Irish Rail, travel times and permanent speed restrictions must improve!!

Le_bounce

Your views and what do you think

Hilly Bill

Fair comment.

As far as i know, the Dublin to Cork and Galway routes are to be upgraded next year to improve the line speed.

Cookie_Monster

they must, must they? Certainly they should but who is going to come out and demand it, IE's head honcho? Leo V? the NTA?

care to explain how this should / will be achieved or offer an opinion?

Victor

What do you think Le_bounce?

cocoshovel

Id love to see more late night and early morning trains between Dublin and Waterford. The last train to Waterford is at 18:35, which is no good as I often want to attend something in Dublin that takes place in the evening time.
Its the same going in the opposite direction, the last train to Dublin from Waterford is 18:20.

Also, an early morning train from Kilkenny to Waterford would be great too. The earliest one departs at 9:05. I would like to be able to live in Kilkenny and be able to grab the train to Waterford for college every morning but as it stands the only way down at the moment is a privately run bus. Is it the same with other lines too?

However as much as I want this to happen I imagine there is just little or no demand for it and that is why there isn't any services at these hours.

In regard to the line speeds, it would be great if they could go faster but is there a way to improve them without having to pretty much lay down new track? I don't know much on the subject but I imagine they are already operating as best as they can no?

CIE

In regard to the line speeds, it would be great if they could go faster but is there a way to improve them without having to pretty much lay down new track?

Signalling improvements primarily, and better super-elevation as far as curves go.

dowlingm

As pointed out above, it would be great if PSRs could be remediated but this costs money. A good deal of it was blown on lines either suspended (Rosslare-Waterford) or about to be so (Nenagh-Killonan).

Waterford-Limerick: it's a shame that the approaches from Waterford Station is, as I understand, essentially two separately signalled single tracks. With the increase of services as well as the uptick in freight capacity is bound to be tight.

Is there any plan to CTC Waterford and Waterford West, and perhaps move the junction between the two lines out as far as the N25 which would give about what, 2km more passing track for services towards Kilkenny, given that only one train is employed from Waterford to Limerick Junction? If they lifted Belview-Rosslare Strand (especially the recent CWR bits) there might be panels to double a few more bits between Waterford and Athy

corktina

add the WRC into your first paragraph...

Victor

cocoshovel wrote: »

I would like to be able to live in Kilkenny and be able to grab the train to Waterford for college every morning

Surely, given that you don't already live in Kilkenny, it would make sense for you to live near college?

Losty Dublin

dowlingm wrote: »

Waterford-Limerick: it's a shame that the approaches from Waterford Station is, as I understand, essentially two separately signalled single tracks. With the increase of services as well as the uptick in freight capacity is bound to be tight.

Is there any plan to CTC Waterford and Waterford West, and perhaps move the junction between the two lines out as far as the N25 which would give about what, 2km more passing track for services towards Kilkenny, given that only one train is employed from Waterford to Limerick Junction?

Waterford station and it's confines are double tracked line and protected with Harpers Absolute Block while the lines towards Rosslare and Carraig on Suir are ETS lines; two systems that require mechanical boxes. Until you resignal the branches, there is no benefit of doing anything to Waterford just yet.

dowlingm

Losty Dublin wrote: »

Waterford station and it's confines are double tracked line and protected with Harpers Absolute Block while the lines towards Rosslare and Carraig on Suir are ETS lines; two systems that require mechanical boxes. Until you resignal the branches, there is no benefit of doing anything to Waterford just yet.

Losty - the double bit is Waterford West-Waterford right? I was thinking of the bit west of Waterford West, essentially moving the interface to the ETS section outward. Given IE's rationalisation of signal boxes recently, presumably Waterford will eventually hit the top of the to do list?

CaptainSkidmark

what kind of way is that to open a topic lol

cocoshovel

Victor wrote: »

Surely, given that you don't already live in Kilkenny, it would make sense for you to live near college?

I live closer to Kilkenny than I do to Waterford. I have a lot of family and activities that I do in Kilkenny and I was considering moving there. Either way I have to travel between the 2 towns, but I go to Kilkenny a lot more than Waterford.

Losty Dublin

dowlingm wrote: »

Losty - the double bit is Waterford West-Waterford right? I was thinking of the bit west of Waterford West, essentially moving the interface to the ETS section outward. Given IE's rationalisation of signal boxes recently, presumably Waterford will eventually hit the top of the to do list?

It's single nowadays towards Granny, which is the junction. I can't remember the exact extent of the double section so homefully somebody can come in and let us know; either way it's not too far from West Cabin and Granny. One thing I do know; when it was doubletracked it was worked as two single lines beside each other. This was because the Limerick line was initially double track, the Kilkenny branch being the "junction"; this arrangement presumably is how Ab Block arrived on the line to begin with. The rather complex and unusual mix of signalling systems combined with the uncertain future of the the branches and the heavy freight traffic has all doubtlessly made it all the harder to plan any large scale resignaling overhauls so it's the last bastion of mainline semaphore for now.

The next time I talk to my signal expert I'll pick his brains about it all

Le_bounce

Victor wrote: »

What do you think Le_bounce?

To be honest Irish rail have to seriously start making some sort of effort in making rail times competive with our road network. We have a new fleet of class 22000 dmu capable of 100mph at best now I mean at best were to lucky to get 80mph operation out of them. I think we need a network rail type of setup

dowlingm

Le_bounce wrote: »

I think we need a network rail type of setup

What would that look like?

corktina

kinda red white and blue i should think

Losty Dublin

Le_bounce wrote: »

To be honest Irish rail have to seriously start making some sort of effort in making rail times competive with our road network. We have a new fleet of class 22000 dmu capable of 100mph at best now I mean at best were to lucky to get 80mph operation out of them. I think we need a network rail type of setup

There are a few issues to take in here before anything can be done....

• A train may be capable of 100MPH but curves, gradients and bridges will ensure that maximum speeds won't be reached all the time.
• More stops slow speeds down as it increases down time and trains need time to start/stop. Cut out stations and speeds pick up but you serve less towns so it's a balancing act that's hard to get right.
• Many of our lines are single track so those crossing points that exist need to used to their zenith; this is something that overly high speeds will never defeat.
• There are less slower trains running to hamper fast trains; freight paths are not choking lines as they use to while all mainline stock is 100MPH capable unlike the Mark 2/Craven stock that used to be common on most lines.

Make more double track you may say but this costs mega money and needs to be justified in terms of speed increases, capacity enhancement and finances.

The current outlook within Irish Rail is to iron out those places where slower speeds can be brought upwards without resorting to the expsnce and delays that come with wholesale mass engineering and construction. Things such as the relaying of heavier track, ballast packing and cleaning adjusting of signalling points and minor realighnment all make minor differences that add up in no time, provided they can followed up on and introduced into running times and paths.

Le_bounce

Thanks for the insight losty dublin, i agree IR are not going spend massive money on major infrastructure change but hopefully these minor differences come soon as possible to have some sort of impact

CIE

Make more double track you may say but this costs mega money

What kind of "mega money" really...? A lot of motorways are costing €12 million per kilometre (€18 million per mile) on average. Should we proceed with the M17 then? How much will the "Atlantic Corridor" cost the Irish taxpayer...?

Losty Dublin

CIE wrote: »

What kind of "mega money" really...? A lot of motorways are costing €12 million per kilometre (€18 million per mile) on average. Should we proceed with the M17 then? How much will the "Atlantic Corridor" cost the Irish taxpayer...?

It's not mega money if compared cent to cent to the construction of a motorway but when compared to the relative income increases and social benefit to the locality and the country that come off it, it gets harder to justify the investment into a railway on that basis alone. If we look at the WRC, it costs were €106.5m for an additional 36 miles of a total rebuilding of track, new stations, resignaling, CPOs, bridges etc but the argument against it is that it won't be heavily used compared to it's outlay. At the other end of the scale, both the DART and Luas cost more yet run at a profit and shift large amounts of people and for the better good of the country. While CIE or the RPA usually obtain funding for massive infrastructural projects from the State, road users don't directly pay for the motorways we travel on, toll booths aside. In short the cost benefits on rail nor do road users pay for road side cafes, staff to run roads but it gets more complex when the greater picture is considered.

Getting back to the main point, the time and operational savings in running double track lines need to be significant before they can be justified. One very good example is the Clonsilla-Maynooth line; in 1994 it was doubled and the service levels on the line have become well used ever since, with longer trains running more often and thus carrying more people.

corktina

, I'm sure there are places where double track could be added and would be sucessful in improving journey times and passenger numbers. Lets not get carried away by insisting that entire routes get doubled though.

Losty Dublin

corktina wrote: »

, I'm sure there are places where double track could be added and would be sucessful in improving journey times and passenger numbers. Lets not get carried away by insisting that entire routes get doubled though.

I agree with you that there probably is but the easy bit is in wishing for them; the real fun is in deciding where to place them to the best benefit. To find out those points you need to find out what services are crossing where and how long of a wait you are talking about. This is before you consider if the infrastructure can accomodate a second running line without affecting running speeds, the associated relaying, bridging and resignalling costs as well as the other elephant in the room; is there enough rolling stock and manpower to work any service enhancements to exploit the additional network capacity.

As it is now, the consensus is that there is probably more need to expand the capacity on the GNR mainline and surburban lines into Dublin than on the single lines out of town. The current plan of slotting in more frequent trains throughout the day is for now, the better and cheaper option and it's probably better for the passenger to have more choice of train times as a whole.

corktina

i live 160 miles from Dublin, but still agree that capacity in the Capital is paramount. Investment in Dublin infrastructure benefits the whole country.

As regards resources, i know its heresey to say it, but it would make sense to replace some rural lines with a bus service offering guaranteed connections,thus freeing up stock etc for an enhanced service on the more important parts of the network.

Losty Dublin

corktina wrote: »

i live 160 miles from Dublin, but still agree that capacity in the Capital is paramount. Investment in Dublin infrastructure benefits the whole country.

As regards resources, i know its heresey to say it, but it would make sense to replace some rural lines with a bus service offering guaranteed connections,thus freeing up stock etc for an enhanced service on the more important parts of the network.

I would agree with you on that in principle. Sadly, in practice it takes a lot longer to roll out; the experience with the South Wexford line is a good example of same.

dowlingm

The problem with the situation as it stands is that replacement services are not run by IE and thus their catchment shrinks further and further while BE's network strengthens, which BE then compounds by throwing resources at rail-killer X services. BE is even allowed to reinforce its network by partnership with private companies while IE can only give away routes like Waterford-Rosslare to the competition.

I am a firm proponent of IE being able to run bus services in their own right to their railheads to allow them to expand their catchment area so that half-empty trains can be filled. However, this should be predicated on these services reinforcing, not replacing, their network through interconnection and feed. The arrival of the new 22Ks is going to mean a lot of DMUs looking for customers or being condemned to North Wall or other rustage outposts. If there isn't a sea change in how rail is organised soon the train companies of the world are going to be reading ads in the trade press for a whole lot of DMUs, followed by tenders for scrappage.

steamengine

Losty Dublin wrote: »

I agree with you that there probably is but the easy bit is in wishing for them; the real fun is in deciding where to place them to the best benefit. To find out those points you need to find out what services are crossing where and how long of a wait you are talking about. This is before you consider if the infrastructure can accomodate a second running line without affecting running speeds, the associated relaying, bridging and resignalling costs as well as the other elephant in the room; is there enough rolling stock and manpower to work any service enhancements to exploit the additional network capacity.

As it is now, the consensus is that there is probably more need to expand the capacity on the GNR mainline and surburban lines into Dublin than on the single lines out of town. The current plan of slotting in more frequent trains throughout the day is for now, the better and cheaper option and it's probably better for the passenger to have more choice of train times as a whole.

Regarding the GNR line it would appear to be at or near maximum capacity at present. The Northern Commuter services are supplemented by services such as the 33X which indicates the rail service from Skerries and other stations cannot handle the potential numbers of passengers who wish to travel by rail. No doubt a farther tranche of commuters also use their cars to commute to Dublin. But that is to be expected as this is the original double track line that was laid down over 100 years ago. Killester in the early 1900's was the border between the city and the countryside. Since then we have rolling suburbs almost all the way to Drogheda.

One or more previous threads have dealt with a proposed solution of adding at least one express track to free up the route, particularly for the Enterprise. Outside of massive investment it is difficult to see any substantial improvements to the current situation. Interestingly enough, if one looks at the cutting at Killester and Harmonstown there appears to be enough lateral room to lay a third track. Did the original design make an allowance for this type of expansion - one wonders ???

Another general point about passenger rail services is that they have to somehow 'cut it again' timewise to compete. That's difficult to see happening with the 'band aid' approach.

shamwari

Yep, the northern is in a mess and that's why I won't use it unless I absolutely have to. I drive / cycle / use the bus now instead.

Part of the peak time problem is using commuter services and halting them at Malahide & Portmarnock when there is a DART alternative within minutes. This obviously disproportionately loads the diesel services, and also causes them to be slower by virtue of these loadings and extra halts on the way. Looking at the loadings on the 33D & 33X shows how much peak customers have been lost, and I believe the current haltings have a lot to do with it.

I also wonder if working peak DART's with cascading stops (i.e. sets serve alternate stations) during peak hours is worthy of consideration? It would certainly add to improved journey times.

Oh and finally, why the f**k is there still a ridiculously slow speed limit between Connolly and Fairview? The current speeds haven't improved since the port tunnel works completed yonks ago :rolleyes:

steamengine

shamwari wrote: »

Yep, the northern is in a mess and that's why I won't use it unless I absolutely have to. I drive / cycle / use the bus now instead.

Part of the peak time problem is using commuter services and halting them at Malahide & Portmarnock when there is a DART alternative within minutes. This obviously disproportionately loads the diesel services, and also causes them to be slower by virtue of these loadings and extra halts on the way. Looking at the loadings on the 33D & 33X shows how much peak customers have been lost, and I believe the current haltings have a lot to do with it.

I also wonder if working peak DART's with cascading stops (i.e. sets serve alternate stations) during peak hours is worthy of consideration? It would certainly add to improved journey times.

Oh and finally, why the f**k is there still a ridiculously slow speed limit between Connolly and Fairview? The current speeds haven't improved since the port tunnel works completed yonks ago :rolleyes:

I have some experience of that route - used it for a month or two back in the mid 90's. Now with the DART service, the first stop past Howth junction should be Donabate, it would seem to be a no brainer. Regarding the slow section from Fairview in to Connolly, I remember one morning a frustrated commuter, during a prolonged signal stop, sticking his head out the window and roaring up to the driver 'Get this train f**king moving' ! Everybody cracked up

CIE

Now with the DART service, the first stop past Howth junction should be Donabate

That'll force a backtrack for anyone that wanted to ride between Malahide and Donabate.

flas

cocoshovel wrote: »

Id love to see more late night and early morning trains between Dublin and Waterford. The last train to Waterford is at 18:35, which is no good as I often want to attend something in Dublin that takes place in the evening time.
Its the same going in the opposite direction, the last train to Dublin from Waterford is 18:20.

Also, an early morning train from Kilkenny to Waterford would be great too. The earliest one departs at 9:05. I would like to be able to live in Kilkenny and be able to grab the train to Waterford for college every morning but as it stands the only way down at the moment is a privately run bus. Is it the same with other lines too?

However as much as I want this to happen I imagine there is just little or no demand for it and that is why there isn't any services at these hours.

In regard to the line speeds, it would be great if they could go faster but is there a way to improve them without having to pretty much lay down new track? I don't know much on the subject but I imagine they are already operating as best as they can no?

the bit i have highlighted, i can only speak for the longford to connolly line but the service is better on this line than the one you mentioned, first train from longford is at 5:45, think there is 4 trains gone by half 9 in the morning, and the last train from longford to dublin is at 9:05 at night, which is great aswell... only way i could think of this being improved is if the last train from dublin to longford was a bit later, as it stands its at 7:05, but id say the traffic on this line is pretty much full so cant really complain! usually takes about 1 hour 40 minutes aswell, sometimes a bit longer, and always a 15 minute wait in edgesworthstown, which does take slightly longer than a car, but it does always be very busy!