Platform 11 welcomes enhanced Maynooth timetable
September 8th 2005
Platform 11 has learned of the details of of the December 2005 timetable change with respect of the Maynooth line.
Some poorly informed sources have been critical of the improvements. We find it hard to fathom the mindset of these groups, Iarnród Éireann have delivered substantial more than first agreed. Credit must be given where credit is due. 3 extra morning rush hour services and 2 extra evening services is substantially more than what Iarnród Éireann had proposed some time ago. A very sensible choice is to run 2, 4 coach trains instead of a single 8 coach train. This provides the same capacity but distributed across the rush hour, frequency is a key driver in attracting people to public transport. Later expansion to 6 or 8 coach trains when additional rolling stock becomes available is possible.
Owing to capacity constants these services operate only to platform 7 in Connolly, this is a well known constraint and this fact has been known for some time. While not ideal Connolly station is a major transport hub, with easy connections to Luas and Bus Eireann services as well as the IFSC. Iarnród Éireann's long term plans envisage extending the DART to Maynooth and Dunboyne with 8 services an hour between Bray and Clonsilla, with services then alternating between Maynooth and Dunboyne.