Iarnród Éireann is to begin works on the development of high speed train services in order to cut more than half an hour off the journey time for routes such as Galway to Dublin.
The company is seeking to improve train travel times between Dublin and regional cities such as Waterford, Galway, Cork, and Limerick with an ultimate goal of reducing the journeys to less than two hours in the near future.
The high speed service works, which are due to begin on Galway services early next year, are in response to Iarnród Éireann’s difficulties in competing with the shorter travel times offered by new motorways such as the M6. There has also been a severe decline in passenger numbers in recent years but it is hoped that these proposed improvement and modernisation works will attract passengers back to the main city routes.
It is understood that Iarnród Éireann has told the Government it wants to cut about 30 minutes off rail travel times to Cork and Galway as part of the first phase of the initiative. The desired inter-city speed is 160km/h, however at present none of the Dublin to Galway route is capable of that speed, with the maximum running speed between the two cities, on only half of the route, currently at 130km/h.
The improvement works are part of the 2012-2016 programme which is estimated to cost in the region of €175 million. As a result of the improvement works the Dublin to Galway route is set to be reduced by up to 33 minutes bringing the journey under two hours and seven minutes. Other routes set to benefit from this programme include: the Dublin to Cork route which will improve by 25 minutes, reducing the time to about two hours and 20 minutes; there will also be knock-on effects for routes such as Dublin to Westport/Ballina which will see a reduction of 22 minutes, bringing it to about three hours and five minutes; and the Dublin to Limerick journey time will improve by 16 minutes bringing it down to two hours.
