Dundrum to Sandymount on public transport

siobhancee

Hi all, I've been looking for a solution to this for a while now with no luck so i thought i may aswel give this a go.
Starting next September I'll be having to travel from Sandymount to Dundrum and back five days a week. To my knowledge there is no bus which provides this service directly, but energy is an issue for me and i would rather not have to stress about missing my second bus because the first was stuck in traffic and other such things that come with multiple forms of transport. Basically i need to find the easiest and most reliable route to get from place to place - I'm happy to use any form of transport available.
Thanks guys!

Bazzer2

Bus no.47 travels through Sandymount on its way towards Belarmine. You could hop off at Sandyford Industrial Estate and transfer onto a Green Line Luas to Dundrum.

Cookie_Monster

Basically i need to find the easiest and most reliable route to get from place to place - I'm happy to use any form of transport available.

Cycle. It's about a 7km journey depending where exactly you're going to/from. That's about 20 mins on the bike. Given how long any PT option would take and the changeover points it's really a no brainer IMO. Not sure what you mean by energy being an issue but it'll improve you fitness and energy levels in short order too.

(and it rains nowhere near as often as people would have you believe - Amsterdam gets more rain than Dublin for example)

LXFlyer

17 from Dundrum to UCD, and 47 to Sandymount (you'll need to walk to/from the N11 from the 17 stop in Belfield).

Alternatively the 44 or 61 to Westland Row and the 1 or 47 from Pearse Street to Sandymount, or 44/61 to Ranelagh and 18 from there.

Bazzer2

Or Bus 18 from Sandymount to Ranelagh and Green Line Luas to Dundrum.

LXFlyer

Note that the entire Dundrum-Sandymount bus combinations can be done using a Dublin Bus Travel 90 10 journey ticket for €2.15 each way or get one of the prepaid passes available.

Bus/LUAS combinations will cost more.

Bazzer2

As none of the bus routes mentioned are very frequent, and the OP stated that she didn't want to stress about trying to catch a second bus if the first one was stuck in traffic, then an element of travel involving Luas would seem suitable.

LXFlyer

A little bit of planning and use of RTPI can make the bus journey easier.

Better to be aware of the additional cost implications.

OP - what times are you going to need to be at Sandymount and what time will you be finishing?

KD345

Siobhancee, the first thing I recommend you do is purchase a prepaid ticket. Not only will this save you money, it'll remove the hassle of finding cash and working out how much each individual fare is.

Considering how well served Dundrum is by Luas, you may want to consider this as part of your journey. The tram journey between St. Stephen's Green and Dundrum is just over 15 minutes and is a frequent service. A monthly bus and Luas pass costs €124 for 30 days consecutive travel. This works out at about €4.15 per day. If you're a student, or if your employer participates in the tax saver scheme, this price will be even less.

As for the journey, like others have mentioned, there is no direct service. You mention reliability is a factor in your commute, so I would recommend taking either the 1 or 47 from Sandymount into the city centre. The 1 has a 10 minutes frequency in the morning peak and then every 20 minutes for the rest of the day. The 47 runs hourly. Get off either bus on Pearse Street, at Pearse Street station, and walk up Westland Row. Outside the train station there is a bus stop for the 44 and 61, both of which take you to Dundrum in about 20 minutes. If there is one due (this stop has an RTPI screen) you should take either of these to Dundrum. If there is no bus for a while, you could walk to Stephen's Green for the Luas. It's about a 10 minute walk from Pearse Street to Stephen's Green.

For your return journey, take the Luas back to the city centre. From Stephen's Green, it's a 10 minute walk down Grafton Street to Townsend Street to take the 1, or the 47 from Fleet Street.

You should be able to complete this journey, in either direction, in about 45 minutes. Note, the 14 also serves Dundrum from the city, but this route is not as direct as the 44/61 or Luas.

Another option, mentioned already, is to take the 18 between Sandymount and Ranelagh Luas, and continue your journey there. If you have the Dublin Bus app on your phone you can check to see how close the 18 is when your Luas is approaching Ranelagh.

NuMarvel

Another option is to get the DART to Dun Laoghaire, and then get the 75 from Dun Laoghaire to Dundrum. I haven't taken the 75 in rush hour though, so it could take an age to get from Dun Laoghaire to Dundrum. On the plus side, Dun Laoaghire is the 75's first departure, so it has some reliability in the morning in that respect.

ullu

Cycle if it's at all feasible. I used to work in Dundrum and play football in Sandymount straight after (Dundrum - Bird Avenue - through UCD - down Nutley Lane - Merrion Road). That journey took twenty minutes or so. Even if you give yourself half an hour each way which is a very relaxed pace compared to what I would estimate to be an hour at the very least with the quickest bus/DART/Luas combination, you're saving five hours a week that you can dedicate to other activities.

dejopadu

if it was me i would get dundrum luas to town, 20mins, then get bus out to sandymount (plenty regular buses going that way from town) ....or else cycle or get a moped/car

coylemj

In the morning get the 47 from Sandymount as far as the stop on Lower Kilmacud Road at Kilmacud Crokes GAA club, it's just after an EBS and Xtravision (on the left) and right beside the overflow car park for Stillorgan Shopping Centre, the stop number is 3322. Wait there for the 75 bus coming from Dun Laoghaire which will take you to Dundrum.

On the return leg, get off the 75 at Stillorgan Shopping Centre (stop 3321) and wait for the 47 which will take you to Sandymount.

For a journey involving more than one Dublin Bus, buy a Travel90 ticket for €21.50. This will allow you 10 trips where on each trip you can take as many buses as you like provided that the last validation is within 90 minutes of the first. When you board the 47 in Sandymount it will deduct one journey from the ticket, when you board the 75 in Stillorgan and press the ticket against the validator, it will display 'Free Transfer' so each journey will cost you €2.15.

The_Wrecker

The 47 is only one an hour and not reliable.

Fine weather, Luas to Ranelagh and a 30 min walk across and still quicker than the bus. Rain, get the 18.

coylemj

The_Wrecker wrote: »

The 47 is only one an hour and not reliable.

In the morning there are 47s leaving Fleet St. at 7:40, 08:30 and 09:00, that's three in less than 90 minutes. There are 75s leaving Dun Laoghaire at 7:35, 7:55, 8:20 and 8:50, she should have no problem changing from the 47 to the 75 in Stillorgan without too much of a wait and (1) there is no walking, regardless of the weather and (2) she can do the whole journey for €2.15.

You say the 47 is 'unreliable', could you elaborate? I've been using it since it took over the route from UCD to Sandymount from the No. 3 and it seems to turn up on schedule.

coylemj

It may or may not be representative of a typical evening but here is the situation at 17:35 today at the stop at Stillorgan Shopping Centre bus stop (3321) based on my recommendation above for the OP's journey home...

75 Dun Laoghaire via Stillorgan 17:37

75 Dun Laoghaire via Sandyford Ind. Estate 17:38

47 Fleet St. via Sandymount 17:48

75 Dun Laoghaire via Stillorgan 17:54

75 Dun Laoghaire via Stillorgan 18:18

47 Fleet St. via Sandymount 18:19

So the 75 and 47 is a viable combination for the OP's commute

The_Wrecker

coylemj wrote: »

You say the 47 is 'unreliable', could you elaborate? I've been using it since it took over the route from UCD to Sandymount from the No. 3 and it seems to turn up on schedule.

We were discussing this recent.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=78765472&postcount=14

coylemj

I think in the context of buses there is 'unreliable' meaning you can't be sure if it will turn up at all and 'unpredictable' meaning you can't be sure when it will turn up.

Given the vagaries of the route out of Sandymount involving as it does the Dart at Sydney Parade and the bottleneck getting on to the Merrion Road, I'd put the 47 as unpredictable rather than unreliable.

KD345

At least the OP has been given plenty of choices

siobhancee

Wow thanks everyone for all the suggestions! They're really helpful, and it's good to know there are so many options so if one doesn't work I'll have plenty to choose from!

Unfortunately due to health issues walking and cycling are out of the question, though i appreciate the effort.
I think I'll probably go with one of the options involving a luas or DART as they are reliable and frequent - also i have a travel pass so fare isn't an issue.
Thanks again everyone who posted, this was a fairly irritating problem for me.