# Lurgan railway station

Lurgan railway station serves Lurgan in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. Located on William Street. The station is managed by NI Railways. With just under 867,000 passengers boarding or alighting at the station in the year 2023/24 financial year, Lurgan is the 9th-busiest station on the NIR network.

## History

The station opened on 18 November 1841 by the Ulster Railway. Following the merger of the Ulster Railway to the new company Great Northern Railway. The station was rebuilt in 1897 designed by William H. Mills to reflect the new Great Northern Railway's style. After GNRI was liquidated in 1958 ownership of the station fell on the newly formed Ulster Transport Authority, then temporarily became Ulster Transport Railways (UTR) before being taken over by Northern Ireland Railways (NIR) in 1968. It briefly known as "Craigavon East" for a time back in the 1970s. On 22 July 1972, the original Great Northern Railway station building was destroyed by a paramilitary bomb, and subsequently the current station building was erected.

## Railway station

The layout of the railway station nowadays is a side platform. Trains to the north and east, such as those to Belfast Grand Central and Lisburn, are served by Platform 2, while trains to the south and west, such as those to Portadown, Newry, and Dublin Connolly station, are served by Platform 1. Additionally, there is a level crossing with the A76 (M1 to Lurgan town road) to the east of the station. The station has two entrances, one on either side of the street. Additionally, it has a staffed ticket office, plenty of seating, covered footbridge and toilets.

## Service
### Train Services

Mondays to Saturdays there is a half-hourly service towards Portadown or Newry in one direction and to Lisburn and Belfast Grand Central in the other. Extra services run at peak times, and the service reduces to hourly operation in the evenings.
On Sundays there is an hourly service in each direction. There is also a Sunday-only Enterprise service with one morning train (0836) to Dublin Connolly and one train in the evening to [Belfast Grand Central (2239).
| Preceding station | | Northern Ireland Railways | | Following station |
| Moira | | Northern Ireland Railways Belfast-Newry | | Portadown |
| Lisburn | | Enterprise Belfast-Dublin (Sundays only) | | Portadown |
| | Historical railways | Historical railways | Historical railways | |
| Pritchard's Bridge Line open, station closed | | Ulster Railway Belfast-Seagoe | | Seagoe Line open, station closed |
| Pritchard's Bridge Line open, station closed | | Ulster Railway Belfast-Portadown | | Portadown Line and station open |

### Bus Services

Mondays to Saturdays there is 4 Ulsterbus Town Services operating on the William Street road outside the station. On Sundays there is no services and some morning services only operate on School days. Some routes operate on an hourly service and others operate on a bihourly schedule.
| Preceding station | Ulsterbus | Following station |
| Terminus | Ulsterbus Town services 352a | Annaloist McAlindens Corner |
| Terminus | Ulsterbus Town Services 352b | Lurgan Avenue Road |
| Terminus | Ulsterbus Town Services 352c | Lurgan Drumnamoe |
| Terminus | Ulsterbus Town Services 352c | Lurgan Taghnevan Drive |

## Redevelopment of the Site

On 25 October 2023, Translink the parent company of the operator of Lurgan Railway Station NI Railways, submitted a Proposal of Application Notice to ABC Council (Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council). The Plans included demolishing the current 1960s station and adjacent abandoned Musgrave Marketplace to replace it with a new "Railway Passenger Facility". This will include a new station building, a new park and ride facility, shelters on both platforms and a bike/pedestrian bridge connecting both platforms. Work is expected to cost around £20 million and a scheduled start date of Autumn 2025

## Gallery

* Lurgan station after the 1972 attacks
* An NIR 80-class DEMU approaching Lurgan in 2001
* 9004 Enterprise (train service) approaching Lurgan in 2006
* Class 4000 NIR loading passengers at Lurgan in 2015
* Class 4000 Approaching Lurgan 2014
* Class 4000 Train crossing William Street level crossing outside Lurgan Train Station in 2012