[PR] Donegal - Dublin Airport Direct

Victor

http://www.buseireann.ie/site/news_centre/news_briefs.asp?action=view&news_id=478

Dublin Airport Direct.

From Monday 31st July, 2006, the 07.30 McGeehan Coaches departure from Dungloe, via Donegal Town at 08.45 will go direct to Dublin Airport arriving at 13.00.

Service will depart Cavan Bus Station at 11.00 am and serve Virginia at 11.30, Kells at 11.45, Navan(Bypass) at 12.00, Dunshaughlin at 12.15 and Ratoath at 12.30.

The service will depart from Dublin Airport at 17.30 via Cavan, arriving in Donegal town at 21.45 and Dungloe at 23.20.

Airport Direct Service will operate daily.

Glencolumbcille & Killybegs services connect with Airport service at Donegal Town.

Ballyshannon passengers connect at Enniskillen (Ulsterbus depot).

Flukey

A good idea. What should really be done is to get a proper rail service in Donegal and a direct line from Derry to Dublin. That would get more passengers and get them transported quicker. A long term project, but that makes today the best day to start.

loyatemu

Flukey wrote:

A good idea. What should really be done is to get a proper rail service in Donegal and a direct line from Derry to Dublin. That would get more passengers and get them transported quicker. A long term project...

and an insanely expensive one, only justifiable if Derry\Letterkenny grew to 5 times their current size.

dowlingm

One of the reasons I liked the DART spur was the possibility of extending to the Clonsilla-Navan line and thus linking into the Sligo line and thus improving access for people in the northwest to Dublin.

How does the fare compare with Aer Arann from Carrickfin? A bus arriving at that time might suit people arriving from later transatlantic services but is damn all good for departures.

mickd

Better to fly with Aer Arann if going to the Airport. 5 1/2 hr trip is madness regardless of the cost

John R

dowlingm wrote:

One of the reasons I liked the DART spur was the possibility of extending to the Clonsilla-Navan line and thus linking into the Sligo line and thus improving access for people in the northwest to Dublin.

How does the fare compare with Aer Arann from Carrickfin? A bus arriving at that time might suit people arriving from later transatlantic services but is damn all good for departures.

Bus Eireann/Ulsterbus are introducing a much improved timetable on Dublin-Derry and Dublin-Letterkenny routes in September with all services calling at Dublin Airport.

There will be a late service from Dublin-Derry Leaving at 23.00 every night, a later bus from Derry at 20.45 and one leaving Derry at 00.45 arriving in Dublin before 5am, perfect for early morning flights.

Timetables here:
http://www.translink.co.uk/future/GLE_274_I.asp
http://www.translink.co.uk/future/GLE_274_O.asp

2 late night/early morning services in each direction are being added to the Dublin-Belfast service as well.

http://www.translink.co.uk/future/GLE_200_I.asp
http://www.translink.co.uk/future/GLE_200_O.asp

Flukey

loyatemu wrote:

and an insanely expensive one, only justifiable if Derry\Letterkenny grew to 5 times their current size.

It is not just about the places at or near the end of the line. A Dublin/Derry line would serve a lot of places in between. It would be a major element in serving the commuter area in Meath for example. Time and time again we see people looking at transport projects based on only the first and last stops and dismissing them. Letterkenny could be a village with one house, but that doesn't matter; a rail line from Dublin to it is still going to serve a large area and amount of people along its length. A train leaving Dublin for Letterkenny might have very few people going to Letterkenny on it, but it would be packed with people going to other stops and would pick up and drop off along the way.

It is like the Western Rail Corridor debate. It should be based on all the stops it serves. The Western Rail Corridor itself should run right into Donegal and Derry too in fact. From Derry through Donegal, into Sligo and down into Mayo and Galway and on to Ennis and Limerick and down to Cork, there should be a rail line, with spurs off it. It is not that many people want to go from Cork to Derry or vice versa, but it will service a lot of the journeys that people do want to make. Equally a full line from Derry to Dublin and various spurs that would develop off it would serve a lot of people, that don't want to go to Derry or Dublin.

Like all terrestial transport systems the bulk of passengers are travelling only part of the entire route, but over the course of its total journey such modes of transport carry a lot more individuals than its capacity at any given moment. Rail is majorly under developed in this country which leaves a lot of potential for all sorts of new lines and routes. The DART and Luas were looked upon with suspicion and people said they would never work but particularly in the case of the DART it was anything but the white elephant it was predicted to be. So whether Letterkenny has 5 times its current population or just one person in it, a rail line from Dublin to it, would serve a lot of people.