Kilkenny on track to get new trains
Welcome relief is coming down the track for Kilkenny commuters after Irish Rail confirmed they are adding new trains to its Waterford-Dublin services, starting next year.
Irish Rail confirmed some of the new 41 carriages it ordered late last year have been earmarked for the Waterford-Dublin Heuston route. It was initially believed all the new carriages in the €150 million investment would be used specifically on Dublin suburban routes.
Last October it was announced Irish Rail would receive €2 billion as part of the Ireland 2040 Framework, of which €150 million would be spent immediately in increasing the capacity of the Irish Rail fleet by 16%.
A spokesperson for Irish Rail confirmed: “Some of these carriages are earmarked for the Waterford-Dublin Heuston line and will be coming on stream next year, late 2021.”
The question of capacity came to a head last week when the Waterford-Dublin service was severely disrupted twice due to issues with some of the carriages used on the route.
In one instance the carriages had to be removed from the train in the station, meaning the train leaving Plunkett Station was shortened from a six-carriage train to a four-carriage train. This created knock-on overcrowding problems and also delayed later services.
The issues with these carriages have been fixed and there have been no incidents so far this week.
The delays of last week have seen many commuters take to social media outlets to voice their displeasure with the service and concern over the ongoing overcrowding issues on the services.
