There could be light at the end of a very cramped tunnel for fainting commuters on the Limerick to Galway train line.
The arrival of a new fleet of Dart carriages may free up train stock from the Dublin-Drogheda route, with hopes that some will be allocated to the Limerick to Galway line where passengers are reported to be fainting in overcrowded conditions - as reported in last week’s Advertiser.
“Capacity for commuters has been cramped and overcrowded” on the Limerick-Galway line for the last two to three years, Fianna Fáil TD for Galway East, Albert Dolan, told the Advertiser. “It’s unfair that people are expected to commute in these conditions.”
Dolan brought up the issue in the Dáil last week, saying that a parent had contacted him days before, after his daughter fainted on that train on the way to university in Galway city.
While he welcomes the investments in Galway’s railway lines, such as the expansion of Ceannt Station and the works at Oranmore to lay double track, he says “infrastructure alone will not solve the issue.” Commuters on overcrowded lines need more carriages, but as previously reported, “we’ve heard from Irish Rail that there are no other stock available” during peak hours.
According to Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien, three sets of DART trains, totaling 285 battery-electric and electric carriages, have been ordered. The first batch, comprising 95 DART carriages, began arriving over the summer, and is currently undergoing certification and safety testing.
They are intended to go into the Northern Commuter Line serving Dublin-Drogheda in 2027. Dolan says these DART trains are hoped to enter service in the next few months, allowing 55 train carriages from Dublin to be dispersed around the country.
Squashed passengers on the Limerick-Galway route can only hope some make it to alleviate their commute.
