Plans in the context of Transport 21 to increase the throughput of passengers by rail

Date: 03 May 2006


Dáil Question No: 338 To ask the Minister for Transport his plans in the context of Transport 21 or otherwise to increase the throughput of passengers by rail; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Bernard J. Durkan.

Response
by the Minister for Transport
(Martin Cullen)

The integrated, rail based public transport system planned for the Greater Dublin Area under Transport 21 is expected to increase substantially the number of passengers carried.

By the end of 2015, when the transport infrastructure funded under Transport 21 is completed and fully operational, I expect a four-fold increase in DART and suburban rail passenger numbers to 100 million per annum.

I similarly expect 100 million passengers to travel on the Luas and Metro network by that time. These increases are to be achieved through a number of major projects.

In the Greater Dublin Area, 2 Metro lines are planned, Metro North and Metro West. Seven Luas projects will be developed, involving the extension and expansion of the existing Luas network. These Luas projects will link the two existing lines and greatly extend the Luas network. The Railway Procurement Agency will increase passenger capacity on the Tallaght Luas line by 40% by increasing the length of the trams to 40 metres from 2007.

Iarnród Éireann’s Kildare Route Project and the new Docklands Station will enable significant increases in services on the Kildare and Maynooth lines respectively. Iarnród Éireann’s interconnector rail tunnel project will facilitate the extension of the DART network to the Kildare and Maynooth lines and the reopened Navan line.

Nationally, Iarnród Éireann will introduce new commuter services in Galway and in Cork with the re-opening of the Midleton line. The Western Rail Corridor will also be reopened. The company will take delivery of some 67 new intercity carriages for service on the Dublin-Cork route and 150 intercity railcars for service on all other intercity routes. These projects will enable more frequent, more reliable and more comfortable services, which will serve to increase passenger numbers substantially.