Luas Cross City Opens!
December 9th 2017
The Luas Cross City extension from Stephen's Green To Broombridge is now open to the public.
The slow process of turning Dublin's random collection of routes into a transport network continues. Despite the frequent negativity from some media outlets and commentators the cross city Luas line opened on time on budget just as all the previous extensions have done.
Rail Users Ireland acknowledges the efforts of Transport Infrastructure Ireland, the National Transport Authority and Transdev in completing the project successfully.
The Cross City Line introduces a number of positive customer oriented features. Ticket vending machines have been upgraded enabling payment by contactless card as well has offering the ability to issue change in both coin and notes as well as a much improved screen. Stops on the Cross City Line incorporate back lit station signage and include additional smart card validators. All stops are fully accessible.
Luas cross city opens up access across the North Inner City providing shorter, more reliable journeys for many cross city, it will be of particular value to the residents of Cabra and Phibsborough who will enjoy a fast efficient reliable service to the city centre and onwards south.
Journeys using leap card within the area bounded by Parnell, St. Stephen's Green, Jervis and Connolly / George's Dock at off peak times will be one 1 euro until December 2018.
However all is not perfect, access to and from the new DIT Grangegorman campus, potentially one of the largest sources of passengers for the new line remains incomplete as does the unacceptable interchange arrangement at Broombridge with Irish Rail's Maynooth line services.
The disjoint nature of public transport in Dublin is once again exposed by Irish Rail's failure to complete the upgrade works at Broombridge station. The rail station currently lacks even the most basic piece of information a timetable.
Interchange passengers are forced to walk all the way to the Broombridge Road and back to change between Irish Rail and Luas despite the Irish Rail platform being a matter of metres from the Luas stop.
The proposed increase in frequency on the Maynooth line rail services has been deferred and will be Summer 2018 at the earliest.
Rail Users Ireland understands that the National Transport Authority has fully funded the works at Broombridge so Irish Rail has no excuses. Rail Users Ireland notes that Irish Rail and its parent CIE mounted a media campaign some years ago to block the use of the former MGWR railway alignment between Broadstone and Broombridge.