A morning inter-city rail service connecting Nenagh, Roscrea and other towns with Dublin was opened yesterday by Iarnród Éireann. The service has been described by the rail company as an improvement to the Limerick-Dublin service and also includes Kildare commuter services, following approval by the National Transport Authority.
Nenagh and Roscrea are both in the constituency of Minister of State for Transport Alan Kelly, who has special responsibility for public and commuter transport. The service will enable Nenagh and Roscrea rail users to arrive in Dublin before 9am.
Iarnród Éireann is expected to carry out a review in six months of passenger numbers to establish if the new link is viable. It was reported last week that just 73 people were using the existing Nenagh-Dublin route daily.
The service change increases daily connections between Dublin and Nenagh from two each-way to four Nenagh-to-Dublin connections and three Dublin-to-Nenagh services.
Trains will now leave Limerick at 5.15am daily and take in Castleconnell, Birdhill, Nenagh, Cloughjordan and Roscrea before arriving at Dublin Heuston at 8.25am. They will also serve Ballybrophy, Portlaoise, Sallins, Hazelhatch and Adamstown in Laois, Kildare and Dublin, providing a new morning commuter train for these areas.