Transport network’s own punctuality figures show a dramatic decline over the last six months. The problems go back to a lack of investment in rail infrastructure over the last few decades
'The signalling centre in Connolly station dates from the 1970s, and it was extended in the 1980s to Dart . But it is outdated, it is on its last legs, and it is woefully undersized for the tasks it is meant to conduct,' said Mark Gleeson, a spokesman for Irish Rail Users, the commuters’ lobbying group. Photograph: Dara Mac DónaillAt 7.
Murphy is not alone. A survey of readers by The Irish Times found a huge volume of stories of commuters struggling to navigate an increasingly unreliable rail network, with reports of signal failures, mechanical issues, operational difficulties, delays and cancellations more than daily occurrences. Ethan Elliott from Wicklow said that throughout this year he has seen the service “consistently degrade”.
Northern commuter services have shown a similar slide, as well as Phoenix Park tunnel and Heuston commuter services. Virtually every train coming into the Dublin area has experienced a large month-on-month drop in punctuality since the summer.
Then there’s the issue of the rail signalling system, which has been the subject of a number of significant breakdowns in recent months. Laura Farrell, who lives in Swords and travels once a week by train to Blackrock, was one of the thousands of commuters affected. ‘The period since late August has been an extremely challenging one in terms of punctuality for our customers, for which we apologise, and assure customers we are working to address’She spent an hour trying to catch a bus with no success, then discovered through social media that the signal failure had been resolved, so made it back to the station by about 9pm.
“We’re using the network more than we used to, and if you put that kind of pressure on any type of system it can result in faults happening,” he said. “The revised timetable was not operating well, and had a far more disruptive effect on northern commuter services in particular than anticipated,” he said.
Plans for expanding to a four-track line between Connolly and Malahide would allow for trains to be better managed, reducing potential congestion going into the busy Connolly hub, which is “hugely important to keep up with demand” as the population in the Greater Dublin Area increases, he said.
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