Respected Kilkenny business family reach remarkable milestone

James Farrell and his daughter Audrey, pictured with Texaco area sales manager, Damien Burke (right), at their Railway Garage premises in Castlecomer | Valero

placeholder image — James Farrell and his daughter Audrey, pictured with Texaco area sales manager, Damien Burke (right), at their Railway Garage premises in Castlecomer | Valero

The Farrell family have been proud custodians of Railway Garage on the Kilkenny Road in Castlecomer for generations

The Railway Garage in Castlecomer marks its 70th anniversary this year as a Texaco service station, one of only five Texaco branded outlets in Ireland to have reached this remarkable landmark figure.

A prominent focal point on the Kilkenny Road approach to the town, The Railway Garage recalls Castlecomer’s illustrious past, constructed as it is on a site adjacent to the rail terminal from which coal then mined in the area was transported for distribution across Ireland, and from which its business name was derived.

Built and opened in 1956 by Seamus Farrell, remembered locally as ‘a resourceful and committed businessman’ and a prominent figure within the Society of the Irish Motor Industry at that time – Railway Garage is said by his son, James Farrell to be ‘the fulfilment of my father’s ambition to establish a reputable service station and car sales and service dealership in Castlecomer’.

Through James and his daughter Audrey, the business continues under the ownership and management of the Farrell family.

James Farrell pictured beside a portrait displayed in their premises dedicated to his late father, Seamus who founded Railway Garage in 1956 | Valero

Interviewed, James cites ‘loyalty’ and ‘trust’ as key elements that underpin their relationship with the Texaco brand – attributes that he accepts are ‘less prevalent in business today than they once were’.

Loyalty and trust are core principles in our business

James Farrell

“Loyalty and trust are core principles in our business: values that we constantly strive to practice and observe in our dealings with customers, suppliers, and employees,” James said.

“Current employees who epitomise this are Breda Kavanagh, who has worked in our office for over 40 years, and our workshop manager Donal Brennan who has been an expert technician in our vehicle workshop and service section since 1973,” he said.

Voicing congratulations, Tom Naughton, Retail Sales Manager at Valero Energy (Ireland) Limited, the company that markets fuel under the Texaco brand in Ireland, praised all at Railway Garage for continuing to ‘enhance and support community life in Castlecomer’ and for ‘exemplifying the values of trust and loyalty which are all too often forgotten in today’s busy world’.