Quite a lot of Sligo services are still operated by 29k. The 0905 down train is always a 29k and when I have had occasion to take the 1505 down a couple of times recently, it was a 29k as well.
Yet on a regular basis, the 0545 up train crosses with a 22k heading for Clonsilla around Broombridge. The 29K is perfectly adequate for a trip as far as Mullingar and reasonable for Longford, but it is a bit out of order to be using them for Sligo.
Irish Rail's recent attitude to facilities on trains has always struck me as a bit odd. They removed first class from Sligo somewhere between 10 and 15 years ago and I can understand why because almost nobody paid for it and if you did pay for it you had to find a staff member to shift some smelly student out of your seat (the smelly student usually being me at the time). In fairness, the standard of accommodation on the 22k is good enough that first class would only really be for snob value. It isn't necessary for any practical purpose.
But the bar car used to do a roaring trade on the old trains and the omission of some sort of shop from a 3 hour journey is a bit odd. I guess Irish Rail worked out that they can make more money from the combination of a trolley and another 20 seats than they can from the shop - particularly when the catering is outsourced. It just seems to me that the ability to purchase some sort of a hot meal - even if it were just a toastie - would give people more reason to travel by rail at a time when road journey times are as good if not better.
|