Reopened Athlone-Mullingar - 6,800 Passengers Per Week - IE Estimate

MarkoP11

The passing loops are Geashill, Tullamore, Clara and Clonydonnin, they are 7 to 8 miles apart, its 39 miles to Athlone which has a double passing loop, the passing loop at the old station is also still in use. The line was never built for 2 tracks, note the rock cutting in Tullamore on the Dublin side and the bridge on the Athlone side. I have inquired about possible doubling and its not on IE's radar.

The problem with this approach is the need for a railway works order and heaps of CPO, that takes a lot of time and money, the Athlone Mullingar section would not need that even for 2 tracks

There are only 100+ MK3 coaches available from 2008, that will more than cover all the Fridays only, GAA etc. Despite all the hype I'm sure a MK3 will be a more comfortable option for the trek to Tralee. There is stock there, modern stock. UK operators are investing tens of millions into 30 year old Mk3 coaches, the Irish batch are 18-22 years olds and have the advantage of power doors

Athlone Mullingar is realistic option, its one of the few projects the strategic rail review was positive about

GerardKeating

John R wrote:

The Dublin-Galway and Mayo expresses are not going to be diverted via Mullingar. No matter what it is going to be a significantly slower route to Dublin and also consistently more congested for the forseeable future.

Why would it be "significantly slower", it's about the same route milage.

murphaph

GerardKeating wrote:

Why would it be "significantly slower", it's about the same route milage.

The MGWR was built following the buy out of the Royal Canal Company and 'parallels' (I use that term in the loosest possible sense here!) the waterway from Dublin to Mullingar. The canal wasn't built in a straight line so as to avoid cutting through hills and the like and unfortunately the railway inherited this bendy maximum speed of 60mph'ish alignment to this day.

dowlingm

I wonder if you had to go for a works order and CPOs would it be better to straighten out the Mullingar line a bit with that money...

What kind of tph could Athlone-Portarlington take before doubling even some of it would become critical?

westtip

Here's an article which appeared in the Athlone Observer in early 2003. Of course a few things have change since then - no more waiting for buses outside Heuston to crawl down the quays (the Luas is a huge improvement), but the journey times from Athlone to Heuston remain pretty much the same and the lack of an active rail line between Athlone and Mullingar is still there, by the way if you ever play Moate golf club it can be quite eerie at times, as railway announcements come out on unused platform of Moate railway station just beside the club. I was unaware of the complications for this line to get access to the existing (new) railway station, but surely this can be overcome.

Text of Article published in the Ahtlone Observer 31 January 2003

The Missing Link for Athlone Commuters.

Mention 9:11 in conversation today and everyone’s own image of that fatal day will come to mind. Life is full of numbers that have meaning for people. 7:28 was the time of the train I used to catch to Waterloo for my daily commute into London. It wasn’t the train just before half past seven or just after twenty five past, it was the 7:28. To all those that stood on Basingstoke platform 3 waiting each morning, planning their attack on the available seats left on this overcrowded commuter train the 7.28 was the start of their daily routine.

Commuting has become a part of daily or weekly life for many of us. No one looks at you strangely if you live in Athlone and work in Dublin these days – but they might say “poor you do you get the 6:18”. 6.18 is the time of the dawn run from Athlone to Heuston Station. In my experience of commuting life it has to rank as probably one of the worst I have ever faced not least because of its early start – to get the 6.18 you have to get out of bed very very early. The train at this time of the morning is not full and it is easy enough to find somewhere to sit and put yourself back to sleep and at least pretend that you are still under the duvet at home. Your slumber will be disturbed as the train fills at its endless stops at Clara, Tullamore, Portarlington, Kildare, Sallins and Hazelhatch. Of course Kildare commuters know that their journey will be standing room only. It’s not exactly a direct route to Dublin.

On arrival at Heuston Station the Midland commuters face another daily grind. The location of Heuston Station means that most of the battle weary commuters from the Midlands and Kildare have to fight for a place on the number 90 bus which crawls down the Quays to their places of work in the city centre. I am not going to even comment on the journey home. Commuting is hard work, some thrive on it and accept it as part of life – but really it shouldn’t be a struggle like this to get to your place of work.


Mullingar commuters have a slightly easier life these days and good luck to them. A commuter service originates in Longford at 07:00 am departs from Mullingar at 07:29 a full one hour and eleven minutes after the 06:18 left Athlone. The service also stops at Edgeworthstown at 07.10 which might be of interest for Athlone commuters as an alternative starting point. When Mullingar commuters board their train bound for Connolly station, their Athlone counterparts are just coming into Kildare station, sitting in a very crowded carriage, they are beginning to psyche themselves up for the bus trip down the quays. I have always thought that going via Kildare is a strange way of getting to Dublin from Athlone. Commuters from Mullingar may get into the Dublin terminal a little later than those coming in on the 06.18 from Athlone, but at least they come into Connolly or can stay on the train to Tara Street or Pearse Street station, all city centre stations more likely to be near their place of work than Heuston. Avoiding the joys of the number 90 bus down the quays as part of their daily commuting journey. The important thing for all commuters is not just the main train journey but how they complete their journey, because this adds to the total commuting time. The number 90 bus can take half an hour to get down the quays, taking into account the initial journey to Athlone station commuters from this Athlone may have been on the move for three hours before they arrive at their desks, probably exhausted.

Mullingar Athlone and Tullamore have been designated as the Midland Hub. Imagine if you wanted to get from one hub town Athlone to Mullingar by train – you had better plan your journey well. The earliest you can get to Mullingar by train from Athlone is to take the 09:18 to Heuston, the number 90 bus to Connolly and then the 13:35 from Connolly to Sligo via Mullingar. Arriving at Mullingar at 14.38. A total journey time of five hours and ten minutes. Little wonder there is no rail commuter traffic between these two “hub” towns.

Which brings me to the missing link and how it could help those committed early morning rail commuters from Athlone. The missing link is the train line that runs from Athlone to Mullingar. I advocate that a train service from Athlone to Mullingar departing at about 7.00 am would provide a connection for commuters to the Mullingar commuter service into Connolly/Tara Street/Pearse Street which are all far more convenient destination for most commuters to Dublin than Heuston. A similar shuttle service during the evening would of course be required to connect with the commuter trains that head for Mullingar each evening at 17.15, 18.10 and 18.56. A train service between Athlone and Mullingar would provide a link between the North West route to Sligo and the Western routes to Galway and Westport. A glance at the Irish rail network shows that it is a missing link that Iarnrod Eireann are ignoring.

Throughout Ireland road congestion is getting worse, but particularly on routes in and around Dublin. Increased levels of commuting to and from Dublin are inevitable, public transport planners have a duty to meet the needs of commuters. A good train service that delivers people to the part of the city they want to be in and doesn’t involve starting the day before 6.00 in the morning every day would surely be supported by commuters from Athlone. The re-opening of the Athlone – Mullingar route for passenger traffic, a route between two hub towns has to be considered good transport planning. Iarnrod Eireann will, no doubt tell us that it all comes down to numbers – but those early morning commuters are looking for a number like 07:00 rather than 06:18 to make their lives just that bit more tolerable

Our man in Havana

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Victor

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