PASSENGER JOURNEYS ON the Luas surpassed 41 million in 2018, an 11% jump on the previous year, according to a new report due out next week.

The latest annual report from Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) shows the extent of passenger growth on Dublin’s light rail system following the opening of Luas Cross City.

Commencing in December 2017, Luas Cross City extended the Luas Green Line from St. Stephen’s Green to Broombridge, effectively linking it with the Red Line.

The report shows that passenger traffic on the Green Line jumped by 25% last year compared to the previous year, with 20 million journeys on the route.

The two lines combined carried 41.8 million people in 2018, an increase of 11% on the 37.6 million journeys in 2017.

Luas Cross City involved a 5.6 km extension of the Luas Green Line and track being laid in some of the busiest parts of Dublin city centre, such as at College Green and along O’Connell Street.

The opening of the extended service caused some initial ‘teething problems‘ but one of the main issues has been overcrowding on the line. In its new report, TII has outlined that eight additional trams are being ordered to cater for demand.

Transport Minister Shane Ross has briefed the Cabinet on the latest annual report TII report which also looks at the major road and rail projects carried out in 2018 including the M11 motorway from Gorey to Enniscorthy which opened in July.