The drastic decline in the punctuality of some rail services across the national network in recent months is deeply concerning. Dart services in June had a punctuality rate of 92.8 per cent. The figure in November was 69.3 per cent.
What these numbers mean for travellers and commuters is plain. They tell of the stress of not knowing whether they will arrive on time at work or when they will get home. Some describe journeys taking several times longer than they should, of connections missed and plans disrupted. That leads some to make alternative arrangements, which usually means private cars, contributing further to road congestion and higher emissions.
This is not just a failure to provide a service fit for a growing population. It also flies in the face of everything that is needed if Ireland is to have any hope of meeting the climate targets which it is legally committed to achieving in the years ahead.
It is no accident that the worst pressuresare being experienced on the line running north from Dublin’s Connolly station. Originally built in the 1850s, this infrastructure now carries intercity trains between the two largest conurbations on the island, along with Dart services to coastal suburbs as far as Malahide, and commuter trains to north county Dublin and Louth, areas experiencing some of the State’s fastest population growth.
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The signalling system in Connolly itself, the failure of which has led to some of the worst recent delays, dates from the 1970s. Much of the Dart rolling stock is 40 years old and prone to minor technical malfunctions. Breakdowns, when they occur, jam up the entire two-track system.
It would be wrong to assign all blame for this to the current operators and their political masters. It is the product of decades of underinvestment and neglect. These will be extemely difficult to redress. But that is what must happen, and as speedily as possible. The numbers travelling by rail are rising fast, with 38.5 million passenger journeys across the network in 2022 rising to 45.5 million in 2023 and estimates of 51 million this year. They deserve better.