Irish rail fleet and infrastructure plans

Ah that would make a lot more sense. I've just counted from the map and there are 26, only one of which appears to be CCTV eqquiped(XL143). And there even being one actually surprises me, partially because I am surprised that IE has invested even that in the line, but also because I think I have completely misunderstood how CCTV LCs work.

Truthfully I thought CCTV LCs needed some integration with an existing automatic signalling/TPS system, but if that line has one then it's obviously more complicated. I am curious how they work now, especially on a track with manual signalling.

https://www.nationaltransport.ie/publications/nta-national-rail-census-report-2024/

Not sure where else to put this and I thought in here would be the best place, the new rail census report just released yesteryday!

Right away it's important to note that the census was on 14 November 2024 when there was a rugby match on at Aviva stadium which is going to skew the data. They did their best to correct the data for it, including not counting passengers from the extra scheduled services, however even still the data likely can't be directly compared.

That said I still had a look through and took notes on a lot of interesting things. While some of the data is likely a good indication of future trends such as Enterprise or general IC numbers other data, other figures such as DART numbers may be artificially inflated. I still noted down some of the more notable numbers, as if for nothing else, its interesting.

My key takeaways:

• 215333 journies! +21% from 2023
• IC patronage saw the largest percent increase exceeding 50K passengers, +35% from 2023
• top 5 busiest stations based on boardings+alightings:
  • Connolly: 44748, +20% from 2023
  • Pearse: 31729, +10%
  • Heuston: 30525, +24%
  • Tara: 22889, +22%
  • Cork: 12680, +21%
• notable services (only boardings because of the Enterprise figure):
  • 6214 Enterprise passengers, +50% from 2023 (60% were cross border journies)
  • 4224 Howth branch passengers, +43% (mainly from Howth, 1845 up from 1012 or +82%)
  • 952 Rosslare line passengers from Kilcoole-Rosslare Europort, +25%
  • DART patronage reached 87K, the first time exceeding 80K since 2018
• notable stations: (boardings+alightings)
  • Heuston: surpassed Pearse in alightings becoming second in number of alightings, may be second busiest station next year
  • Kishoge: 519 passengers
  • Ennis: 893 passengers, +30% (53% increase in boardings)
  • Rosslare Europort: 68 passengers, +70% (same number of alightings but 3x the boardings, 41 up from 13)
  • Gormanston: I think someone might have made a mistake as it supposedly had 0 passengers on census day. They said there were no service disruptions that day. It's not a busy stations, typically only seeing 200 boardings+alightings, but I would have a hard time believing not one person boarded or alighted from the station.

There was a match at Lansdowne on census day so that biases the numbers significantly as you would have heavy DART, commuter and intercity traffic

It sounds to me that the results of this census should be disregarded. It wasn’t a normal day.

The question has to be asked, who let it happen on this day?

I know it happens usually on a certain day of the October, but when the match was evidently happening, it should have been moved a week either side.

As usual, incompetence abounds. It’s interesting seeing how busy things can get. But statistically it’s nothing more than something of not and not comparable. A complete waste of all the enumerator’s time.

As soon as I heard there was such a thing as a 1 day census, I've thought it was a strange way to measure patronage and this is the perfect example why.

What's flash the pass? Do you mean free travel pass?

Irish Rail has signed an agreement to purchase 150 freight wagons, with scope for up to 400 wagons over the next 10 years.

https://www.irishrail.ie/en-ie/news/freight-wagon-contract

Very interesting annoucement. They also did a brief interview with the people that were manufacturing freight wagons in the 1970s/80s.

It's incredible that Inchicore where manufacturing 9 wagons a week!!!!!!!

There was such and industry there and then all of a sudden it disappeared…

Great news to hear!! I wonder what the scope of the order is? New flats certainly, although I do wonder will they go for 60ft long ones like in the UK to take 3 20ft containers…?

New timber wagons too I presume as that flow doesn’t seem to be going anywhere.

I do wonder if they’ll bother with new Zinc Ore wagons as the Tara flow is due to end relatively soon enough is it not..? Not today or tomorrow mind, but soon enough where it may not make new wagons with the while…

Then again maybe they will get them in the expectation that ore and aggregate transportation increasing in the country is part of their railfreight plan…? Is there any more mines or quarries that could facilitate a rail connection and a steady materials flow?

I wonder what if any other types of wagons they’d go for. Great to see cement back on rail (likely won’t happen though unfortunately) but you’d wonder what surprises might be in the order…

Couldn't agree more. How much of the problem is due to selling off railway land for Celtic Tiger era property development, which then went on to bankrupt the developers, the banks and the state?

I’ve often heard claims that one of the planning conditions of the mine was that its product must be transported by rail. If that is true, then I presume this must be a temporary arrangement.

Freight handlers don’t want trains anywhere near the docks.

Confirmed on page 68 here:

https://www.irishrail.ie/IrishRail/media/Imported/IrishRail_28FebFinal_Part21.pdf

"The carrying of ores by rail is a requirement of the mine’s planning permission, and is likely to be secure for the lifetime of the mine."

Could they switch this to another port if Dublin doesn't play ball? Waterford or Foynes maybe?

Is this becuase the wagons being used a couple of years ago were at end of life?

I heard there was a derail at the mine recently enough and it did quite a bit of damage to the sleepers there.

I'm open to correction, but I believe it was Boliden who decided to transport it by road.