Posts Tagged 'trains'

Bikes now allowed on off-peak DARTs and commuter trains

Published 4 January, 2011 Balbriggan , Community , Donabate , Drogheda , Environment , Lusk , Malahide , Portmarnock , Rush , Skerries Closed
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4 January 2011

Bikes now allowed on off-peak DARTs and commuter trains

“Another Fingal Greens objective realized”, says local TD Trevor Sargent, commenting on news from Iarnród Éireann. According to Barry Kenny, Corporate Communications Manager at Iarnród Éireann:

“For the first time cyclists are now able to take bikes onboard DARTs and Commuter trains at off-peak periods. Bikes will be carried free of charge on DART and Commuter services between 10.00hrs and 15.30hrs, and after 19.00hrs, Monday to Friday and all day Saturday and Sunday (excluding times of major fixtures / concerts and similar events at Aviva / Croke Park etc).

Iarnród Éireann is delighted to be providing these additional services for cyclists and we hope that it promotes even more use of our services by cyclists. It will be a great opportunity for example for families at weekends to take their bicycles on our services, and visit areas that it would not have been practical to visit previously. As well as supporting national policy on developing cycling, it is also very much a business opportunity for Iarnród Éireann, with the numbers of people cycling on the rise.

Iarnród Éireann has also undertaken an audit of bicycle parking facilities at its 142 stations around the country. This will allow improvements in facilities to be targeted at areas under-served at present, and improve the accessibility of stations for cyclists, and further encourage the development of cycling.”

In welcoming the positive response by Iarnród Éireann to his calls for greater integration of bike and rail services, local TD and cyclist Sargent said “This development is a bonus to visitors to north County Dublin. Allowing cyclists take bikes on off-peak trains brings us into line with many European countries and will open up more possibilities for leisure cyclists as well as commuters working outside the traditional peak hours. I for one will be using the train more with my bike and leaving the car at home, reducing traffic congestion and pollution.”

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- Train Service back to normal

Published 16 November, 2009 Balbriggan , Donabate , Fingal news , Lusk , Malahide , Portmarnock , Rush , Skerries Closed
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MINISTER SARGENT ON THE REOPENING OF THE VIADUCT RAIL LINE

Full timetable of northern commuter services and the Belfast Enterprise resumes today, following repair work.

Trains return

Glad to be boarding the train in Balbriggan. Image: C.Finn

Minister for Food and Horticulture Trevor Sargent TD travelled by train to Malahide today to take advantage of the full restoration of the northern commuter service.

The Minister said, ‘The resumption of the train service is an excellent testament to the resolve of Iarnród Éireann to repair the collapsed viaduct ahead of schedule. I met many passengers this morning who were delighted that, in the midst of difficult economic times, they could be heartened that Iarnród Éireann was at least ensuring one aspect of their life was dependable and could be regarded as getting back to normal.’

- Fingal Commuter Survey

Published 1 November, 2009 Balbriggan , Donabate , Lusk , Malahide , Rush , Skerries , Swords Closed
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The train service is set to resume on November 16th. What difference will it make to you?

We’re interested in hearing your views on the temporary bus service set up to replace the train following the collapse of the bridge at Malahide in August. We hear reports from commuters that they find the bus service excellent and now wish that it could continue even after the train service resumes. What do you think? Take a minute to complete our Fingal Commuter Survey and help to inform the decision process.

Take the survey here.

It’s completely confidential and will only take about a minute of your time. Thanks for helping to shape the future.

We’ll be publishing the results of this survey here at the end of November so please come back and see the result.

- UPDATE ON MALAHIDE VIADUCT

Published 17 September, 2009 Balbriggan , Donabate , Fingal news , Lusk , Malahide , Rush , Skerries Closed
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MINISTER SARGENT RECEIVES OFFICIAL UPDATE ON MALAHIDE VIADUCT.

Return of full rail service expected by November

Broadmeadow railway bridge, mid-September 2009 (Image: C.Finn)

Broadmeadow railway bridge, mid-September 2009 (Image: C.Finn)

Barry Kenny of Iarnród Éireann has confirmed to local TD and Minister Trevor Sargent that a full rail service on the Belfast line is due to resume by the end of November.

Minister Sargent with Barry Kenny, Head of Public Relations, Iarnród Éireann

Minister Sargent with Barry Kenny of Iarnród Éireann

Minister Sargent visited the site of the viaduct span collapse this week where he met with Mr Kenny and various railway engineers who confirmed the good news. The recent spell of benign weather and the sound nature of the viaduct each side of the collapsed section means that the repairs are less onerous than initially feared.

The Minister said, “I understand that the rapid deterioration of the weak pier which collapsed was caused it seems by 60% of the water leaving the estuary being funnelled under one of the 12 spans supporting the rail line. To prevent any reoccurrence of this disaster each remaining pier is being reinforced. An ecologist and hydrologist are working with the engineers to also ensure the estuary environment is protected and the water level restored.”

Minister Sargent is briefed by Barry Kenny and Eammon Ballance, Chief Civil Engineer, Iaranroid Eireann

Minister Sargent is briefed by Barry Kenny and Eammon Ballance, Chief Civil Engineer, Iaranroid Eireann

The Minister continued, “I thank God for the vigilance of the train driver and the fact that all passengers survived unscathed. Had the driver braked even slightly, I dread to think what might have happened”.

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Sargent welcomes start of express Balbriggan – city centre bus link

Published 25 August, 2009 Fingal news Closed
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24 August 2009

New service will benefit peak hour commuters

Green Party TD and Minister of State Trevor Sargent has welcomed Irish Rail’s decision to provide a daily direct bus service from Balbriggan to Dublin City Centre from tomorrow (Tuesday, 25 August 2009).

Following Friday’s collapse of the rail viaduct outside Malahide and after discussions today with Iarnrod Eireann’s CEO Richard Fearn, Minister Sargent was pleased that the transport needs of people living in or near to Balbriggan are being better met.

Minister Sargent said: “From tomorrow Balbriggan commuters will be able to make use of a new, express bus link to Dublin city centre. It became clear today that using existing scheduled services was not going to be an option for anybody needing to reach the city centre at peak hours. I am relieved that CIE have been able to introduce the new arrangements.

“The rail replacement service that is running from Drogheda is a specific station to station service. However, commuters from the most northerly towns of North County Dublin such as Balbriggan were not getting such an efficient service. Balbriggan commuters were required to take an additional journey of 10 kilometres to use the bus service running from Skerries in order to make the commute into the City Centre. This is adding up to 25 minutes to their daily commute.

Minister Sargent continued: “It is urgent that we get all of the rail replacement services running efficiently as they may be in place for quite a lengthy period of time while repairs to the viaduct at the Broadmeadows estuary are being carried out. Additionally, the loss of the rail service to commuters in the North County has now highlighted what an inadequate rail service we have had for a number of years. For this reason we must ensure that Metro North is delivered as soon as possible to afford commuters an alternative mode of travel in the future.”

Minister Sargent, who himself is a regular commuter, has been in regular contact with Iarnród Éireann, Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann officials since the collapse of the viaduct at the Broadmeadows estuary. Both he and his officials are working on solutions to alleviate the pressure on commuters travelling from Dublin North to the City Centre.

“I reiterate my hope that repair works to the viaduct can be expedited to alleviate the pressure on Dublin North commuters. I also call on the commuters from this area that intend to travel by car to consider car pooling. This will reduce pressure on the roads, be a benefit to commuters without cars, and of course, also benefit the environment.

“I have had a special section added to my website http://trevorsargent.ie to allow fellow commuters make contact with each other if they wish to carpool into areas of the city from North County Dublin.”

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For further information on carpooling, please log onto trevorsargent.ie or call the Green Party constituency office in Swords on 01 890 0360.

Notes (from irishrail.ie):
From Tuesday 25th of August, a special direct bus service will operate between Balbriggan Station and Dublin Connolly station via The Dublin Port Tunnel commencing Tuesday, 25th August for the morning and evening peak. Rail tickets will be accepted on this service.

Balbriggan – Dublin Connolly: 07:00hrs, 07:30hrs, 07:45hrs, 08:00hrs, 08:30hrs

Dublin Connolly (Sherrif St. Lower) – Balbriggan: 17:00hrs, 17:30hrs, 17:45hrs, 18:00hrs, 18:30hrs

- DART Extension by 2015

Published 3 March, 2009 Balbriggan , Donabate , Fingal news , Lusk , Rush , Skerries Closed
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3 March 2009

DART EXTENSION NORTH OF MALAHIDE BY 2015

Following representations from local TD Trevor Sargent and Minister for Food & Horticulture, Iarnród Éireann have confirmed that the extension of the DART network in Dublin North is still on the cards.

Richard Fearn, Chief Executive of Iarnród Éireann, has written to the Minister confirming that the DART extension north of Malahide remains a key part of the Transport 21 capital investment programme for rail. As part of the programme, there are also plans to provide a rail tunnel from Docklands to Heuston and the Maynooth line DART extension. They are all planned to be completed by 2015.

Minister Sargent commented, “This project will be a major boost for the many commuters using Donabate, Rush & Lusk, Skerries and Balbriggan stations. It will create a direct link from these northern suburban towns to the heart of Dublin city. I’m also reassured that Mr Fearn of Iarnród Éireann has stressed the importance of the future of the DART link to Balbriggan.”

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- Balbriggan Viaduct Repairs

Published 2 September, 2008 Balbriggan , Farmers markets Closed
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2 September 2008

MINISTER SARGENT WELCOMES STATEMENT FROM IARNRÓD ÉIREANN ON THE VIADUCT IN BALBRIGGAN

The Minister for Food and Horticulture and local Green Party T.D. Trevor Sargent has welcomed the recent statement from Iarnród Éireann regarding the completion of ongoing works on the viaduct at Balbriggan, following his representations.

According to an engineer’s report, repair work on 10 of the 11 arches is complete. This entailed strengthening the cast-iron fascia on each side following storm damage last May.

The remaining arch requires the use of a crane and cannot be carried out with trains running. It is planned to complete this work early in the morning on Sunday 21st September.

Minister Sargent said, ‘I’m looking forward to the completion of these works as soon as possible to ensure the general safety of commuters and public alike. Also, the car park in the area of the viaduct would be an ideal location for a proposed Farmers’ Market which I am endeavouring to develop with Green Party Town Councillor Stephen Kilgallon in cooperation with Fingal County Council.’

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- Double-decker Trains on Northern Line?

Published 28 March, 2008 Balbriggan , Donabate , Fingal news , Lusk , Malahide , Rush , Skerries Closed
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26 March 2008

 

Minister Sargent asks Iarnród Éireann to consider double decker trains on Northern line

 

Regular rail commuters and local Minister Trevor Sargent T.D, is continuing to press for improvements and additional capacity on the Northern Line.

 

“The growth of population in the towns along the line will require far greater capacity on the trains than is available at present. Accordingly, I have asked Mr. Richard Fearn, the CEO of Iarnród Éireann to plan for this huge growth in demand considering all options including double decker trains” said Minister Trevor Sargent.

 

In response Mr. Fearn said “ A number of European rail operators do use double decker carriages and obviously more people can be seated in a double decker carriage than a single decker one. However, the number of seats is not twice that of a single decker carriage because of the space taken up by stairways. Also, very little vestibule standing space is available which limits overall peak period carrying capacity. Users of double decker carriages also find that station dwell times for joining and alighting tend to be longer due to the time taken for people to come down from the upper floor. This is less of an issue however for limited stop longer distance commuter services.

 

To summarise, in preparing our submissions for further commuter rolling stock as part of Transport 21 investment plan, we intend to review the rolling stock supply market very thoroughly, and to consider carefully the advantages and disadvantages of double deck railcars.”

 

In conclusion, Minister Sargent said “I will be continuing the ongoing communication with Iarnród Éireann and all public transport providers to increase capacity for passengers. However, I am also working in government to encourage and attract new employment and enterprise to Fingal towns so as to avoid adding to commuting pressure.

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- Sargent welcomes Swords jobs boost

Published 7 November, 2007 Swords Closed
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7 November 2007 

Minister for Food and Horticulture, Trevor Sargent TD, welcomed the news that 260 new jobs will be coming to Swords. AIB announced that it will be creating 260 jobs in the town by opening a new customer contact centre in the Airside Retail Park.

The Dublin North TD said, “This is a great boost for Fingal and is a vote of confidence in the skills-base available to employers in the area. It is a move that will make other employers examine the economic potential of the area’s young, educated population.”

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