The reason trains in Dublin are ALWAYS DELAYED | Connolly Station explained
Вставка
- Опубліковано 9 лют 2025
- An explainer on the railway junction just north of Connolly station in Dublin. What routes do trains take? Why does it create so many delays? Find out here.
Dublin railway history video: • Dublin’s Forgotten Tra...
Taitset: / @taitset
I'm now on Bluesky! bsky.app/profi...
------------------------
Copyright anoniaino 2025
Thumbnail - copyright anoniaino
Tv Transition Stock Videos by Vecteezy www.vecteezy.c...
------------------------
linktr.ee/anoniaino
Small note: A not insignificant number of trains to Sligo are, in fact, 7 cars long. Shorter ones (which is most of them) call at platform 1 for the reason stated. 7-car trains may use the other platforms, but unfortunately I have not seen a 7-car arrival or departure so I can't be sure.
If it’s broken don’t fix it. - old Irish proverb
So when its insanely broken what do you do?
@ a 10 to 15 year plan to meet the demand at the time of the framework’s inception, never accounting for future demand, ensuring the system is never fit for purpose for service users 🫶
@@gregor3099have a pint usually
@@gregor3099 Leave it be! You might make it worse!
As Gandhi once said “ah it’ll be graannd “
Great video! Glad to see my style of diagram is compatible with other 5'3" gauge networks around the world. ;)
Huge fan of your channel and I've always wondered how you make those diagrams
The Melbournian invasion begins!
I'll be writing to me Teachta Dála🙂
In all seriousness your video perfectly highlights the massive infrastructure gaps in this country. I recently took a train from Zurich Airport to Strasbourg... when you see what can be achieved by investing in rail, it really highlights what we don't have in Ireland - a strategic mindset.
Nevermind strategic, I'm not sure we have a mindset in our government
@@apollinirish5515 We don't, they love to brag about how rich Ireland is yet public transport is 3rd world quality
@@apollinirish5515 there's a landlord mindset. Zero improvements unless the TDs get a recurring benefit from it.
Blah, blah, Ireland is so backward... usual self loathing stuff. Zurich and Strasbroug are in very central European locations in historically wealthy countries. Dublin is neither. Ireland strategic vision simply never included trains. We're a car country unfortunately.
With the new likely government entering another 5 year term, expect nothing less than billions more spent on road building and other parish pump politics.
I commute on the Sligo to Connolly, the train was great when it was seven cars long, when they cut it down to 3/4 car sets it makes every morning and evening rush hour trains packed with standing passengers before it's even halfway down the route, I'm lucky that I get on early enough to get a seat most of the time, but even then sometimes I get on and it's already full meaning I have to stand for two hours.
For the Sligo to Connolly route, I would argue that there are more delays caused by the single track sections than the Connolly bit, because once someone is delayed there the driver just can't make up the time and arrives at Connolly late, causing delays. Even trains coming in and out of Connolly at the wrong times could be fixed as simply as adding a some sporadic through tracks between Broombridge to Maynooth, and double tracking as far as Mullingar (could even add in a few more stations with the double track, even if it's just park and ride.)
Worse still, stations like Broombridge which have Luas (Tram) connections are mostly skipped by the morning inter-city services, so I and others almost always have to go all the way into Connolly and then get the tram back OUT (my workplace is on the green line!)
I don't know why Irish Rail has a hard-on for making everyone change at Connolly when there are perfectly good interchange stations further out making train turnaround time in Connolly even slower (Takes ages to clear a train packed full of people, it's like an aircraft.)
When I used to commute in London, the train would be mostly empty by the time it reached the terminus because everyone got off at the tube and bus stations earlier, but yet Irish Rail insists that you can't change until you're in the heart of the city.
I thought the recent timetable change meant that all Sligo trains now stop at Boombridge?
There’s ~no room for bypass tracks for the Sligo train once you get into Dublin - the canal makes adding extra tracks super difficult.
I think this is why the AISRR plans to divert the Sligo train to Heuston.
@cianbrennan4477 only if you plan to expand our to the cannal, half of the other side are fields, and you only need bypass tracks every now and again, not for the whole length.
You're right, this junction doesn't delay the Sligo train much because they give it priority. It does delay other trains however, and also can transfer delays it picks up on the single track sections you mention to other services as it arrives late at the junction.
another issue on these trains when they become over crowded and could be a health issue is passengers sitting on floors between coaches,especially where there are toilets,there can be be under floor seepage from the toilets onto the gang ways and people sit down on this,some floors were replaced due to rot,and the dirty folding tables,also bear in mind it is single track same as which as was laid down in the 1840s when the railway was built,180 yrs later no change,trains consisting of 3/4 coaches capacity,no different,rail car sets fit for commuter traffic only,a god send they were not let near the luas
Nice video, and great explainer! Refreshing to finally hear an Irish voice talk about railways. Loved seeing your footage in the recent Dublin RMTransit episode.
......
Jesus Christ is the only hope in this world no other gods will lead you to heaven
There is no security or hope with out Jesus Christ in this world come and repent of all sins today
Today is the day of salvation come to the loving savior Today repent and do not go to hell
Come to Jesus Christ today
Jesus Christ is only way to heaven
Repent and follow him today seek his heart Jesus Christ can fill the emptiness he can fill the void
Heaven and hell is real cone to the loving savior today
Today is the day of salvation tomorrow might be to late come to the loving savior today
Holy Spirit Can give you peace guidance and purpose and the Lord will
John 3:16-21
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
Mark 1.15
15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
2 Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
Hebrews 11:6
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Jesus
All we need is to reinstate the disused turntable on the through platform, just because...
.....
Do you know Jesus Christ can set you free from sins and save you from hell today
Jesus Christ is the only hope in this world no other gods will lead you to heaven
There is no security or hope with out Jesus Christ in this world come and repent of all sins today
Today is the day of salvation come to the loving savior Today repent and do not go to hell
Come to Jesus Christ today
Jesus Christ is only way to heaven
Repent and follow him today seek his heart Jesus Christ can fill the emptiness he can fill the void
Heaven and hell is real cone to the loving savior today
Today is the day of salvation tomorrow might be to late come to the loving savior today
Romans 6.23
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
John 3:16-21
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
Mark 1.15
15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
2 Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
Hebrews 11:6
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Jesus
I feel like Connolly is a mess that can only be sorted with a complete rebuild. Sort of similar to Reading in the UK. No amount of tinkering around the edges will fix it. It needs approaches to the terminal platforms that segregate from the through lines much further north, to remove them from the conflicts with the westbound trains and allow southbound DART/Commuter trains waiting on a platform to clear the junction, or northbound to clear the platform but still allow Enterprise services to depart ahead of them. Also a north facing terminal platform on the west side of the station that can take those westbound trains without having them cross the entire throat, or make it a longer through platform with a split signal in the middle to allow Rosslare trains to terminate there and await their journey south or a better opportunity to head to the depot without causing disruption.
A flyover might be a sensitive subject given its required height and the dense residential areas north of the station, but I think it’s far more likely than a cross city tunnel. The Irish Gov has been averse to tunnelling since the fiasco with the Port Tunnel.
I'm afraid I agree, but a rebuild would be costly both in money and in time. Can you really close the busiest station in the country not for a few months (like they did in Belfast), but probably years to come without there being a decent alternative high-capacity alternative in place? Luas is great, but slow and already packed as it is, there's no underground, the bus service is slow and not very comfortable... You'd need a new line first to take off the pressure before you'd be able to rebuild Connolly...
I know DART Underground was politically risky given it projected costs, the potential disruption it could cause and the length of time required to build it - but it would have gone a very long way to alleviating the issues at Connolly and it's surrounding junctions.
DART+ is a good start, but it shouldn't ever be viewed as a replacement for DART Underground, only as a first step.
very well put
.....
Jesus Christ is the only hope in this world no other gods will lead you to heaven
There is no security or hope with out Jesus Christ in this world come and repent of all sins today
Today is the day of salvation come to the loving savior Today repent and do not go to hell
Come to Jesus Christ today
Jesus Christ is only way to heaven
Repent and follow him today seek his heart Jesus Christ can fill the emptiness he can fill the void
Heaven and hell is real cone to the loving savior today
Today is the day of salvation tomorrow might be to late come to the loving savior today
Holy Spirit Can give you peace guidance and purpose and the Lord will
John 3:16-21
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
Mark 1.15
15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
2 Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
Hebrews 11:6
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Jesus
The govt didn't even save anything effectively cancelling DART U, the economic costs to not building it far outweigh the upfront €3 billion cost. Today we found out corpos gifted nearly €30 billion in taxes for 2024. That could have built 10 underground lines! ☹️
@mlc4495 what is it the RMTransit keeps saying? The best time to build, the cheapest time to build your transport project? Is now!
But politics is politics - you need to find the ministers with vision and long term thinking. Those that can see beyond the next election and beyond their own job security.
If DU wasn't cancelled, it would be in operation today, greatly spreading the load across Dublin junction.
nice video from a rail fan in Melbourne who loves taitset. subbed to you
thanks for the video and explaining it so well.
This is a great video, love the content and your style of explaining!
This was so good! Please make more videos about Irish rail :)
brilliant to see you back. would love to see a video on what improvements you would make if you where in charge of irish rail
It's shocking how little Irish transit content is out there compared to your island neighbours, would love to see more from you if you have the time to make them. :)
Nice video. You got another subscriber from Melbourne. Hope some improvements can be made soon. Would love to visit Dublin one day!
Excellent little explainer. The diagram helped a lot.
Great video and long overdue. Thank you. I use Connolly daily and have mused over its upgrade for years. I believe that a redeveloped, covered station must be extended northward & eastward to the junction with Docklands & Western lines. Grade separation of lines could be accomplished with terminating platforms for inter-city and enterprise in this extension. In addition, the station should be on two levels throughout, with all non-platform activity on the upper one. A wide plaza-like entrance could then be accommodated further north on Rue de Amiens!
I cannot understand why Connolly is not already undergoing substantial upgrade. There is a wonderful opportunity to create a substantial civic transport hub in Dublin City North, that serves all the citizens of the Island.
Loved the humour in this. As a Maynooth line person I needed that levity.
please keep making these they are class. I said out loud "ohh this will be fucking class" when I saw the thumbnail.
Firstly, great video, I just came across the channel via this video. Secondly, as someone who uses Connolly very frequently, both for trips on the DART and trips down home to Sligo, I've actually never thought delays in Connolly were all that bad. Considering it's the busiest station in the country it's normally reasonably straightforward getting in and out of. That being said, I often get off in Drumcondra despite it being a longer walk home, just because of the (usually minor) delays coming into these junctions. Really interesting stuff, you've gained a subcriber here.
Excellent explainer. It's actually amazing that trains run on time as often as they do.
I think the Interconnector (DART Underground) is essential to solving it, but I feel the way it's currently concieved is flawed, as it would deny intercity passengers arriving at Connolly access to the Drogheda/Kildare line. I think it would be a hard sell for passengers with luggage to transfer to one DART to Pearse, then down a long escalator to the second DART, and many would just head for a Taxi, so I actually think we need to bite the bullet and pay whatever it costs for the Interconnector to go through Connolly. Otherwise, we'll be asking "why didn't they do it right" for generations.
I also think that the Northern line doesn't have the capacity for all the trains DART Underground would add to it, so I actually think 4-tracking the Northern line is a higher priority, but once that's done we should absolutely crack on with the Interconnector. I believe there's a project called "FourNorth" in the planning stages. Would love a video on that.
If was planning it with a blank chequebook, I would redesign Glasnevin Junction so that DARTs from Maynooth move onto the line by the canal, build a new Drumcondra station in the cutting, then have the line divert into a tunnel before entering a tunnel and passing under the Canal and entering Connolly. Meanwhile, trains from Drogheda and Howth would enter a tunnel in Fairview Park (or if it would need too steep a grade to make it under the Tolka, the tunnel might have to start further north around Killester). I would have the tunnels intermesh so that both northbound platforms ran on one level, and both southbound lines ran either above or below, allowing cross platform interchange. Trains from Maynooth would continue under the current loop line through Tara St and Pearse, and possibly remain underground through the current D4 mess, passing under the level crossings, so that only Intercity trains had to pass through the level crossings or use the loop line. Drogheda/Kildare trains would take a more direct route south from Connolly to Pearse, then continue to Stephen's Green, Heuston, and emerge in Kilmainham, as with the previous plan. This would completely separate DART from InterCity services in the central Dublin area, and cut out a great many conflicting movements. The Connolly surface station would then be exclusively for InterCity trains, with DART completely underground at Connolly, Tara St, Pearse and Heuston. Yes, it would be insanely expensive, but it would allow for a massive increase in DART capacity, and a big reduction in car journeys.
So not much work needs to be done at all then?!!! 😉
The way I see it, DART Underground needs to happen, (and I agree on the Connolly point) as well as 4-tracking the northern and western lines to accommodate an increase in frequency.
@anoniaino Totally agree the DART Underground is vital. However, I think some people were promoting it as the magic bullet to fix all of Dublin's commuting problems, and I think that's doing it a disservice, as on its own it would just shift the problems down the line. I think the problems with Dublin's transport are too big and have been put off for too long for any one project to fix. DART+ is essential. Interconnector is essential. Northern line quad track is essential. Completion of quad on Kildare line is essential. Navin line is essential. There are probably a few essential projects I'm missing.
@anoniaino and the Wexford Line? Especially with plans to end through services between Rosslare/Wexford and Connolly, with a mandatory change onto the DART to get to Dublin... Maybe it could be accomodated with just a few extra passing loops and it doesn't require full quad-tracking, but something needs to be done...
Worth noting - the new signalling centre next to Heuston will control Connolloy station in the future with brand spanking new, high-tech signalling software that can predict and better plan around conflicting train movements dynamically. This should also help!
good job explaining thank you!
Why are we so averse to grade separation of railway lines in Ireland? We grade separate roads all the the time. A little bit of grade separation in the Dublin area would go a very long way and it should be easy to sell politically to non-Dublin TDs because it benefits all rail users, including Intercity travellers. Nobody "down the country" ever complained about a better road connection to Dublin. They wouldn't complain about better rail connections either. DART Underground, which is the real gamechanger should be easy to sell outside Dublin, much easier than the metro which actually looks like it is going ahead (and in reality will also service people from all over the country on their way to/from the Mater or the Airport but convincing many people of that is harder). Great video by the way. I knew that conflicting movements caused the delays but never knew which paths the different train types actually take.
Great stuff Iaino!
Great video! Waiting at Connolly will be slightly less annoying now that I know this lol
Great video, big man! Hopefully its not too long before we see another video lol
Great video. Gave me some good context as a person that takes the platform 7 to Maynooth daily. Looks like it'll be another decade before anything changes, and not significantly. Its a shame
very cosy video, quite enjoyed it.
This highlights a problem in Ireland, Britain, America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, because little to no rebuilding after world war two has needed infrastructure is as old as the hills.
Great video 🙌
I like your narration earned a sub from a fellow dub 🎉
You have no idea how true this is. The other day I was having a rant about the damn transport deadzone caused by Connolly station. Biggest Connolly station opp here fr
You haven't uploaded a video in a while, I'd just assumed you were stuck on a train into Dublin Connolly!!!
There is quite a lot of talk about DART+ at the moment. West has been approved and construction will commence later this year. South West is also approved and Is set to commence construction as soon as possible. And North has been sent into an Bord Pleanála in early October which hopefully is approved later this year. (The other two took about 12 months until approval). So DART+ isn't too far away. And it will incredibly help the situation. Also ENTERPRISE is getting new stock by 2029 meaning journey's will be faster when the aren't run by Loco-hauled trains. Good video by the way
This is an excellent video with one or two problems.
Trains to Maynooth normally don't need to travel over the lines used by the Enterprise, and 7 car trains are quite common to and from Sligo.
I have been on trains to Maynooth when the Enterprise is leaving or arriving at the same time.
As shown in the video, most trains bound for Maynooth depart from platform 7 (not in conflict with the Enterprise), with comparatively few leaving from the terminus platforms.
While I can't disprove the existence of 7-car Sligo services, I have never seen one, and was not able to find one in the timetable.
Another Melbournite here as well that had this out in my recommendations!
Terminate Sligo trains at Maynooth and Rosslare trains at Greystones and add extra platforms on the car park at Connolly. This would change everything. To hell with the whingers. They have to learn to switch trains.
@@ArcadiaJunctionHobbies Better still, put the DART+WEST depot on the Enfield side of Kilcock and change to Sligo trains at a new Kilcock station on the site of the station closed in 1963.
The AISRR plan to terminate Sligo trains in Heuston seems like a better idea than in Maynooth. Loads of space to build rail from Maynooth to the cork mainline, and having (almost) all the intercities into Heuston gives you much better connections
@cianbrennan4477 That is a long term plan. IR need a new depot site for DART+WEST, land is available west of Kilcock and near to the M4 interchange for a P&R site and depot. This also wouldn't rule out Sligo trains to Heuston in the longer term.
@@cianbrennan4477 Did Sligo trains terminate at Heuston back in the 80's or am I remembering things wrong?
At a high level, the problem with Connolly Station is that the Loop Line was built on the wrong side of the station. It would have been better for modern day traffic if this was on the eastern side of the station.
Another option is to reduce the number of points but increase the speeds to at least 60 or 80km/h. Speeding up the train movements will positively affect the busy station layout. Shunting movements could go to Clontarf Road to maintain a corridor with as little conflicting movements possible.
As someone from Ireland, the lack of railways and rail services is also a problem, most good old railway lines has turned into greenways or such, but I hope to see improvements to such and maybe other rail networks as well, so yeah
Good video, but I feel the future terminus at Spencer Dock should be mentioned as many services from the west are intended to be diverted there. Also the All-Island Strategic Rail Review proposes creating a loop between Adamstown and Leixlip to further relieve pressure on Connolly, but I think it’ll be a while before that materialises…
Great piece of analysis. Let’s build that DART tunnel!
Good video, How about reopening Platform 1 or 4 at Pearse and use it to terminate some DART services from the south and also the Rosslare service?
Excellent idea!
I quite like the idea.
Terminating the Rosslare service at Pierce is not a great idea for people wanting to take a tram to Heuston to connect with the Portarlington train, as I was recently.
@qwertyTRiG C-spine buses operate regularly between Pearse and Heuston.
@qwertyTRiG
That could be fixed by reopening the through platforms at Heuston, then you could get a direct Commuter train.
The Sligo Intercity services are mostly 7 cars and do exceed 6 carriages. They also often stop before Connolly to let DARTs overtake. Great video other than those little issues, keep up the good work!
According to Irish Rail (and what I have seen myself) there are no 22000 Class InterCity Railcars longer than 6 cars. There's a 4-car one leaving the station at 4:15 in the video.
They could connect a 3 and a 4 car set, but I’ve never seen that happen, and the 3-car sets are being phased out.
the 17:10 hueston athlone is a 3 + 4 carriage configuration
@Sandwich4321 I’ve never seen it on a Sligo train though you see, and with the 3-car sets going that can’t happen anymore.
@anoniaino i see, how come they are getting rid of the 3 carriage trains?
@Sandwich4321 They’re making them longer. They recieved an order of ~40 new carriages recently to extend sets. 3-car sets are not long enough for most services, and would always have to be joined with another set, wasting 2 drivers cabs.
FINALLY SOMEONE EXPLAINS WHY
Interesting. Never knew it is as complex as it is.
Didn’t Irish Rail want to reopen the Broadstone station and run the Sligo and maynooth suburban services into it but lost the track bed through Phibsborough to the Luas Trams.
Yes and it was a good thing too.
They did indeed, and it would be a big help now for removing the Sligo trains and some of the Maynooth trains from Connolly.
Transport minister at the time said no.
I'm very excited for DART underground, can't wait for 2080
Great Video, thanks to you I now know what to blame
Hopefully projects like the Maynooth-Adamstown link and a four-tracked northern line will be pushed forward as much as possible to help ease congestions. The link would allow Sligo and potentially Longford services to be diverted to Heuston, removing western line services terminating at Connolly. And four-tracking would allow Enterprise and Dundalk services to cruise in on the fast line and arrive into Connolly without having to cross the DARTs or other slow-line services.
However there will still be some Maynooth and HH services going onto the loop line. And like you say DU is probably what is needed to help that. Although, if they trully want to maximise the potential service frequency DU would offer, they will ned to operate the four DART lines as more metro like, with minimal crossing of lines. Now I don't believe that level of service would be needed even post DU, but it eventually might be, and the service pattern changes needed to maximise the capacity will be... controversial to say the least, even if 100% needed.
Platforms before the junctions would solve an awful lot
I love the explanation of the junction function but it totally excuses the utter incompetence that is Irish Rail operations. A few additional points on why the trains are late:
1) Signals outside of Dublin are not run from Train Control in Connolly so you have different signal controllers operating the commuter trains with different systems depending on their location
2) most of the signalling is still manual. I regularly commute from Drogheda to Dublin and the train is behind schedule before we reach the first station. Completely error on the signal persons behalf.
3) Irish rail do not currently have a software to coordinate their timetables for Connolly. This is why you have two trains arriving at once trying to access the same platform and one having to be held back. That’s also partly why they had no idea the hourly enterprise would interfere with other services.
4) it’s only in roughly the past 5 years that Irish Rail have moved away from floppy disks for their operations. They were buying them on EBay this whole time rather than upgrade
The completion of the national train control centre should solve a lot of this as they will be automating the signals to a degree and have procured a new software to allow them to coordinate timetables. All signals will also be operated from the centre instead of trains having to change to different signal areas.
Of course there’s the other classic reasons for the DART running late: low traction due to wet leaves on the track; someone has once again driven a truck into the level crossing at Lansdowne road; and the classic - swan on the track in Bray. :P
I believe there's a plan to replace the Dockland station with a new four platform Spencer Dock station with a better connection to the red luas. Which would allow for more M3 Parkway trains or possibly dart+ in the future, and better connect those services to the luas.
I've just set up a train appreciation signal channel based on this video...
We should have a commuter rail connection between Dublin Port and the city centre. There is already a lot of track in place to carry freight. Would it take much more investment to develop a commuter service from the port to say the Docklands station?
You’d need to take the trains off the road I think, which’d be a big change.
Time to bring back adverts to television screens post Covid-19.
Use the 2 million Bus Park beside Docklands Station to Shuttle Commuters by single Deck Electric Buses to Tara or Pearse Stations for Sligo & some Maynooth Trains also these Trains stop at Broom bridge Luas . Rosslare and Gorey Trains need to feed into / out of Greystones Dart to change with more services to sweat the asset on that single track line . This is low hanging fruit with out Planning Applications & spending 100,s of Millions on new Rails / Junctions . Howth Darts need to change at Howth Junction to free up Northern Line .
Thank you for the video, now I know why trains are constantly delayed.
Maybe you also know why they break down so often? Or why the train from Greystones to Bray can take 40 minutes?
As for why they break down: it’s mostly because most of the trains 40 years old
It might be worth mentioning some delays are just purely staff driven. Its really common for the northbound Dart leaving Greystones (the southernmost terminus) to just have staff sitting in the phones for 10/15 mins after the train was due to leave. I see it all the time.
It’s definitely not always the junction, but the problem is that when a delayed train needs to use the junction it messes up other routes, and delays get spread around the network.
One way to fix some of the issues is to either get the rosslare to terminate at bray(though people would then have to transfer to a dart train) or have it run through to form a Dundalk or Sligo service(carrages would have to be increased to continue on
Instead, if they do through-run at all it’s with a Western commuter train, which means a suburban train on an intercity route.
Exactly it's the worst for trying to get a seat on a busy 5:30 pm service,had to stand till bray to wait for a seat to open up going all the way to Wexford.
Thankfully when the 22000 dmu is on a service to rosslare they've added the extra carriage which gives more space
Then there's the 6:30 pm service which is the Sligo train (which often ends up delayed meaning later getting back or trying to connect with rural bus routes home )
Could reinstall a terminal platform at Pearse station and have the rosslare go to/from there freeing up a movement at the rigmarole of Connoly Junctions
I commute on the enterprise and a solid half of the times without it comes into Dublin it stops for a minute or two before the Drumcondta junction. Now I know why.
Lovely voice. Nice sense of humour. But doesn't look as though much will change at Connolly.
Great video. Does Heuston have a similar excuse? I'd be a frequent user of both the Rosslare to Connolly line and also Waterford to Heuston line and I'd find them equally pisspoor for delays.
With Heuston the problem is different. The junction is quite well layed out, primarily because it’s one line that splits in two. The problem is the line between Portarlington and Heuston, which is mostly only double track, so all-stops trains have to mix in with fast trains. Normally this just about works, but when a train is delayed (such as a Commuter train that passed through Connolly) it all falls apart.
Was a time there were 4 train companies running out of connolly.also there's a restriction of frequency of trains over tara st bridge as far as I know.
Since the City Centre Resignalling Project in 2020, there's a maximum frequency of 20 trains per hour over the Loopline.
@anoniaino with all the building work going on so close to the railway i can't imagine anything will change there.
@presidentxd It could theoretically be increased to 36tph, but that would require removing all traffic from it except for a Maynooth-Bray DART line, with a Drogheda/Howth-Hazelhatch line using the DART tunnel.
Too much loaded on Connolly Station: the very success of Irish rail development is the fundamental cause, although the historic closure of Broadstone Station in 1937 reduced Dublin terminal capacity. A proposal to re-open Broadstone in 2010 fell by the wayside due to a conflict with Luas line development.
Thanks. One other question. Why do the Darts come to a stop as they reach the station...then slooowly creep into the station platform itself ?.. It's the only country I know that does that.
Signalling issues, IIRC. That's one of the things being fixed as part of DART+, I believe.
When that happens, it's likely because of a red signal when the train is catching the one in front. Otherwise maybe the driver sees someone too close to the edge of the platform.
I always wondered this myself, what a waste of time!
"Despite being called the loop line it isn't actually a loop..."
A sentence so Irish I could see it being in Father Ted.
Irish Rail insisted that the delays were due to level crossings to serve its bid in closing road/rail junctions all across west Dublin. It promises a more frequent service along the Maynooth line as part of Dart West but at the cost of traffic chaos in the suburbs. All the while, it downplays the problems at Connolly because it suits them to have money thrown at other projects it says will fix our dysfunctional rail network.
Wonder would turning the shed and sidings on the east side as platforms make any difference? Or else diverting more trains to Docklands. Though getting people to use it may be a challenge
More platforms could always be helpful, but really what's needed is untangling the services. Maybe make the Rosslare train stop at Pearse, and the Sligo train at Docklands. Docklands is not connected well to the Luas though unfortunately.
@anoniaino There are proposals to reroute Sligo trains to Heuston via a new line near Maynooth to join the four-tracked section of the Cork line. Whether it'll happen or not, I don't know. While Heuston isn't as well-placed as Connolly, it does have the Luas.
@@steeviebopscan't really see a line between maynooth and Hazelhatch being built. Connecting them by linking heuston with phoenix park services to drumcondra probably more likely
Do no passenger trains run to Gravesend Junction?
Excellent explanation! I've been seeing this issue mentioned in newspapers for a while now, but I could never understand what exactly the problem was. Do you think the modifications planned as a part of dart+ west will improve the situation? Is Heuston station better? If yes, what's the difference in the track layout?
The timetable will be better, and they’ll make more use out of Docklands, as well as electric trains being faster at accelerating, but the problem of the intercity trains remains.
At Heuston station, only one two-track line approaches the station (and a third track to get to Inchicore depot, but that’s not commonly used) so it can fan out into all platforms and the through line with very few crossing trains.
and there wasnt any connection between noth and south dublin railways till 1891 when loop line bridge was built. before that there was nothing connecting wexford line to anywhere other than pearse and harcourt street. the rpsi stream train always use platform 3 to 1. there was also a proposal at one time to have a train go from tara street to heuston line as well.
Couldn’t Irish rail just add some kind of buffer to allow for all these issues when planning a timetable.
Surely it’s easier to just say W train will arrive at a certain time as opposed to lying and pretending it will be ten minutes earliest.
They do. When building the timetable they allow time for these things, and try to put routes that don't conflict at the same time as each other. The problems occur when trains are delayed, because then they miss their slot in the junction and either get delayed further or delay a different train.
Recently these problems have got worse because Irish rail reduced the padding in the schedule to fit more trains (which are needed) which means even slightly delayed trains can create problems now.
There's no way to fix it but to build something.
Dart plus tunnel, cork to belfast line via interchange with metrolink at st Stephens green is another way of thru running, i wonder will the quad track project help 🤔🤔
Any predictions regarding the Dart +? Will this only worsen the issues?
It will likely be better than the current timetable’s chaos, but won’t really address the biggest problems.
Do you believe it'll be introduced in Q1 2026 or are many delays to be expected?
@Victor-ck3si I couldn’t say really. The new trains might start in battery mode on time, but the lack of infrastructure work which has happened so far would suggest there will be delays.
Looking at the lines running north of the station it really does give rise to fixing the concept of things being "a bit irish" (it works, but we are not sure why , and probably could be better). But its not quite as bad as the through platforms at manchester piccadilly
UK here. Surprised at the lack of electrification - it just seems to be the DART.
Yep! just the DART. Opened in 1984, two small extensions around 2000, then nothing until DART+ in a year or two's time. Crazy!
I actually felt anxiety in my heart hearing g the PA system in Connolly
Wow, that many comments! 2nd pair of tracks North of Connolly needs to be built ASAP. This wil allow separation of commuter, Dart and InterCity trains.
Something minor, would be extending platform 1. Then all trains on that side can terminate there, which then means they aren't crossing the junction
Yes, if they could put the Sligo trains in platform 4 instead it would be a bit better. It would mean getting rid of the waiting room for the Enterprise though.
@anoniaino If they really couldn't find somewhere else to put it, it's a small price to pay for less disruption
@mattevans4377 They could definitely move it, but I think they won’t.
did dublin have a tram system at one time (I am aware of the CIE/"Dublin Corporation" bus history but not of any overlap to trams in the area.
The original Dublin bus network was basically the entire tram system ripped up and replaced. I believe when bus connects launched in Dublin, two of the Dublin bus routes were exactly the same as the tram routes they replaced, stops and all. Dublin had one of Europe's most extensive tram networks iirc and some of the infrastructure still exists. Theres a lidl or an aldi near Rathgar that's build in an old Tram depot building for example.
The last tram route was replaced with QBCs iirc - about a decade ago. The tram lines were much worse than you’d think though - none of them had grade separation, raised platforms, signal priority, or long platforms (for longer trams), so the introduction of buses was an improvement (apart from for the environment)
Yes like many other cities who don't now, but they wouldn't be fit for purpose
At least you still have a train
A lot of questions need to asked about the Rosslare service
Firstly it’s badly timetabled and slow through Co.Wicklow meaning it’s not viable for a lot of commuters (tens of thousands of people commute from Co.Wexford to Co.Dublin).
This isn’t helped by the fact it’s a single track for practically the whole route south of Bray.
The planned battery powered DARTs from Wicklow Town to Greystones/Bray are going to make it even worse.
You’ll have 3 services (DART, battery power DART, intercity) trying to operate on a single line south of Bray
The battery darts won't be heading to Wicklow
They need quad track rail in Dublin and the signalling is 40 years old. Have to separate commuter and inter city
......
Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Come to Jesus Christ today
Jesus Christ is only way to heaven
Repent and follow him today seek his heart Jesus Christ can fill the emptiness he can fill the void
Heaven and hell is real cone to the loving savior today
Today is the day of salvation tomorrow might be to late come to the loving savior today
John 3:16-21
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
Mark 1.15
15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
2 Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
Hebrews 11:6
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Jesus
they have some quad track between parkwest and hazelhatch but i think that's all we are getting, considering most of the country runs on single track
It's depressing visiting other European countries and realising how far behind we are in many ways.
Where did yo find that Diagram
I made it.
Does anyone else think extending Docklands station to accommodate more trains on the Sligo main line could help with this problem?
As I heard yesterday Ireland can be summed up with following tradition to a T but tradition should never get in the way of critical thinking
I'm more confused than when I started watching. That's not a criticism of your video. It's a testament to what a mess those junctions around Connolly are.
Well if there’s anything I can clarify, by all means ask!
id love to see more videos on Irish trains and how much of a mess everything is
noted
lol i worked in connolly station at the moment they are upgrading the signels to allow the smooth running off trians
I've been to Ireland but sadly I've never been on a train.
4:59 Trust me, a Class 68 is much louder than this!
Really you have to listen in person. I had to turn the volume down while editing!
this all makes sense, but how come my daily portlaoise-heuston train is consistently late as well? is heuston also this much of a mess?
A lot of trains, commuter and intercity, using the largely dual track between portlaoise and Hazelhatch. Then widens to four track but goes back to two track after Parkwest meaning trains stopping on approach into heuston to let others pass
Adding to the Other comment, the Hazelhatch/Newbridge to Grand canal dock service that run via phoenix park tunnel, drumcondra, connolly and pearse get caught in these Connolly caused delays and use the same tracks on the kildare line as Portloaise commuter services. This should improve somewhat with DART plus as the entire Heuston to Hazelhatch route will be fully quad tracked BUT there will also be more phoenix park tunnel services. Whether these cancel out or one of these factors dominates the other is yet to be seen I guess.
Not quite as bad, but some of the trains on that line run into the centre, passing through Connolly, which is why I say Connolly affects the whole network.
on the way up the portlaoise commuter trains wait for the cork-hueston train to go first, the galway/westport trains and then the waterford/carlow - hueston trains. on the way back they wait for the gand canal dock - hazelhatch to go first
You remembered your password!
Can't wait for 2099 when Dublin gets a 21st century transport system 😂
I was once taking a train from dublin to waterford however the train got delayed and i nearly got sick lol