INVESTING IN IRELAND’S railway tracks could cut journey times by up to 30 minutes, a new report has found.
Rail passengers would be able to travel between most major Irish cities within 2 hours, resulting in journey times of 2 hours from Dublin/Cork and 1 hour 45 minutes from Galway/Dublin, the Irish Rail report has found.
The report into the future for the national rail network has recommended that priority be given to improving the speeds and capacity on Intercity routes.
It also proposes that the frequency of trains on certain routes should be increased to allow for more passengers, through such measures as creating a ‘double-tracked’ line between Portalington and Athlone.
A review of rail fares has already been approved by the National Transport Authority with a view to ‘restructuring and simplifying’ fare structures.
A number of new regional lines were evaluated for consideration but all except one was rejected as unfeasible. The route between Athenry and Tuam was the only route deemed to be worth further consideration.
The report, commissioned by Iarnród Éireann, said that work on connections for Dublin Airport need to be progressed, including a major M50 Park and Ride station. It also supports the idea of extending the DART network to commuter lines within the Greater Dublin area.
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