platform, which is rarely used) is in Manx, stating "Purt" as opposed to "Port"; the nameboards feature a yellowy-cream lettering with black shadowing on a maroon coloured back board, the now-standard livery of station nameboards on the line.

Residents

The station building is still extant but in private ownership, having been converted from a derelict state in the 1980s. Previous owners included

Alex Lloyd (racing driver) Alex Stewart Lloyd (born December 28,1984) is a British former motor racing driver. He was close friends with multiple Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton during his karting and early career. Early career Lloyd was born in Manchester, ...

. It is an imposing large structure, more latterly replaced by two wooden shelters on each platform. The "down" platform was added in 2002 when much of the railway was re-laid as part of the

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scheme.

Today

The station remains open but unstaffed; there are two wooden shelters on the platforms. A further small hut stood at the easterly end of the station to provide accommodation for station staff at the rare times when the station is used for passing of trains until it was destroyed in a storm in 2012.

Incident

On 19 May 2008 there was an incident at the station involving a van and oncoming train which resulted in a collision of the two. The matter was widely reported in the media but as the train was travelling no faster than 5 miles per hour no injuries were sustained. There was however much damage to the

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van and remedial damage to the wooden

buffer beam A headstock of a rail vehicle is a transverse structural member located at the extreme end of the vehicle's underframe. The headstock supports the coupling at that end of the vehicle, and may also support buffers, in which case it may also be ...

of the 1874-built locomotive which was involved. Local emergency services attended but train operations were continued later in the same day; a health and safety report has since been commissioned into the incident.

Route

References

* James I.C. Boyd ''Isle Of Man Railway, Volume 3, The Routes & Rolling Stock'' (1996) * Norman Jones ''Scenes from the Past: Isle of Man Railway'' (1994) * Robert Hendry ''Rails in the Isle of Man: A Colour Celebration'' (1993) * A.M Goodwyn ''Manx Transport Kaleidoscope'', 2nd Edition (1995)