DART+ (DART Expansion)

For most of the route past Broombridge, it has the canal on one side, but a lot of the line past Pelletstown there is green space the opposite side to the Canal.

Sending Sligo trains to Heuston via a new greenfield link between Kilcock and Hazelhatch would be preferable. It would allow an unhindered hourly sligo service and increased DART frequency all the way to Kilcock

The strategic rail review provides for a link across to the mainline from Heuston. This really should be the only show in town and would allow for services beyond Maynooth on the Sligo line (Mullingar / Longford/ Sligo) to have an express full speed run into Heuston station similar to other inter city services on the Heuston line.

As the crow flies, the lines are just 6km apart. The route should look something like, after Maynooth split off around the Pike bridge, through the open countryside, under the M4, skirt around Castletown House (State land), over the Liffey, past Stacumny Lane and join up with the 4 tracks on the land approaching Adamstown. Definitely doable, and a must.

This would free up paths into the busy Connolly / Spencer Dock side and allow a more express and reliable intercity service for the Sligo line.

There'll end up being a celbridge station for sure

One would hope so, to the East of the town. Priority must be given for non stop running to Maynooth.

A single track line for this project would be classic false economy.

Just do it right first time.

In fact (given it's only 6/7km) at least tripple track, for a regular DART service and mainline trains.

Maynooth would be connected to Kilcock by a frequent DART servicewhich would only be possible thanks to making the existing Kilcock to maynooth section DART only. The DART is a far more important service than inter city.

Heuston is good enough as the main terminal for all Cork, Galway, Waterford, Kerry, Limerick and West port services so it's good enough for Sligo also, the alternative is less trains to Sligo and a worse DART service, which is unacceptable.

True but why not remove other constraints while at it, do it right the first time. We might want 5 minute darts to kilcock in the future and half hourlys to sligo or an enhanced Longford commuter.

One trick they are missing with DART+ West is not adding a third track around Clonsilla station. There are alreay sidings on both sides of the station and fields earmarked for development from there to the Dr. Troy Bridge. Clonsilla station should be rebuilt east of the R121 with a pass-thru track in the middle and a decent length of triple-track either side. That way Maynooth/outer commuter trains could overtake DARTs. Would be very easy to do, particularly if part of DART+ West works.

The northern carpark is going to become a bus lane / interchange to take buses off Parson Street so that's not possible. Southern is elevated and part is going for the substation for DART+

There were platforms on the sidings once upon a time, before the original station closure in the 40s

Yes there would be capacity at Heuston to have the Sligo and Longford services run through to there. After that, capacity would be fairly full.

Heuston has the benefit of “calling on” signalling which allows a train to arrive on top of one already at the platform. So there is a lot of flexibility. They may need to turn around trains a bit quicker than currently. An added benefit is Sligo services can easily be serviced at Portlaoise as they’ll be on the right side.

I would suggest a line trailing off after Adamstown down road that drops under the 4 tracks and up and out on the other side. Thus no conflicts. On the up side a high speed join up on to the fast line at grade.

That line must be double track over to the Maynooth line. A station at Celbridge East should be built and encourage development in that direction.

What would be the point of a Maynooth West station? Maybe if the was a motorway junction there, a P&R station might make sense. It would be better to just extend DART to Kilcock where it would actually serve people.

Both Maynooth and Kilcock could do with a second, further east station, no point in going west.

@bikeman1: "I would suggest a line trailing off after Adamstown down road that drops under the 4 tracks and up and out on the other side. Thus no conflicts. On the up side a high speed join up on to the fast line at grade"

Won't work. After DART+, the Up and Down fast lines will both be both on the Down side , with the slow and/or DART+ lines on the North side. Not that easy to engineer a conflict-free flyover in these circumstances.

I find much of this discussion a bit prematire: first get approval for the detailed DART+ plans now with ABP. Heaven knows how many more years would be wasted if you were to go for really radical amendments.

Station. Depot much further west

It's going to be both, basically (development, not stations)

what occurs in those two communications rooms on the kilbarrack side of Howth Junction station?

A non-grade separated junction on a high-speed and very busy line is a capacity killer and plays hell with scheduling and reliability. We need more network capacity, not less.

The most depressing part of that notice was the two year anniversary of the RO for Dart+ West having gone to ABP.

I hope that the extra staffing means that new submissions will get through more quickly. These are big projects, but 9 months should be plenty of time to examine them and give permission.

I see looking at the designs that Howth Junction will be equally as pleasant a station as it is now after the upgrade to Drogheda and the less said about that kip of a station at Clongriffin, the better (assuming the lifts are still smashed and full of urine) ...no upgrade for that station.

Take public transport they say.

Clongriffin is being rebuilt currently, nothing wrong with the lifts. All working

There is a lift on private property owned by the developer nearby, thats a different problem but from the station entrance to platform is fully accessible and always has been