NI Railways Train Reporting Numbers (Headcodes)?

[ainsworth74]

I've had a bit of time in NI recently and used a few NI Railways services (quite impressed to be honest, they have a very enlightened approach to ticket on departure explicitly allowing collection on board!) but I like to keep track of various details using Railmiles which includes headcodes. Does anyone know of a source where you can find this information for NI Railways? Or alternatively if they have some sort of alternative identifier for train services beyond just departure time?

I have a similar question for the DART and cross border Enterprise but might have to take myself off to the International Section for that unless the answer to my first question can be found in the same place for those!

 

[D6130]

I've had a bit of time in NI recently and used a few NI Railways services (quite impressed to be honest, they have a very enlightened approach to ticket on departure explicitly allowing collection on board!) but I like to keep track of various details using Railmiles which includes headcodes. Does anyone know of a source where you can find this information for NI Railways? Or alternatively if they have some sort of alternative identifier for train services beyond just departure time?

I have a similar question for the DART and cross border Enterprise but might have to take myself off to the International Section for that unless the answer to my first question can be found in the same place for those!

I think you would have to get hold of NIR and IÉ working timetables - of which I have several copies for the 1977-2003 period - but gone are the days when you could just stroll into any station master's office and ask if he had a spare copy. Both companies are nowadays almost obsessive about security and guard their operating publication like military secrets.

 

[hexagon789]

I've had a bit of time in NI recently and used a few NI Railways services (quite impressed to be honest, they have a very enlightened approach to ticket on departure explicitly allowing collection on board!) but I like to keep track of various details using Railmiles which includes headcodes. Does anyone know of a source where you can find this information for NI Railways? Or alternatively if they have some sort of alternative identifier for train services beyond just departure time?

I have a similar question for the DART and cross border Enterprise but might have to take myself off to the International Section for that unless the answer to my first question can be found in the same place for those!

NI Railways use a similar 4-character system as IÉ: Letter-Number-Number-Number. The letter is the train class and the first number is the route. The final two numbers are the individual train service.

I believe that they are not publically available but would appear in the WTT if that was public as in GB.

Translink have always refused FOIs for either the WTT or Sectional Appendices for Northern Ireland.

However, if you use Tiger Worldline, you'll see some Northern Irish stations appear, go into Staff View and headcodes do appear next to train workings.

This is Grand Central for example:

https://tiger.worldline.global/GC/staff;scrollbar=true

 

[ainsworth74]

Aha thank you both, disappointing that both take such a silly view of security.

 

[D6130]

Aha thank you both, disappointing that both take such a silly view of security.

Their views of security have been formed by many years of expensive - and sometimes fatal - attacks on trains and infrastructure by proscribed terrorist organisations of various colours.

 

[stadler]

Northern Ireland and the Republic Of Ireland both act like we are still in the 70s and 80s with their ridiculous over the top security policies of refusing to release working timetables and sectional appendices and open data. They both refuse to release so much that is publicly available here on the mainland. Times have changed and the railways over there are no more at risk then ours nowadays. It is a shame they have not moved on and are still so protective of releasing stuff like this.

 

[pdeaves]

This is Grand Central for example:

https://tiger.worldline.global/GC/staff;scrollbar=true

Replace GC with the relevant code for wherever you want to look at. http://www.railwaycodes.org.uk/crs/crs1.shtm#translink gives appropriate options.

 

[stadler]

Replace GC with the relevant code for wherever you want to look at. http://www.railwaycodes.org.uk/crs/crs1.shtm#translink gives appropriate options.

An easier option is to just select the station you want from the homepage here:

https://tiger.worldline.global/home

https://tiger.worldline.global/toc/NIR

This lists all of the Translink Northern Ireland Railways stations in alphabetical order here.

 

[Gloster]

Northern Ireland and the Republic Of Ireland both act like we are still in the 70s and 80s with their ridiculous over the top security policies of refusing to release working timetables and sectional appendices and open data. They both refuse to release so much that is publicly available here on the mainland. Times have changed and the railways over there are no more at risk then ours nowadays. It is a shame they have not moved on and are still so protective of releasing stuff like this.

I do hope that you are right, but bloodstains take a long time to be washed out of the soul in Ireland.

 

[Flying Snail]

Northern Ireland and the Republic Of Ireland both act like we are still in the 70s and 80s with their ridiculous over the top security policies of refusing to release working timetables and sectional appendices and open data. They both refuse to release so much that is publicly available here on the mainland. Times have changed and the railways over there are no more at risk then ours nowadays. It is a shame they have not moved on and are still so protective of releasing stuff like this.

Maybe it is petty revenge against people that still compare Ireland to Britain using that disparaging term.

 

[Cach17]

Annoying as it maybe be for us enthusiasts, NI/ROI are under no obligation to follow the same practices as GB. I'm sure others on this forum have pointed this out before.

 

[Flying Snail]

Some European planners such as DB and OBB show IE and cross-border but not Translink trains with a version of the correct train numbers. They replace the correct designation letters with IC, R and S.

 

[RiverDon]

Northern Ireland and the Republic Of Ireland both act like we are still in the 70s and 80s with their ridiculous over the top security policies of refusing to release working timetables and sectional appendices and open data. They both refuse to release so much that is publicly available here on the mainland. Times have changed and the railways over there are no more at risk then ours nowadays. It is a shame they have not moved on and are still so protective of releasing stuff like this.

As per the post from Flying Snail above just a friendly tip, if you visit the island of Ireland (whether Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland) don't ever use the term I have highlighted if you are speaking to people. It will cause serious offence. If you aren't from there or don't have Irish family then you may not be aware of how patronising and colonial it comes across but it is very unwelcome.

 

[KT550]

I've had a bit of time in NI recently and used a few NI Railways services (quite impressed to be honest, they have a very enlightened approach to ticket on departure explicitly allowing collection on board!) but I like to keep track of various details using Railmiles which includes headcodes. Does anyone know of a source where you can find this information for NI Railways? Or alternatively if they have some sort of alternative identifier for train services beyond just departure time?

I have a similar question for the DART and cross border Enterprise but might have to take myself off to the International Section for that unless the answer to my first question can be found in the same place for those!

The live map section on the Irish Rail website shows the train identification; separate maps for DART, Commuter and InterCity.

Iarnród Éireann Rail Timetables

Here you will find Iarnród Éireann Irish Rail PDF timetables by route and by station.

www.irishrail.ie

These numbers were displayed on (at least some of) the information screens in the DART trains when I was there a few weeks ago.

 

[zwk500]

IÉ have headcodes on their live data pages. Their Network Statement is also pretty detailed - https://www.irishrail.ie/en-ie/about-us/iarnrod-eireann-network-statement.
There's slightly less detail in the NIR network statement about speeds and platform lengths: https://www.translink.co.uk/corpora...ts/companypolicies/nirailwaysnetworkstatement but both Network Statements give you much of what would be in the sectional appendix or equivalent.

Interestingly IÉ do publish their rulebook openly, which the UK requires a RSSB Login to access. https://www.irishrail.ie/en-ie/abou...nn Rule Book,the Iarnród Éireann rail network.

 

[ainsworth74]

Thank you all for the extra information I'll have a look when I'm not on the move!

 

[splashoutradio]

Hopefully this will help with the original query of headcodes on Northern Ireland's rail network...

Translink publish a very good open CIF timetable dataset for Northern Irish and Enterprise rail services. It's broadly similar to what is used across the water, and I personally use it for the timetables on RailwayData. As a result, the LTP timetables on www.railwaydata.co.uk/timetables/translink have headcodes included.


For completeness, I've just checked license restrictions for the data, and it doesn't come with any restrictions over the use of headcodes.