the north east (Coleraine, Ballymena etc.). Traffic from north and south used to pass through the town centre frequently leading to considerable congestion. In the 1970s a bypass was proposed route which was eventually funded in 2013 and completed in 2016. The road is a single-carriageway around the eastern edge of the town connecting Moneymore Road and Castledawson Road. The old road through the town became the B40 when the road opened. Rail Magherafelt railway station opened on 10 November 1856, shut for passenger traffic on 28 August 1950 and shut altogether on 1 October 1959. Schools Thera are seven primary schools serving the area. Local secondary schools include St. Mary's Grammar School, Saint Pius X College, Rainey Endowed School, Sperrin Integrated College and Magherafelt High School. Sport Magherafelt has several sporting teams, including Magherafelt Reds, O'Donovan Rossa Magherafelt GAC, the Rainey Old Boys Rugby Club and Magherafelt Sky Blues F.C. There is also the Mid Ulster Athletic Club, the Mid Ulster Swimming Club and the Magherafelt District Motorclub. Demography At the 2011 census, there were 8,805 people living in Magherafelt. This represented an increase of 5.2% on the Census 2001 population of 8,372. Of these: 21.75% were aged under 16 years and 12.44% were aged 65 and over 48.65% of the population were male and 51.35% were female 59.73% were from a Catholic background and 35.67% were from a Protestant or other Christian background 5.65% of people aged 16–74 were unemployed. 36.98% indicated that they had a British national identity, 33.87% had an Irish national identity, and 30.45% had a Northern Irish national identity. Notable people Robert Hagan (born 1794) – naval officer and abolitionist Joseph Burns (1906 – ) – Ulster Unionist member of the Parliament of Northern Ireland from 1960 – 1973 Peter Doherty (1913 – 1990) – former footballer and manager of Northern Ireland Sir James Starritt, KCVO (1914-2000) – Deputy Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis (London Metropolitan Police) from 1972 to 1975 Monsignor Laurence Higgins (1928 – 2016) – former Vicar General of the Diocese of St. Petersburg, Florida and founder of St. Lawrence Catholic Parish in Tampa, Florida Harry Gregg (1932 – 2020) – former Manchester United and Northern Ireland goalkeeper Willie McCrea (born 1948) – politician and a member of the Democratic Unionist Party Paul Charles (born 1949) – novelist, music promoter and talent agent Kenny Shiels (born 1956) – former manager