FROM SUNDAY, NEW rail services are being added, or upgraded, to the usual Irish Rail schedule just in time to accommodate the increased volumes of travelling Christmas visitors.

Trains going to and from Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Portlaoise will see a few minutes shaved off their journey times, after line improvements and signalling and platform works at Limerick Station.

Some train services are scheduled to leave earlier than previously scheduled – Irish Rail is advising customers to check their timetables well in advance.

The late-night Darts and Commuter timetables are also to begin from tonight, and will run every weekend up until New Year’s Eve.

Here’s the list of changes.

Don’t stop believing: Faster journeys

• Journey times between 3 and 10 minutes faster to services on the Dublin Heuston to Cork route
• Journey times between 2 and 12 minutes faster between Limerick and Dublin (including via Limerick Junction)
• Journey times between 2 and 6 minutes faster to services between Portlaoise and Dublin Heuston.

Early start

• 05.40 - Longford to Dublin Pearse is now to depart at 05.35
• 09.45 - Limerick Junction to Waterford is now to depart at 09.40
• 15.30 - Heuston to Portlaoise is now to depart at 15.25
• 17.25 - Limerick to Ballybrophy via Nenagh is now to depart at 17.20
• Sundays only 09.40 - Limerick to Limerick Junction is now to depart at 09.30
• Sundays only 20.50 Cork to Mallow is now to depart at 20.45.

Midnight express

From today, late night Dart and Commuter services are back and will run on the weekends in the run-up to Christmas, and after Dublin’s New Year’s Eve celebrations.

The full schedule of Dart and Commuter services is as follows:

• 00.30 & 01.30 from Pearse serving all stations to Howth
• 00.30 & 01.30 from Connolly serving all stations to Greystones
• 00.40 & 01.40 from Pearse serving Tara St, Connolly, and all stations from Howth Junction to Dundalk
• 00.20 & 01.55 from Pearse serving all stations to Maynooth
• 23.50 & 01.50 from Pearse serving all stations to Drumcondra, and all stations from ParkWest to Kildare.

Fares will be charged at normal rates, meaning customers can use their Leapcards and buy cash fares for the best value Christmas travel option.

For the first time, commuters on the Kildare commuter line will have late-night services from the heart of the city centre, a spokesperson for Irish Rail added.

Read: Children under five can travel for free on public transport from today

Read: ‘We need high-quality public transport. Cork and Galway should get light rail’