New station at Clondalkin Fonthill

 

 

Iarnród Éireann

News Release

13th October, 2008

NEW STATION AT CLONDALKIN FONTHILL OPENED BY MINISTER

New station latest phase of Kildare Route Project

Minister for Transport, Noel Dempsey T.D. arrived by train from Heuston Station today to officially open Clondalkin Fonthill Station, the latest development in delivering the Kildare Route Project.

Commuters living and working in the vicinity of Clondalkin - Fonthill can now travel to and from Heuston Station in as little as ten minutes. The station will be served by Kildare commuter trains with 25 services per day calling at the station. The delivery of the station is ahead of schedule, and offers residents and workers in the Clondalkin Fonthill area with a frequent, reliable, speedy and environmentally friendly commute to the city centre. Commuters in Clondalkin will see a dramatic increase in service on completion of the Kildare Route Project, in early 2010. The opening was also attended by Cllr. Gus O’Connell, Deputy Lord Mayor of South Dublin County Council.

Clondakin Fonthill station is a unique, visually impressive modern building design designed by Iarnród Éireann Architects, it is part of the Kildare Route Project, a key infrastructure development in the Greater Dublin Area, which is funded by the Irish Exchequer, under Transport 21. It is accessible to mobility and sensory impaired customers, and features a ticket office, automatic ticket validation machines, ticket vending machines, CCTV and P/A systems, electronic customer information display screens, help points and fire and intruder alarms. A retail unit is also provided. The Station complex also includes a 200 space Park and Ride facility, benefiting commuters in West Dublin and north Kildare, who wish to access the city centre, quickly and efficiently. The station replaces the existing Clondalkin Station.


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Service Expansion
Kildare Route Project
Clondalkin Fonthill Station is the third station to open as part of the Kildare Route Project. The Kildare Route Project is a major investment project, which will more than treble capacity for commuters on the commuter lines into Heuston Station, with the potential to generate up to 7 million additional passenger journeys on the route annually. This will benefit communities in west Dublin and Kildare, as well as longer distance commuters from towns such as Portlaoise, Carlow and Athlone.

The Kildare Route Project will achieve these benefits through four-tracking the line from Cherry Orchard to the 10.5 milepost west of Hazelhatch, providing two dedicated lines for commuter services and two dedicated lines for Intercity and regional services. The Kildare Route Project is funded through the government’s transport investment programme, Transport 21 and is scheduled for completion in January 2010. It will allow services at Clondalkin Fonthill to dramatically expand.

DART Underground - Dublin’s Interconnector
Following the completion of the Kildare Route Project, Iarnród Éireann will then develop the DART Underground, - a second high-capacity DART line running underground from Heuston to Christchurch, St Stephen’s Green, Pearse, Docklands and the Northside DART line.

With the development of the Underground DART Interconnector by 2015, Park West & Cherry Orchard commuters will be able to travel directly to the heart of the city centre and interchange with all modes - DART, Commuter, Luas and Metro - and Park West services will be upgraded to DART.

Speaking at the launch of Clondalkin Fonthill Station, CIÉ and Iarnród Éireann Chairman Dr John Lynch said “Iarnród Éireann has become the fastest growing railway in Europe by ensuring it serves the growing needs of commuters and communities. The Kildare Route Project will deliver a frequent, efficient and environmentally friendly rail service one of the fastest growing population corridors in the country”

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Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey TD said "This new modern, fully accessible, Transport 21 funded station will provide a much improved commuting experience for rail users. Despite the more difficult economic circumstances Government will continue to invest heavily in public transport over the coming years. Projects like this are more important than ever. I am very aware of the difficulties faced by the hard-pressed commuters who use this line each day. This station will have the capacity to cater for up to 3,000 passengers at peak hour. Like Adamstown and Park West & Cherry Orchard we have built this station in advance of the completion of the Kildare Route Project so it will be able to accommodate the tripling of passenger numbers that this project will deliver.”