Dublin - Sligo and Sligo - Dublin
 

Three hours is too long, surely this can be done faster. The Cork service was improved why not this one? Even one or two of the trains each day, doesn't need to stop at every stop, yes there are loops.

3 hours is completive with the car and the bus takes much longer. Nothing is going to change anytime soon. Haven't traveled past Maynooth on Sligo line but isn't there a lot of bends. Speed and bends don't mix well.

Running a limited stop service will have little affect as trains will still crawl through stations so saving at best will be a few minutes while it has potential to lose passengers as a result.

Comparing Cork with Sligo isn't realistic as Cork is the bussiest rail line and Sligo is fifth or sixth bussiest.

There is considerable scope for speeding up Dublin/Sligo/Dublin services. At least twenty minutes could be be taken off the existing schedules within current line speeds.

In addition there is considerable scope for increasing maximum line speed to 90 mph over considerable sections of the route, especially west of Hill of Down.

Further time could be saved by more intelligent scheduling between Connolly and Maynooth - it really shouldn't take a non-stop service any more than twenty minutes to cover this section in either direction.

Further time could be saved by more intelligent scheduling between Connolly and Maynooth - it really shouldn't take a non-stop service any more than twenty minutes to cover this section in either direction.[/quote]

Absolutely, 30mins connolly to maynooth is too long, ten minutes could be saved there. Car takes 2 and half hours sligo from dublin, to be competitve they need to speed the train up.

Removing stops probably isn't really a possibility - certainly east of Longford there are relatively few stops and these are all quite busy anyway. The Maynooth running time is just stupid. I have been on a delayed service that has covered Connolly to Maynooth in under 15 minutes so 20 should be achievable but not with Irish Rail's somewhat casual attitude towards timing.

If you look at the 0545 up-train, this is scheduled for 37 minutes between Maynooth and Connolly - 7 minutes more than the 1100 yet it manages an overall running time of 2 minutes less - probably because it doesn't have a spare 10 minutes allocated to sit in Edgeworthstown waiting for a crossing.

A bit more flexibility with scheduling the crossings would also be a massive help. Most up trains wait to cross for 10 minutes in Edgeworthstown but surely it would make more sense to plan to cross in Longford as it is more likely that a down train is going to be delayed due to congestion around Dublin. Then you could have the up-train proceed the 11km or so to Edgeworthstown and cross there if a down-train was delayed. Something similar would work between Mullingar and Killucan but Edgeworthstown and Mullingar are too far apart. In an ideal world, adding an extra crossing somewhere like the former Inny Junction would give even more flexibility but that is never going to happen.

90mph running wouldn't help the timetable while Irish Rail still run 29Ks to Sligo which are restricted to 70mph.

29k on the 1300 ex Sligo today. Why is there an insistence using these commuter trains on long journeys?

There is little excuse to run 2900s on Sligo line services, only reason is that it may be more convenient for Irish Rail to roster 8 x 2900s rather than 6 x ICRs on some busier Friday/Sunday services.

There is little excuse to run 2900s on Sligo line services, only reason is that it may be more convenient for Irish Rail to roster 8 x 2900s rather than 6 x ICRs on some busier Friday/Sunday services.

The 13:00 to Sligo seems to always be a 29k on a Friday probably because is too busy to be run by a 3x22k and they don't have any other spare 22Ks available. Hence Irish Rail need to drive some customers away by making it a 29k.

I am always quite surprised when I take an afternoon Sligo train. You would think a mid afternoon service like the 3PM would be deserted yet they end up being packed. It is quite an achievement for Irish Rail to lose money on this level of business.

So uncomfortable dot com using the 29k on a journey like that, I have had many an experience using it. They often do the 1pm ex Dublin on a Sunday then that would have been the 5pm back from Sligo - before the timetable changes.

Is the 1105 Dublin to Sligo a 22000 service.

All services Monday to Saturday with the possible exception of the 13:05 to Sligo and 18:00 return are 22k operated

Thanks Mark.
Seamus

Its only Friday and Sunday that the 13.05 and 18.00 services are not 22k, because there isn't/not bothered finding a 6 piece to operate instead of the usual 3.

standard of wi-fi to/from Sligo
 

I joined the 0800 Connolly to Sligo train at Kilcock to-day 26th Feb. Timing was good.
And the wi-fi worked almost 100% the whole way to Sligo. I was in carriage 'A'.
Returning from Sligo at 1300 - same train set - I was in carriage 'C'.
Even though I had a constant wi-fi signal on my iPhone, RTE and Newstalk were constantly dropping out.
I switched off the wi-fi and I found the o2 signal gave me almost 100% perfect RTE and Newstalk.
The only timing issue on the 'up' trip was being held at Edgeworthstown for 13 minutes because the 1305 down we were crossing was running late.
I wonder why the wi-fi did not work in carriage 'C' on the up trip having worked ok in carriage 'A' on the down trip?

There are a handful of coaches floating around which have defective equipment.

There is a program to trace and replace a part on those coaches to resolve the issue.

This is why the WiFi service doesn't work especially well. If you want to listen to the radio, you should bring a radio. If 20 people on the train are using streaming audio, that effectively uses up the entire channel and nobody gets a good experience.

I have largely given up on the WiFi except in Connolly station where for some reason my phone's data connection doesn't work at all well.

13 minutes at Edgeworthstown isn't too bad. Most up trains are scheduled with 5 - 10 minutes extra between Longford and Edgeworthstown anyway.

1300 from sligo to dublin - 3rd march was a 29K

pulled up in Longford and a six car 22K set sitting idle on a station siding.

terribly uncomfortable journey, plus WI-FI dire.

Why oh Why!

This set is what runs the 1805 Connolly to Longford Monday to Friday. Given that there are no Longford-only services at the weekend, there is no practical way to get it back in place at Longford to run the service it is needed for on Monday morning.

The only option which might make sense would be to run it to Sligo as an 18:05 Friday-only service which would probably be reasonably busy and then run it back up at the crack of dawn on Monday so that it was in Longford at its normal time. But I can't see that doing much trade so this is not likely to happen.

In theory, they could run the 1805 to Longford as a 29k on a Friday but I'm not going to argue for that on a personal basis as this is my regular train. Also it is probably more in Irish Rail's interest to keep the commuters sweet by offering dependable 22k service rather than trying to please the infrequent weekend mid-day travellers.

same again today

1300 ex Sligo
 

3 car set today out of Sligo, jammed with no space. Why would this not run as a 6 car set? I know this is the up train from the 8am ex Dublin which is 3 car also
Friday afternoon is busy with commuters going to Dublin for the weekend

Just passed a 29k operating the 1300 ex Dublin, unbelievable.

The 1305 from Dublin and 1800 from Sligo is always a 29k on Fridays, as the ICR that would normally be on it is used to strengthen the 1505 service to Sligo to a six piece due to the higher loadings on the latter train.

Where do you suggest that an additional ICR for the 0800 ex-Dublin would come from? All of the Connolly sets are in service at that stage.

Similarly the 0905 from Dublin and 1300 from Sligo on Sundays are always 29k operated.

The 29k are not ideal for intercity travel, incredibly uncomfortable.

Plenty of spare capacity idle at portlaoise. These could be use to increase the ICR capacity on the Sligo line. There is even talk of using the ICR on the Belfast line, where would this capacity come from?

There are cost implications of doing that. The reality is that the maintenance budget has constrained the number of sets that are in service at any one time, and the company needs to work around that.

Unless money is found from elsewhere to increase that number (and currently the subsidy is reducing), the situation cannot change.

I don't necessarily disagree with you regarding the suitability of 29k sets, but we are talking about two trains per week here.

With IE openly trialling 4 and 5 car 22000 sets it's hard to know what will be travelling on the rails this time next year.

Excellent

Why will they use the 22k on the docklands - m3 parkway route when these could be used on the Sligo intercity route? Baffling and why is there not a need to use the 29k on the Sligo route at any other time during the week?

According to sources, the most likely outcome will be 4 car 22ks and 6 car 22ks this time next year.

Could live with a four car set, as long as IR disperse these sets accordingly not on popular routes and peak times.

Tis baffling alright. Those horrible 29ks should be on docklands m3 parkway. End of.

Yes, the majority of Sligo trains are 22k but it's simply not good enough. Every single train Mon - Sun should be 22k. A three hour InterCity service should NEVER be 29k operated. This must end. We will keep hounding Irish Rail until this happens. They are not getting away with it.

I couldn't agree more. The 29Ks are inadequate for this type of service - I avoid taking 29K-operated services on my commute from Edgeworthstown as they are simply not suitable. They are loud and there isn't enough space at the tables to get any work done.

To be honest, I preferred the old Mark 2s to even the 22Ks. I don't like noise when I am travelling and there was a lot to be said for being three or four cars behind the engine. In fairness though, they were a tad unreliable during leaf-slip season.

Allegedly but for uproar in Sligo you could have had Mark 3s :D

There must be plenty of spare capacity with the 22k. How come they can find extra service from Sligo today for the Mayo fans going to the game in Croke park and use the 22k. If they can provide this type of rail car on extra services there must be spare capacity for the 0905 ex Dublin on a Sunday and the 1500 ex Dublin on a Friday
Not good enough IR

Sunday isn't Friday where capacity is limited. There is 3 6 coach sets in Sligo on Sundays, while the 09.00 and 11.00 are operated by 3 coaches. That's 12 coaches available for extra services if required.

The bulk of spare capacity of 22's on the route are in Sligo and not Dublin on weekends like most intercity routes.

I appreciate that and with the valid point made around Sundays. Whilst there are 22ks operating the docklands - m3 parkway route during the week I'm afraid the argument of having 22ks operating intercity services on the Sligo route is valid enough mon-sun. Even Pearse - Maynooth gets the odd 22k during the week.

It's not like asking for 22ks to be taken off the say Galway route to use on the Sligo branch, they are there already doing commuter routes on the Sligo line.

Hello??

0900 Dublin - Sligo on a Sunday, 1300 next train ex Dublin, really.....
How they come up with that, it's not on. Sligo route I think is being mothballed like the Dublin - Belfast, if IR could get rid if it they would.

West & North don't exist on IR....

Maybe they were thinking of those that had to endure standing on the busy Sunday afternoon/evening services.

I had to endure standing on a 22k on a rush hour maynooth service. The worst train journey I have ever been on. If its bad on a commuter service could you imagine how bad it is on a long journey service.

The 22ks are the worst train on the network for those standing on journies. The 29ks may not be as comfortable for those sitting on intercity journies but for those standing they wipe the floor with the 22ks.

Perhaps if they put the 22k on an intercity service rather than a rush-hour Maynooth service, then there wouldn't have been a problem. Actually, standing on a 22k commuter service must be a real struggle, but isn't as bad on inter-city as you don't have a stop every 5 minutes with people trying to shove past you to get off.

Long-distance rolling stock is for long distances, commuter rolling stock is for short distances. The former is optimised for seating capacity, cruising speed and comfort while the latter is optimised for standing capacity and acceleration. To take your point to its logical conclusion why not just rip all of the seats out of the 22ks which would create loads of standing room.

Yes, standing on intercity services is not comfortable but you can avoid it by either booking or arriving early. On a Sligo line service with adequate capacity, it is very rare to see large numbers standing beyond Maynooth in any case.

If I were travelling to Sligo and the only train option available was a 29k, I would take the bus out of preference. It takes about the same time, it is usually cheaper, you are guaranteed a seat (on Bus Eireann), it is quieter and more comfortable.

A train that is available to operate a peak time service from Maynooth on a weekday isn't necessarily available for a Friday/Sunday intercity service to Sligo, as it may be rostered elsewhere.

Just thinking the 22's that operate the off peak M3 Parkway services are rostered for one o the Rosslare evening services which is why they can't run to Sligo.

That's a rather daft comment - how many people do you think want to travel to Sligo on a Sunday morning?

I would wager not that many.

The peak flow is from Sligo on Sundays, which is why the schedule is built the way it is.

Most other routes have long gaps in service on Sunday mornings from Dublin - the loadings just aren't there. People start to move in numbers from lunchtime onwards.