After a gap of over 30 years, Iarnród Éireann announced Monday that rail services between Limerick and Galway are set to commence again this March.
The €106.5 million new route, which will serve Limerick, Ennis, Athenry and Galway along with new stations at Sixmilebridge, Gort, Ardrahan and Craughwell, will officially launch on the 29th of March.
The news will be welcomed by consumers and traders in both Limerick and Galway alike, who hope the new service will boost consumer spending in both cities.
“There is tremendous public support for this new service along the route, and we look forward to many new customers using our services, both for travel between the cities, and for commuter travel to Limerick and Galway,” an Irish Rail spokesperson said today.
Irish Rail says the project has a goal of promoting “balanced regional development, in line with National Spatial Strategy objectives, by linking two Gateways – Limerick and Galway – and serving the hub of Ennis.”
The service will commence with five services each way daily Monday to Saturday with four services each way on Sundays.
it’s about time, and Iarnrod Eireann shouldn’t make a song and dance about delivering the BASIC infrastructural needs this country is sorely lacking. It’s 2010 and we’re only now connecting 2 cities in the west of the country.
Thank God!
More window dressing and money wasting by Irish Rail, what use is a train service when it is quicker and cheaper to drive. Ay least if there was a stop in Shannon this move could be considered progress. Is there anything approaching foresight in this country?
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I think re-opening the railway is huge progress. Closing it in the first place was lack of foresight.
Agree with the need for a link to Shannon, but I also think that a Park and Ride scheme could be set up in Clare.
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How do you know the train will be slower, it isn’t even running yet? I say in rush hour the train could take half the time. Especially if it doesn’t need to go to shannon. As you well know, the road deviates to the west to go past shannon, the railway doesn’t.