Dublin Airport Bus Service Changes

I used them yesterday - they were operating at 75% capacity and as a result, weren't able to take on everyone who was waiting at the T2 stop for a given service.

I think one thing being omitted from all of this discussion is frequency - I can't remember what frequency Dublin Express ran at pre-pandemic but can remember that Airlink ran every 10/15-ish minutes through much of the day. Without making any assumptions about what frequency Airlink does/doesn't return at, if you arrive at the airport stop without any pre-booking and are just looking for 'which is cheaper and departing sooner' you might just pay less heed to the extra euro and the fact the buses are older city-style buses.

As someone who used regularly use Airlink for commuting, I'd very much prefer that type of bus over a coach. Aircoach would drive you mad with the dwell times at the stops as the driver got out and helped people put suitcases in the luggage compartment.

I stopped using Airlink due to its unreliability, but in my experience the vehicles were much better suited to an airport run than the "luxury" coaches.

Just on the PSO service point, BusConnects offers a mixed set of changes:

Improvements:

L81 - Replaces 102- Swords, Malahide, Portmarnock & Sutton (improved connection every 20 mins)

L83 - Replaces 33b - Swords-Donabate-Portrane (new connection every 30 mins)

L85 - Replaces 33a - Swords-Lusk-Rush-Skerries-Balbriggan (improved connection every 30 mins)

N8 - New route - Blanchardstown & Clongriffin (new connection every 30 mins)

24 - New route - City Centre via Finglas North, Glasnevin & Phibsboro (new connection every 20 mins)

19 - New route - City Centre via Ballymun, Glasnevin North & Drumcondra (new connection every 60 mins)

Status Quo:

A2 - Replaces 16 - Santry-Drumcondra-City Centre-Harolds X-Terenure-Rathfarnham-Ballinteer-Dundrum (existing frequency maintained every 12 mins)

Disimprovement:

Route 41 currently has 3 departures each hour direct beween the city and the Airport along the Swords Road - these will be withdrawn and not replaced at the Airport.

That's a retrograde step in my opinion. By all means the additional services provided by the 19 and 24 are welcome for the areas they serve en route, but they do go around the houses a bit if going to/from the city centre.

Indeed it is. Just a bit of wishful thinking on my part. ;-)

Here is confirmation

Well that is a downer losing Airlink. Although as previously stated I stopped using due to unreliability of the service. When it ran it was the quickest way into town.

Aircoach offered half price discounts for staff. I don't know if Dublin Express do, they werent running long enough before lockdown. But they do cater for staff.

I remember the time myself and a few colleagues were going to a Leinster game after work, we left the office at the same time. I got on the Airlink as I had a taxsaver, they got the Aircoach direct to Ballsbridge. I got off at the Point and walked the rest of the way across the East Link and was in the pub 20mins before the rest of them.

I'm just thinking about what is lost here. Each double decker Airlink could take 90pax, the 747 ran every 15mins during winter, 10mins during summer and the 757 every 30mins. So that is 720 seats an hour each way that needs to be replaced. Between the hours of 5 and 6pm when I used use the bus, the Airlink regularly filled up at T1 so didn't come and pick up at T2. So the capacity was needed.

Aircoach and Dublin Express use coaches rather than double deckers, so approx 60pax per bus? So between them, that's an extra 12 coaches per hour they'll need to stick on to serve the peak hour. Assuming air traffic recovers that is.

Is that Metro nearly finished yet?

Finally the cat is out of the bag, so Airlink is gone after years of madness spending (a private company paying semi state wages) it never added up.

Next move is Aircoach will move to Lot 2 with their Dublin services and keep the current area for the long distance runs.

I would presume if dublin bus don’t get the City Sightingseeing contract + Cruise ship direct contracts they will also pull DoDublin.

My sums were back of the envelope while cooking dinner so not publication standard, but in my experience it was standing room only most evenings. Or else full at T1 so skipped pickup at T2. This is based on using the Airlink twice a day, pretty much every working week from 2013 until 2019. In particular the hour between 5pm and 6pm. Between a glut of arrivals from UK around half 4, and office staff finishing work the 5 - 6pm was a daily peak for people leaving the airport.

I admit I forgot about the luggage rack downstairs, but there was usually about 10 standing. So maybe 75 per bus? Definitely a much higher capacity than the coaches.

When you look at what is needed, pre-COVID Dublin Airport easily had around 20 arrivals an hour most evenings. Assuming all narrowbodies at 170pax per flight that is approx. 3,400 passengers arriving. If only 20% of those want to take a bus to the city centre you'd need 680 seats an hour. That doesn't include staff or "meeters greeters", but 680 seats needs 13 of the Aircoach 53 seater coaches. So if traffic were to come back, at the very minimum a 10min frequency on both Aircoach and Dublin Express would be needed.