This DVD is a completely revised and updated version of “Sugar Beet Archive”, made in 2000. It contains new scenes and brings the story up to date in 2005. This latest version includes the bonus track "The Last Campaign".
Until 2005, Irish Rail moved about 150,000 tonnes of sugar beet each year from Wellington Bridge in County Wexford to the sugar factory at Mallow in County Cork. This video follows the rail activities over 20 years, with General Motors engines hauling the vacuum braked wagons to and from the factory. After seeing the action at Wellington Bridge, we follow the trains west across the country. We see successively, the Irish Rail 001, small GM, 071 and 201 classes of locomotives, and the loose coupled wagons followed by the unique vacuum braked wagons. We follow the current route to Mallow, as well the line to the former factory at Thurles.
Also covered is activity via Cherryville Junction during the 2003 year.
Making a guest appearance is Northern Ireland Railways loco 112.
Thanks to the kind co-operation of Greencore Ireland we can see the loading and unloading operations in detail.
Also included in this DVD is the extra feature “The Last Campaign”, covering the last year of Sugar Beet rail operations.
Producer of the video, Jim Edgar, enthuses “I wish I could go back and photograph it all again just as it was. Although there has been a lot of change, the trains continued to run until 2005. This video allows you to see it at its best.”
Produced by - Markle Associates
Running time - 67 Minutes
DVD only
Released - 2005