Many companies operate public transport services in Dublin, most of which are state-owned or semi-state-owned.
Contents
- Rail
- Light rail
- Bus
- City and local services
- Longer distance and express services
- See also
- References
Many companies operate public transport services in Dublin, most of which are state-owned or semi-state-owned.
Historically, bus services in Dublin were operated mainly by the Dublin United Transport Company, which was incorporated into CIÉ in 1945.
Today, two subsidiary companies of state-owned Córas Iompair Éireann operate most of the bus services in and around Dublin but many other private companies also provide services.
Most routes are awarded to the state-owned firms by non-tendered direct award [1] (with the exception of Dublin Bus Airlink and Bus Éireann Expressway services, which are entirely commercial); but recently a portion of both firms routes were offered for public tender. Neither firm retained these routes, with Go-Ahead Ireland winning both contracts [2] [3]
Some additional routes are tendered where a need is identified by the National Transport Authority. These are public service obligation routes and occasionally replace sections of withdrawn or altered Bus Éireann Expressway services.
Most of the transport system in Ireland is in public hands, either side of the Irish border. The Irish road network has evolved separately in the two jurisdictions into which Ireland is divided, while the Irish rail network was mostly created prior to the partition of Ireland.
Portlaoise, or Port Laoise, is the county town of County Laois, Ireland. It is located in the South Midlands in the province of Leinster.
Swords in County Dublin, the county town of the local government area of Fingal, is a large suburban town on the east coast of Ireland, situated ten kilometres north of Dublin city centre. It is the eighth largest urban area in Ireland, with a population of 40,776 as of the 2022 census. The town was reputedly founded c. AD 560. Located on the Ward River, Swords features Swords Castle, a restored medieval castle, a holy well from which it takes its name, a round tower and a Norman tower. Facilities in the area include the Pavilions shopping centre, one of the largest in the Dublin region, a range of civic offices, some light industries, the main storage facility and archive of the National Museum of Ireland and several parks. Dublin Airport is located nearby.
Córas Iompair Éireann, or CIÉ, is a statutory corporation of the Republic of Ireland, answerable to the Irish Government and responsible for most public transport within the Republic and jointly with its Northern Ireland counterpart, the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company, for the railway service between Dublin and Belfast, via Drogheda, Dundalk, Newry and Portadown. The company is headquartered at Heuston Station, Dublin. It is a statutory corporation whose members are appointed by the Minister for Transport.
Dublin Bus is an Irish state-owned bus operator providing services in Dublin. By far the largest bus operator in the city, it carried 145 million passengers in 2023. It is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann.
Bus Éireann is a state-owned bus and coach operator providing services throughout Ireland, with the exception of Dublin, where bus services are provided by sister company Dublin Bus. It is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ). The company's primary hub is Busáras, located in Store Street, Dublin. In 2022 it operated 229 Public Service Obligation Routes, 14 expressway routes and 8940 school transport routes.
Rail transport in Ireland is provided by Iarnród Éireann in the Republic of Ireland and by Northern Ireland Railways in Northern Ireland.
Luas is a tram system in Dublin, Ireland. There are two main lines: the Green Line, which began operating on 30 June 2004, and the Red Line which opened on 26 September 2004. Since then, the red line has been extended and split into different branches further out of the city and the green line has been extended north and south as a single line. Since the northern extension of the green line in 2017, the two lines intersect in the city centre. The system now has 67 stops and 42.5 kilometres (26.4 mi) of revenue track, which in 2023 carried 48.2 million passengers, an increase of 24% compared to 2022.
Connolly station or Dublin Connolly is the busiest railway station in Dublin and Ireland, and is a focal point in the Irish route network. On the North side of the River Liffey, it provides InterCity, Enterprise and commuter services to the north, north-west, south-east and south-west. The north–south Dublin Area Rapid Transit (DART) and Luas red line light rail services also pass through the station. The station offices are the headquarters of Irish Rail, Iarnród Éireann. Opened in 1844 as Dublin Station, the ornate facade has a distinctive Italianate tower at its centre.
Heuston Station, also known as Dublin Heuston, is one of Dublin's largest railway stations and links the capital with the south, southwest and west of Ireland. It is operated by Iarnród Éireann (IÉ), the national railway operator. It also houses the head office of its parent company, Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ). The station is named in honour of Seán Heuston, an executed leader of the 1916 Easter Rising, who had worked in the station's offices.
Transport 21 was an Irish infrastructure plan, announced in November 2005. Its aims were to greatly expand Ireland's transport network. A cost estimate of €34 billion was attached to the plan at the time.
MetroLink is a proposed metro line for the city of Dublin. It replaces an earlier proposal called Metro North which was first recommended in the then Irish Government's 2005 Transport 21 transport plan.
The Dublin Suburban Rail network, branded as Commuter, is a railway network that serves the city of Dublin, Ireland, most of the Greater Dublin Area and outlying towns. The system is made up of five lines:
Commuter is a brand of suburban rail services operated by Iarnród Éireann in the Republic of Ireland, serving the cities of Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway. This brand is distinct from the longer distance InterCity brand, and Dublin's higher frequency DART brand. Most Commuter services share a track with InterCity services. During the first decade of the new millennium, Iarnród Éireann put a significant amount of effort into upgrading its network, with new tracks, signalling, station upgrades and trains. Commuter services are operated by diesel multiple unit train sets.
This article deals with transport in the Greater Dublin Area centred on the city of Dublin in Ireland.
Aircoach is an Ireland-based subsidiary company of FirstGroup. It provides airport express coach services from Cork, Belfast, Derry, Greystones, Bray, Southside Dublin and Dublin to Dublin Airport and from Derry to Belfast International Airport.
This article deals with transport in Waterford city in Ireland. The city is connected by road, rail, bus, air and sea. There are currently proposals for a bus rapid transit system, consisting of bus trams, or streetcars, to be used in future.
The TFI Leap Card is a contactless smart card for automated fare collection overseen by Transport for Ireland (TFI). It was introduced in the Greater Dublin area in 2011 for Luas, DART, Iarnród Éireann and Dublin Bus, but acceptance has significantly expanded, and it is now accepted in cities nationwide and on some longer distance commuter routes. Initially, Leap Cards offered only a pre-paid electronic wallet system for single-trip fares; since May 2014, it has also been possible to load it with weekly, monthly and annual subscriptions. In September 2017, there were over 2.5 million Leap Card users according to the National Transport Authority. The Leap Card is the result of many years' work by the Railway Procurement Agency and the National Transport Authority as part of the rollout of an integrated ticketing scheme for public transport in Dublin city. Fares are generally discounted compared to cash prices, and integrated ticketing is offered in the Dublin area via a flat fare system across all modes of transport. The minimum top-up for the card is currently €5, and it can be topped up via iPhone/Android app, at LUAS or DART ticketing machines, and in convenience stores offering Payzone services.
Bus Éireann Route 101 is a bus route in Ireland, that runs from Talbot Street, in Dublin city centre, to the Bus Station in the town of Drogheda, via Swords, Balbriggan and Julianstown. It is operated by Bus Éireann and is the main bus route connecting Drogheda to Dublin. Routes 101X and 100X are peak time express services using the Dublin Port Tunnel and M1 motorway. In 2023 the 101 route was upgraded to a full 24-hour service from Sunday May 7th, with 293 departures targeted per week. The new timetable is operated by Bus Eireann and includes a fleet of new, fully accessible double and single deck coaches on the route.
Go-Ahead Transport Services (Dublin) Limited, trading as Go-Ahead Ireland, is a bus operator in Dublin that commenced trading in September 2018. It is a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group.