Iarnród Éireann will begin construction of a €28 million train station for Dublin's docklands this week following the granting of planning permission by Dublin City Council.
The new station will allow an extra 20,000 commuters to reach the city by train each day, and will take more than 10,000 cars off the road, according to Iarnród Éireann.
The station is being built to improve the frequency of trains on the Maynooth-Dublin line from every 20 to every 15 minutes, and to ease congestion problems at Connolly Station.
It will also allow the expansion of the rail service from Clonsilla in west Dublin to Dunboyne, Co Meath, in 2009.
The docklands station, near the junction of Sheriff Street and Guild Street, will be almost a kilometre from Connolly Station and will not initially connect with any other rail service.
Iarnród Éireann said it would be connected to a new underground Dart interconnector line linking Clontarf Road to Pearse station, St Stephen's Green, Christchurch and Heuston Station through underground stations. However, this connection is not due to be built until 2015 under the Government's Transport 21 plan.
The company said it would also benefit from the proposed extension of the Luas Red line, with a proposed Luas station at Mayor Street, some 300m south of the docklands station.
Links to the proposed metro and the Luas Green line will eventually be available through the connection to St Stephen's Green.
The docklands station is due for completion in mid-2007. The new train service will run along the existing Maynooth-Connolly line to Broombridge, Cabra, before diverting to bypass Connolly Station and head directly to the docklands station.
The station will deliver an additional 5,000 passengers a day on opening, growing to 20,000 as the service expands.
The start of construction on the station has been welcomed by the Dublin Chamber of Commerce.
