Limerick Junction Eastern Platform

dowlingm

The provision of a platform on the east side has been announced previously in order to allow more Cork-Dublin services to stop. Has any progress been made on implementing this or has it been shelved?

KC61

Still on the backburner.

Chris_533976

I still think the Irish rail system would make so much more sense if Limerick Junction didnt exist and the Cork - Dublin trains went via Limerick. I know its impossible as Limerick city is in the way and the station is at the wrong angle but it would just make SO much more sense than the current farce.

Ham'nd'egger

Chris_533976 wrote: »

I still think the Irish rail system would make so much more sense if Limerick Junction didnt exist and the Cork - Dublin trains went via Limerick. I know its impossible as Limerick city is in the way and the station is at the wrong angle but it would just make SO much more sense than the current farce.

The line from Limerick to Waterford was actually built before the Dublin-Cork line so even back then a direct line was unlikely.

Victor

Hamndegger wrote: »

The line from Limerick to Waterford was actually built before the Dublin-Cork line so even back then a direct line was unlikely.

This seems to be a popular misconception.

Limerick - Tipperary was built by April 1848.

Dublin-Limerick Junction was built by July 1848

Limerick Junction-Mallow was built by March 1849

Mallow-Cork Victoria was built by October 1849

Tipperary-Waterford by September 1854.

Limerick direct curve was built by October 1967.

corktina

i think the poster meant to say that the east-west line line was built before the north south....if you substiute tipperary for waterford, then their post is correct.

corktina

If the direct line through Patrickswell were reinstated and the direct line to Dublin used from Limerick, then a Cork-Limerick-Dublin service might make sense (with a reversal at Limerick of course..) However as we know it isnt as strightforward as just reinstating a disused line is it.

Victor

corktina wrote: »

If the direct line through Patrickswell were reinstated and the direct line to Dublin used from Limerick, then a Cork-Limerick-Dublin service might make sense (with a reversal at Limerick of course..) However as we know it isnt as strightforward as just reinstating a disused line is it.

You'd never match the speeds.

Ham'nd'egger

Victor wrote: »

This seems to be a popular misconception.

Limerick - Tipperary was built by April 1848.

Dublin-Limerick Junction was built by July 1848

Limerick Junction-Mallow was built by March 1849

Mallow-Cork Victoria was built by October 1849

Tipperary-Waterford by September 1854.

Limerick direct curve was built by October 1967.

Victor may have misunderstood my point although the essence of what he says is right; the line east-west was in place prior to the line north-south first and it had it's Royal Assent sometime before the Dublin-Cork line received it's permission; a prior Limerick-Waterford line was actually the first in Ireland to be passed by Westminster back around 1825

corktina

Victor wrote: »

You'd never match the speeds.

Indeed, too many bends and crossings of course, plus the north kerry line section was quite lightly built iirc....

Hungerford

He may also have been referring to the line from Ballybrophy to Limerick, which would be a direct route but that only came about in the early 1860s.

As an interesting aside, I was just flicking through one of my history books here and I see that a Parliamentary Inquiry from 1861 was told that the Nenagh route to Limerick was not competitive, it being single track from Ballybrophy.

So even if it had been built earlier, it would never had been a goer as a main route to Limerick.

dowlingm

corktina wrote: »

However as we know it isnt as strightforward as just reinstating a disused line is it.

Especially since a big chunk of road is lying on it now east of Patrickswell.