Dalkey Atmospheric Railway
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The Dalkey Atmospheric Railway (March 29, 1844 - April 12, 1854) was an extension of the Dublin and Kingstown Railway to Atmospheric Rd. in Dalkey. It used part of the earlier Dalkey Quarry industrial tramway earlier used for the construction of Kingstown Harbour. It was both the first and the longest opening railway of its type in the world.
The standard gauge line was 1¾ miles in length with an average uphill gradient of about 1 in 110. Vacuum power via a 15-inch (380 mm) pipe was used for the ascent to Dalkey, speeds of up to 40 mph (64 km/h) being achieved, and the return journey was by means of gravity.
William Dargan was the contractor and Charles Vignoles the engineer. After closure, the line was converted to the Irish gauge of 5 feet 3 inches (or 1600 mm). The path of the line now forms part of the DART route.
