320,000 journeys on railway

IRISH RAIL has announced that a total of 322,000 passenger journeys were made on the Dublin/Wicklow commuter line in 2018, representing a four per cent increase on 2017. It said that economic improvements, more people in employment, and increased road congestion all contributed to the increase. Nationally, Iarnrod Éireann recorded its highest ever number of passenger journeys in 2018, with over 47.9 million passenger journeys made across Dart, Commuter and Intercity services. This represents a 5.4 per cent growth on the previous year.

Commenting on the figures, Chief Executive of Iarnród Éireann, Jim Meade said: ‘It is great to see such strong growth on the Wicklow commuter line, it is good news for us and it is also good news for the economy, as it demonstrates that more and more people are joining the workforce, but it is not without its challenges, and capacity at peak times is an issue. My priority is to ensure that provision of additional carriages, which is provided for in the National Development Plan is progressed as quickly as possible.’