Passengers have commented that the move by Irish Rail to revert back to their timetable prior to August has negatively impacted intercity services on the route between Belfast and Dublin. On August 26th, Irish Rail released a timetable that reduced morning peak travel times from Belfast by at least five minutes. However, those improvements have since been forfeit due to the return of the previous schedule.
Furthermore, a crucial evening service to Belfast, the 4:50pm Enterprise service operating from Dublin Connolly, which formerly offered a non-stop journey to Dundalk, now makes a stop at Drogheda. John Connor, a regular commuter from Newry to Dublin, noted that the main objective of the renewed investment into the Dublin to Belfast line was supposed to cater to the two major cities, but it is now seemingly being used to bolster a commuter service between Dundalk and Dublin.
According to Mr Connor, the initial intercity train departing from Belfast to Dublin at 6am is fully occupied by the time it arrives at Newry. “This is the only train scheduled to reach Dublin Connolly before 9am that crosses the border,” he commented. However, despite being packed, the train still halts at Dundalk and Drogheda to accommodate more passengers.
“Drogheda has six trains departing before the Enterprise in the morning and one more just seven minutes afterwards. If it were not necessary for the Enterprise to stop at these locations (Dundalk and Drogheda), the connection would be quicker and safer”, Mr Connor stated.
Furthermore, Lorraine Bell, a commuter on the 7.53am service from Newry to Dublin, pointed out that timing issues are a regular issue with this service. “The arrival time in Dublin is rarely 9.20am; it’s usually closer to half past nine,” she expressed. Besides the reimplementation of the older timetable effective Monday, there are other persisting challenges facing passengers commuting on the Dublin-Belfast route.
Ms Bell expressed her frustration over the inconsistencies in ticket purchasing process on Irish Rail’s website, particularly for passengers starting their journey from the North. She pointed out that while seat reservations are available when booking through Irish Rail directly, customers are directed to Translink when their journey begins from the North, with no option to reserve a seat.
Another passenger commuting cross-Border, Clare Pierce, complained about the high parking costs at Belfast. To avoid these, she drives from Bangor to Newry to catch the 7:53 am service. Ms Pierce added her concern about the afternoon return service at 4:50 pm, which she claimed is often overly packed since it now stops at Drogheda. She occasionally chooses to wait out the crowd by indulging in some shopping in Dublin and catches the nearly 7 pm train instead.
However, Johnny Irwin views the service more optimistically. Despite regularly commuting to Dublin from Newry for work, and acknowledging the crowded 4:50 pm return service, he commends Irish Rail, calling it “an exceptional service”. He feels that he is usually able to secure a seat, despite the afternoon rush.
Furthermore, Irish Rail’s spokesman, Barry Kenny, shared that if the schedules hadn’t returned to the previous format on Monday, the 6 am service from Belfast would have reached Dublin at 8:15 am, and the 7 am service would’ve disembarked passengers at 9:15 am. Currently, these services arrive at 8:23 am and 9:20 am respectively due to the revised schedule. Mr Kenny also spoke about the August 26th timetable, which caused inconvenience to thousands of northern line commuters. Despite the slight increase in travel time for a few hundred intercity service passengers, he said that reverting to the earlier schedule was aimed at benefiting majority of the commuters.