Foynes Line

OisinCooke

Are any of the town that used to have stations on the line good candidates for housing development - a kind of transit oriented development - between the existing settlements and the stations? Both to bridge the gap and to increase the towns populations? This could do very well for both the towns in terms of reviving them, and make the case for a passenger service very high indeed. It would be a pretty sweet symbiotic relationship - the housing makes a case for the train, and the railway line makes a case for the housing!  

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123439930#Comment_123439930

I’d like to add to/amend this as well if I may? Adare is in fact only 500-750 metres from Main Street to the old station, and Askeaton is only 1km on the nose. Patrickswell’s old station may have been a ways away from the town but the railway line passes right through it - in fact there is a railhead not 100 metres from the Main Street and plenty of space to add a new small Sixemilebridge-style platform for the town. Dooradoyle and Garryowen are both great candidates for stations already, but can also be further supplemented with new housing either side of the line. 

Rathkeale is a different kettle of fish and is probably far closer to 3km away from the line at best, if not more, but that’s because Rathkeale was served by its own station on the branch to Newcastle West and not by the Foynes line at all. So while it may not be feasible to open it as a station on this line, I don’t see a stub extension to Newcastle West via Rathkeale being a complete impossibility in the future, making that the main passenger line and leaving the stub from Ballingarrane to Foynes as the freight-only branch…

Either way I respectfully disagree with your statement that it is not a commuter railway, it isn’t at the moment but with some joined up reasonable thinking, it could do pretty well as one in the not so distant future.

With the housing crisis we are in today and the switch to a working from home and commuting mix of work, towns like these could be great candidates for housing schemes which would definitely increase the case for a commuter rail line. 

The only issue is, as you rightly point out, the lack of connection to Colbert. Looking at it, reinstating the curve and having a dedicated Foynes line platform added to the southern side of the station looks like it would work quite well. Trains could terminate here or even reverse out and continue off to LJ or Ennis or Shannon.

It could also be treated as a stub terminating platform that hits the main station at a slight angle if the curvature was too difficult for a parallel platform with the existing station. 

Trains could just shuttle back and forth along the line with maintenance access to the line via the existing curve to Limerick check? Not the most ideal but not a bad alternative in any way at all. There isn’t much to CPO in the way, just an old derelict house (I believe someone said it was the CIE workman’s club…?) and then just shave a bit off of the car park and maybe what was the bus park on the southern side of the station, so the platform can be as straight as possible. Correct me if I’m wrong but I think it does look feasible in fairness.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123440215#Comment_123440215

You can respectfully disagree all you like. What you are suggesting is a brain fart. There are many suitable commuter rail possibilities in Ireland but this is not one of them. A spur to Newcastlewest will cost another 250 million by the time planning and CPO are paid for.

You need populations of 100k+ to justify a rail option. Newcastlewest has a population of 7k. You would need to concentrate all housing development in Limerick on this corridor and just maybe in 30 years time you could justify it.

This is not a white elephant it's a cerease pink one with dots. Exactly what will this population be accessing Limerick city center for… to visit the charityshops, the bookies to have a cup of coffee…

I had to look at the date I taught it was April 1st

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123440215#Comment_123440215

Patrickswell is already a prime commuter area and Adare would probably sell up any houses built but the problem is you can't force those people to get the train.

You will probably just add loads more cars to the main road.

end of the road

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123439901#Comment_123439901

private companies benefit from tax payer funded projects every day, they are called roads.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123440427#Comment_123440427

IIncorrect All motorised road users pay a tax on there vehicles also all ICE vehicles pay an extra duty on top of VAT as well as carbon tax this more than covers road costs

end of the road

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123440785#Comment_123440785

irrelevant as the roads were tax payer funded and an individual user does not cover their own costs of usage.

rail freight on the other hand has to pay it's full costs including the highest track access charges in europe.

L1011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123440785#Comment_123440785

Motoring taxes do not cover the costs of construction and maintenance of the road network

In particular, as co2 emission rates drop and EVs increase, the amount of motor tax collected has cratered. 683m in 2023, which would only just cover the basic national roads programme for the year - ignoring the national roads programme and NDP investment.

Carbon tax is not collected for road purposes, but it isn't even significant - as much is collected off natural gas as off petrol for instance.

timmyntc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123440360#Comment_123440360

You need populations of 100k+ to justify a rail option

Not arguing for passengers on foynes line, but this sentence here is complete BS

end of the road

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123444183#Comment_123444183

that poster just pulls figures out of their backside, those figures already provably having no basis.

metrovick001

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123439901#Comment_123439901

What private company?

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123444183#Comment_123444183

You need population density along a line to sustain a service otherwise you will not have frequency of service. If you do not have frequency of service commuters will not use it. This is especially the true where new lines are being provided. A significant amount of commuter rail in Ireland is dependent on intercity services sustaining it. You would need to be moving a thousand commuters per hour at peak hours

As I stated there is many worthy rail option to look at ahead of Foynes-Limerick. The problem with option to Limerick city centre is there is very little employment within the city center so you do not have demand from the suburbs to access the city center.

end of the road

a thousand commuters at peak hours is another random figure.

some trains will have more and others will have less.

so baseless figure like all your other ones.

trellheim

Passenger trains have to go where people want them to , at the moment assuming you got on a train at Adare eastbound your first choices of platforms to get off at are Limerick Junction or Sixmilebridge

flyingsnail

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123471022#Comment_123471022

Or stop when the train has joined the main lines at Limerick, driver changes end and drive into Limerick
not ideal, but doable.

BestWestern

Adare → Moyross → limerick would ensure a half hourly service for the northern suburban station.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123445877#Comment_123445877

Well the line does also run behind 2 of Limerick's biggest employment centres.

And the idea Limerick city centre has "very little" employment is a myth.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123476645#Comment_123476645

I don't think you have ever seen a map of Limerick.

Cookiemunster

Why on earth would anyone from Adare who wants to go to Colbert Station want to get on a train that bypasses the station to go to Moyross before returning? A commuter rail service needs to be faster and more convenient than a car to get people to switch. And the people of Moyross already have a bus every 15 mins, that will pick them up and drop them near where they actually want to be, serving the city centre.

Anyway, as I've said many times previously, commuters don't want to go to the city centre. They want to go to places of work like Plassey or Shannon which aren't connected to a train line.

Large park and rides on the outskirts of the city (of which three are planned) make much more sense than any commuter service.

BestWestern

Moyross will be open far quicker than the direct link into limerick from Adare, and it's a more realistic solution than limerick junction.

Not ideal, but doable.

Poxyshamrock

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123476719#Comment_123476719

Moyross won't be open until 2030 at this rate. When announced back in 2022, they said 2025. We haven't even gotten around to planning.

A planning application for Woodbrook Dart Station in South Dublin (DLRCC) was submitted in 2020 and it's only due to open this summer.

Cookiemunster

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123476719#Comment_123476719

Not ideal, therefore people won't use it. As I said it has to be faster and more convenient to get people out of their cars. And how many of the 1000 Adare residents would actually need to visit the city centre daily anyway? For anyone who would need to drive to Adare station would be quicker to just continue on in the M20 and park near their final destination.

Board Walker

Has the Foynes line been connected to the network yet?

Surely we should see a 071 class trundle the line any day now.

Cookiemunster

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123536952#Comment_123536952

The line won't be ready for use until 2026. The tracks may be laid, but the signalling and crossings are not finished.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123537044#Comment_123537044

I taught it was Christmas but they never signified which one 2025…2025…2029…20 god knows when

Board Walker

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123537044#Comment_123537044

Crossing are all in place.

Signalling of course is not started but Irish rail need. to run rail vehicles down the line to lay cable and install Signals.

I believe a consist of a few flat wagons and the new crane wagon are being assembled for the next phase hauled by a 071 class before of course clearance trials.