A possible solution for the Connolly to GCD leg is to buy an irish rail smart (dumb) card. There's a smart card reader on a pole at the arch between platforms 4 and 5. You could hop off at p5, tag on, and jump back on again.

James, where is this smartcard reader? Pass the spot every day, spent 10 minutes on Saturday looking around

I clearly recall asking IE's smartcard team to look into providing one for this very purpose but didn't think it had been sorted out

Correct - email from Translink today:

"....I regret to inform you that the introduction of this service has been delayed due to a number of operational reasons. We endeavour to resolve these issues at the earliest opportunity and it is still our intention to introduce this service in the near future...."

New service will now not go ahead on the 13th December

So basically they need to wait for suitable train to provide the service.

Its amazing how management don't know the rules under which they must operate.

As of December 1st there is no application for the safety exemptions required

My previously reliable translink source expects this service to start in March using a 29K

Have they now made the necessary exemption application?

On December 2nd there was no record of an application from Irish Rail. There was one application under consideration for the former DSER steam locomotive no 461

The exemptions which exist (steam trains only) are for infrequent use under heavy restricted speeds with significant staff cover

No exemptions for daily use without TPWS exist

I have it on good authority the service was pulled because IR drivers told the IE to get stuffed having to start that extra bit earlier, the union got involved and the service was shelved......

The truth is Irish Rail and Translink could not legally operate the service due to the trains involved not being equipped with suitable safety equipment.

Authorities in Belfast are investigating a series of breeches of rail safety and NI law with respect to Irish trains operating in NI without the safety gear fitted

Is the Union story a smokescreen? However knowing some of the union antics in the public sector, it might not be.

But the lack of safety equipment (CAWS, AWS, etc) is a truly pathetic excuse. Trains operate from the UK to France aand Belgium every day and no doubt a large number of other cross border operations occur in Europe with appropriate equipment being fitted.

It's all part of the "can't do" mentality afflcting our public services.

But its extremely expensive to fit the equipment and it has to be certified and tested. Its custom to each train.

Irish Rail has 6 ICR sets fitted, NIR has 6 C3K sets and 6 201 class locomotives

The 6 ICR sets are planned to operate some cross border services from 2012 onwards

When are the new batch of 22000 due to start arriving/entering service? I presume these are what are required before these new 22000 cross border services begin.

57 are due between now and Summer, allowing for commissioning they should all be in place for 2012

The reality is that there should be a single rail control system in the island of Ireland being rolled out based on the European ERTMS standards with eventually all trains being "go-anywhere" (subject to driver and stock clearance) but instead the Republic chose to subsidise flights to Derry and half a billion on the A5.

After a lot of prodding in Dublin and Belfast the NI administration has finally revealed a very suspect exemption for certain cross border trains

This was not revealed under FOI get the feeling they didn't want to tell me

Gleeson yeh big tease yeh :D

Seems like from March 21st there will be a train from Newry to Dublin

The safety arrangements are less than impressive and the exemptions were hidden and not disclosed.

http://www.irishrail.ie/news_centre/...w&news_id=1030

No chance this train could run direct then from Drogheda / Laytown???!

For your own safety do not travel in the front or very rear coach. The train does not have the safety equipment required and operates under a very strange exemption which would not be tolerated by Network Rail in the UK

A large number of stakeholders met with NIR and IE in Dublin and Belfast in 2010 demanding amongst other things a early morning Belfast Dublin service

As always we get the messy half arsed solution

http://www.translink.co.uk/Timetable...ce-1-Outbound/

Hmm, a 1 minute connection with the 0620 ex-Portadown. I presume that remains operated by NIR.