"The best day of my life" - 111X review

So the first of the new M3 corridor services, the 111X, launched yesterday. A small start, providing two peak trips a day, with flow, from Clonmellon, and giving Delvin and Athboy an express option.

The 111X is the first of the several proposed services using the Finglas corridor.

I travelled on the 1800 outbound from Wilton Terrace yesterday evening all the way to Clonmellon (I live about 2km away, so this is more convenient for me than either 111 or 109 which I am equidistant from, about 7km each).

Traffic was light in town, and the driver had to wait for time at a couple of the stops.

I found the Finglas option much quicker than the Navan Road.

He was bang on time arriving into Athboy, and a couple of minutes late at Delvin & Clonmellon.

He carried 5 passengers in total - bear in mind this was the first day of a new service the start date of which was only announced last week. Traffic should grow over time. (3 on at Wilton Tce, 1 at Beresford Place, 1 at Blanch slip road).

He said he'd had four or five boarding at Clonmellon in the morning.

The journey via motorway and N51 was noticeably quicker.

One young woman, who boarded at Blanchardstown Slip Road, and was unaware of the new service, was stunned to hear it was going to be express via motorway.

"Oh my God, it's the best day of my life" she said.

I wouldn't go quite that far myself, but a promising start nonetheless.

Services currently run by hired in coaches, not displaying route number, so easy to miss - that needs to be corrected, even if just with a printed sticker.

C635