Dublin tram

Dublin tram
Tram crosses O'Connell Street
Basic information
Country	Ireland
city	Dublin
opening	June 30, 2004
operator	Transdev
Infrastructure
Route length	42.1 km
Gauge	1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Power system	750 V = , overhead line
Stops	67
Depots	3
business
Lines	2
Clock in the peak hours	4th
Clock in the SVZ	15th
vehicles	73
statistics
Passengers	41.8 million per year / 114,500 per day (2018)
Line network

The Dublin tram has been operating again in the Irish capital since 2004 . It is referred to by the Irish word luas , which means speed . The railway is operated by the local transport group Transdev on behalf of the state Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII). It is the successor to a tram network that was in operation from 1872 to 1959.

The network includes two routes: a red line ( Red Line ) and a green line ( Green Line ) that are connected in the city together. Luas is a light rail - rail system has been designed to use the existing inner-city streets, however, is traced out away regardless of the road space and uses partially elevated or low-lying former railway lines again.

history

The first tram

Luas is the city's second tram system. The first line was put into operation in 1872 as a horse-drawn tram with a gauge of 1600 mm . It was replaced by steam trams from 1881 . In 1896 all tram routes in the city were combined in the Dublin United Trams and switched to electrical operation from 1901. The last tram line in Dublin itself was closed as early as 1949, and it stayed in the suburbs until 1959.

The new tram

Citadis 401 at the Charlemont stop

St Stephen's Green station stop

The tram service opened on June 30, 2004. First the then 9 km long green line with 13 stops between St. Stephen's Green and Sandyford was put into operation. On September 28, 2004 the 14 km long red line between Connolly and Tallaght followed with 23 stops. The green line mostly uses the route of a disused suburban railway and was built in such a way that it can be converted into an underground line with reasonable effort if necessary . The two lines originally had no connection with each other and therefore each had their own depot.

On December 8, 2009, the first extension of the red line went into operation. It leads from Busáras via the George's Dock, Mayor Square and Spencer Dock stops to The Point terminus. The route opens up the financial district in the Docklands and the event hall " 3Arena " (formerly "The O ₂ "). Construction work on the extension began in June 2007. About two thirds of the trains run directly from Tallaght to The Point, bypassing the previous terminus, Connolly.

The two routes differ in that a larger clearance profile was chosen on the green line in order to enable a later conversion to an underground or S-Bahn. During the expansion, care is taken to ensure a track spacing of 3400 mm - for 3000 mm carriage width plus 400 mm spacing .

Construction work on the extension of the green line from Sandyford to Bride's Glen (Luas Cherrywood) began on February 26, 2007, and the 11 km long line with nine stations was put into operation in October 2010.

In addition, a new branch of the red line from Belgard to Saggart (Luas Citywest) was built. Construction work for Luas Citywest began on February 9, 2009 and was opened on July 2, 2011.

In contrast to the old tram and also to the Irish long-distance railway network, the newly built tram routes are regular-gauge . There are no turning loops , the trains turn by changing the direction of travel.

Cross City extension

In June 2010, plans were presented for further expansion of the route, including a connection between the red and green lines in the city center. The stations of the extended green line: Stephens Green - Dawson Street - Westmoreland Street - O'Connell Street / Abbey Street (change to the red line) - Marlborough Street or Hawkins Street (route through various (one-way) streets) - College Street. This extension was not included in older plans, instead parts of planning route BX ("Luas City Center") and planning route D ("Luas Broombridge") were connected to the green line - this should then lead to Broombridge in a further extension (planning route BXD). The expansion was initially to be operated with 40 m long trains, the route was planned for operation with 53 m long trains. The construction work should start in 2010, the completion was announced in 2012. On November 10, 2011, several line constructions were stopped or postponed as government austerity measures. The construction of the extension of the green line to Broombridge was maintained, but construction did not begin until 2015.

As part of the expansion work began in April 2012 with the construction of a bridge connecting Marlborough Street and Hawkins Street (parallel to the O'Connell Bridge downstream). This also serves to expand the bus network and improve the inner-city route network. On August 3, 2012, the budget for the overall expansion to Broombridge was approved - in the proposed planning options, it was decided that the light rail system would also run in the historic center with overhead lines, the Dawson Street stop should be dropped, but the Grangegorman stop was confirmed. The construction work for the “Cross-City Line” began in 2013, the first contracts for the construction of the 5.6 km long route were awarded by the then Transport Minister Leo Varadkar , the total project was worth 370 million euros. The line opened on schedule on December 9, 2017, but without the direct transition to the railroad at the Broombridge terminus, which was postponed to spring 2018 ^[obsolete] .

vehicles

Interior of a tram train - sometimes there are four seats next to each other

Alstom won the tender for the new vehicles to be procured in 1999 with its Citadis 300 model. The order comprised 20 units with an option for 14 more. These vehicles are 2.40 m wide and 30 m long and can hold 170 passengers. All units are bidirectional cars . The first delivery took place in November 2001. In 2000, the decision was made to order 14 longer units for the green line and expanded the order for the shorter ones to 26 units. The longer cars were delivered from 2002.

The fleet initially consisted at the opening of 40 low-floor - trams of type Alstom Citadis 301, in three parts and 30 meters long for the red and Citadis 401, 40 meters long and five parts of the green line. They were built in La Rochelle , France. The contact line is supplied with 750 volts direct current.

The first generation of the Citadis (301 and 401) is about 70% low-floor, the end sections run on bogies. In 2007, work began on converting the three-part Citadis 301 of the red line into five-part Citadis 401 by adding two more modules (this was also done by other customers of the first generation of Citadis, for example in Montpellier ). The last railcar was extended in June 2008. All railways of the first procurement can be used on both lines.

At the same time as the extension to the Citadis 401, an order for the second generation of the Citadis 402 was placed. In the first request in 2007, this was 18 units, with the option for a further 8 units which was redeemed at the end of 2008. The first batch was delivered from 2009, the second batch by 2010. These 43 m long units are consistently low-floor, but this also required the use of rigid-axle idler racks under the end parts. They were delivered in 2009. The 402 series can be used on both routes if required, but the wagons supplied have only been on the green route so far. In contrast, the 401 series cars were moved from the green to the red line.

For the extension to Broombridge (green line from 2017), the procurement of ten additional cars has been planned since 2014. The 2015 order then comprised seven additional units, but these will be delivered in nine parts with a length of 54.6 m from the start. In the planning documents for the new Cross-City section, the platforms of the green line are already designed for the longer trains; on the oldest section between St. Stephen's Green and Sandyford, insufficient platforms will be extended before delivery (without any information on the platforms behind Sandyford to the surrounding area). Delivery started in mid-November 2017 and was completed by the opening in early December 2017.

With the opening of the extension of the green line, plans were announced to use longer trains there. To this end, 26 units are to be lengthened to 55 m, and eight further long wagons are being procured. These are scheduled to go into operation between 2018 and 2022 , and absorb the expected increase in passenger numbers.

Order overview for Dublin tram vehicles

decision	Ordered	Delivered	Citadis 301	Citadis 401	Citadis 402	Citadis 502
Red line	1999	2004	20th
Green line	2000	2004	6th	14th
Conversion to 401	2007	2008	−26	+26
Order 402	2007	2009			18th
First option 402	2008	2010			8th
Cross City extension	2015	2017				7th
Total stock				40	26th	7th
Extension to 55 m	2018	2022			−26	+34
Vehicle numbers			3001-26	4001-14 3001-26	5001-26

Passenger numbers

The number of passengers is around 25 million journeys per year (50 million by 2006, 28.4 million in 2007, 27.4 million in 2008). The company manages without subsidies - instead of the expected 2.5 million euros deficit, a surplus of almost 0.7 million euros was achieved in 2004, which rose to just under 1.0 million euros by 2007.

year	Passengers
2005	22 million
2006	26 million
2007	28.4 million
2008	27.4 million
2009	25.4 million
2010	27.4 million
2011	29.06 million
2012	29.4 million
2013	30.5 million
2014	32.4 million
2015	34.6 million
2016	34.2 million

Rates

Ticket machine at a Luas stop

All tram tickets must be purchased prior to departure. There is also a machine at every stop. In addition to cash, major debit and credit cards are accepted.

The single tickets are in the form of a credit card with a magnetic strip on the back, but this magnetic strip is not checked when boarding. Instead, there is a time limit of 90 minutes after ticket purchase, the end time is printed on (“valid until”). The tickets correspond to those of the Dublin Area Rapid Transit with their access barriers.

There is no network tariff in Dublin, but you can change between the red and green lines. "Combi-Tickets" are also offered at the machines, which allow you to change to bus lines or the DART S-Bahn, depending on what has been selected.

The lines are divided into zones. Notices inform which station belongs to which zone. The tariff is based on the zones traveled, from the outskirts to the center there are usually five zones. If more than five zones are used, the maximum tariff remains in accordance with the value of 5 zones.

Daily, weekly (7 days) and monthly tickets (30 days) can also be purchased from the machines. In addition, some personalized tickets can be purchased - for these, the user's ID number must be entered to prevent them from being passed on.

It is also possible to purchase a “Leap Smartcard” as a replacement for a season ticket. The Leap Smartcard is a prepaid system with a minimum top-up amount of 5 euros. In all public transport there are readers for the Leap smart card, which can be used contactlessly by holding on to it. When boarding, the Leap card is activated as a ticket ("tap on") and the appropriate amount is deducted by holding it before leaving ("tap off"). The single tickets billed with it are cheaper than paper tickets, and there are maximum values ​​for public transport use (“capping”) of € 10 per day and € 40 per week. In addition, there is a one euro discount on the connection card if you change modes of transport within 90 minutes of starting your journey. The LEAP smart card can be topped up at Luas machines, but cannot be purchased there. The Leap cards are available at least at all DART stations as well as some shops near bus stops. They cost 10 euros and then contain a disposition amount of 5 euros.

The price difference for single trips between times of low traffic (“off-peak”) and times of high traffic (“peak”) is clear at around 150% at Luas (as of 2018 for a zone: 1.44 to 2.10). Heavy traffic counts at Luas between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Children up to 4 years of age travel free of charge, and from 5 to 15 years of age at a reduced rate (no peak / off-peak distinction). Otherwise, single tickets cannot be purchased at a further reduced price, students and pensioners receive monthly tickets instead. Neither a student ID card nor a disability ID card entitles you to purchase it yourself, but an application must be submitted and officially confirmed in order to receive a "Travelpass".

Lines

Charlemont railway station

Depth range Balally station ⊙

Red Cow Depot ⊙

At times of heavy traffic, the lines on the inner-city route run every five minutes, which is increased by repeater trips, especially on the green line. On the outer branches of the red line, there is a basic cycle of ten minutes at busy times, which is thinned out to 20 minutes in times of low traffic. On the green line there is a basic cycle of five minutes at busy times to Sandyford and ten minutes on the southern outer branch. In times of low traffic, the basic cycle on the green line is extended to 7.5 minutes or 15 minutes. The travel time on the green line is 40 minutes at 22 stations. 32 stations are served on the red line; here the journey time is 53 minutes.

Luas Green Line Legend Broombridge Droichead Broome Broombridge Depot Cabra Cabrach Phibsborough Baile Phib Grangegorman Gráinsearch Ghormain Broadstone - DIT To Chloch Leathan ITBhÁC Dominick Doiminic Parnell O'Connell Upper Ó Conaill Uachtarach O'Connell - GPO Ó Conaill - AOP Marlborough Maoilbhríde Abbey Street Red Line Liffey Westmoreland Trinity to Tríonóid Dawson Dásain Sweeping track St. Stephen's Green Faiche Stiabhna Harcourt Sráid Fhearchair Grand Canal Charlemont Ranelagh Raghnallach Beechwood Coill na Feá Cowper Milltown Baile on Mhuilinn River Dodder Windy Arbor na Glasáin Dundrum Road Dundrum Dún Droma Balally Baile Amhlaoibh Kilmacud Cill Mochuda Stillorgan Stigh Lorgan Sandyford Áth to Ghainimh Sandyford Depot Central Park at Pháirc Láir Motorway M50 Glencairn Gleann to Chairn The Gallops An Eachrais Leopardstown Valley Gleann Bhaile na Lobhar Ballyogan Wood Coill Bhaile Uí Ógáin Motorway M50 Racecourse An Ráschúrsa, out of order Carrickmines Carraig Mhaighin Brennanstown Baile Uí Bhraonáin, out of order Laughanstown Baile on Locháin Cherrywood Coill na Silíní Wyattville Link Road Bride's Glen Gleann Bhríde

Luas Red Line Legend The Point Iosta na Rinne Spencer Dock Duga Spencer Mayor Square - NCI Cearnóg to Mhéara - CNÉ George's Dock Duga Sheoirse Connolly Conghaile Busaras Green Line Abbey Street Green Line Jervis Four Courts Na Ceithre Cúirteanna Smithfield Margadh na Feírme Ard Mhúaem Museum River Liffey Heuston James's Ospídéal San Séamas Fatima Rialto Grand Canal Suir Road Bhótar na Siúire Goldenbridge To Droichead Órga Drimnagh Droimeanach Blackhorse To Capall Dubh Bluebell To Gloigín Gorm Kylemore To Chill Mhór Motorway M50 (Redcow Interchange) Naas Road (Redcow Interchange) Red Cow An Bhó Dhearg Red Cow Depot Kingswood Coill on Rí Belgard Cookstown Baile an Chócaigh Hospital Ospidéal Thamhlachta Tallaght Tamhlacht Sweeping track Fettercairn Fothair Chardain Cheeverstown Baile at tSíbhrigh Citywest Campus Campas Gnó Iarthar na Cathrach Fortunestownn Baile Uí Fhoirtcheirn Saggart Teach Sagard Sweeping system

Plans for new lines

• Planning route B2 is an extension of Cherrywood's green line at the southern end. In 2007, a 6.8 km route along the M11 motorway was proposed, ending at Bray Daly Station in the seaside resort of Bray .
• The planning section F includes the connection of Lucan in the west of Dublin to the city center. In 2008 a route was presented that partly uses the red line. The planning part F1 runs from the site to the connection to the Blackhorse station and branches off the red line again after six stops at James's, where the planning part F2 leads to the College Green business center .
• The MetroLink project involves converting part of the green line to metro standards. From Sandyford to Charlemont, the trains will use the existing route and then be routed underground to Dublin city center. The tunnel route is to end after six stations, and then Dublin Airport will be connected. The route will continue to Northside. 14 new stops will be built on a 17 km route. The route will continue to be served by trams. However, they are at least 60 meters long and should run every two minutes. The plan is to start construction in 2021 and to open after six years around 2027. The project is controversial. Effectively, the green line would be cut in two. The southern part could lead from Bray to the Sandyford interchange. The northern part has a transfer point in St. Stephens Green and would be more like a tram in character.

Trivia

Since the name of the railway Luas / luːəs / is pronounced almost like the English name Lewis / luːɪs / , the railway in Dublin has now the nickname Jerry Lee , based on the American musician Jerry Lee Lewis .

With the opening of the extension to The Point and Bride's Glen , the announcements were re-recorded in 2010 by Doireann Ní Bhriain , who is a well-known speaker, radio producer and voice trainer.

The city of Cork has also presented its plans for a light rail system under the name "Luas". From 2031, 1 billion euros are expected to be invested in a 17 km long route from Ballincollig to Mahon Point. For the estimated 25 stations, 46 million passengers are forecast annually. The light rail system as part of the city planning 2040 ("Cork Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy 2040") was proposed in May 2019.

See also

• Rail transport in Ireland

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Press release on the opening of the Luas Docklands Extension ( Memento of the original from February 21, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; English) 
2. ↑ Tim Paul: LUAS Dublin Light Rail System. In: igi.ie. Retrieved September 5, 2016 . 
3. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from June 15, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Luas Cherrywood (English) 
4. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from June 15, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Luas Citywest (English) 
5. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from June 15, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
6. ↑ Archived copy ( memento of the original from October 20, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
7. ↑ Plans to link Luas lines finalized. In: Irish Times , June 22, 2010
8. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from April 27, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
9. ↑ ^{a b} Luas Line City Center Link (Line BX) & Luas Broombridge (Line D) - Draft Scoping Report for Environmental Impact Statement. ( Memento of the original of February 21, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. RPA, December 2008 (PDF; 661 kB) 
10. ^ Metro North, DART underground plans shelved. In: RTÉ News . November 10, 2011, accessed May 30, 2012 . 
11. ↑ Infrastructure and Capital Investment 2012–16. Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, accessed December 5, 2011 . 
12. ↑ Do we need € 15m Liffey bridge? In: Evening Herald. April 28, 2012. Retrieved May 30, 2012 . 
13. ↑ Green light given to Luas link-up, first passengers 2017. RTÉ, accessed on August 5, 2012 . 
14. ↑ Varadkar to sign contracts for Luas Cross-City line. In: Irish Examiner. Retrieved May 27, 2013 . 
15. ↑ City to 'open up' thanks to launch of 'phenomenally important' cross-city Luas . In: The Evening Herald . 2nd December 2017.
16. ↑ Dublin selects ALSTOM's CITADIS tram sets. In: Alstom.com. July 9, 1999, accessed December 22, 2017 . 
17. ^ Inauguration of Dublin's first CITADIS tram. In: Alstom.com. November 4, 2001. Retrieved December 22, 2017 . 
18. ↑ ^{a b} Dublin Order. Light Rail Transit Association (Ireland), August 25, 2000, accessed September 5, 2016 . 
19. ↑ Transport 21 Annual Report 2007. (PDF) (No longer available online.) Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, March 5, 2008, pp. 16–17 , formerly in the original ; Retrieved April 4, 2008 .  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.    
20. ^ Alstom to supply 8 additional Citadis trams for Dublin. In: Alstom.com. December 1, 2008, accessed December 22, 2017 . 
21. ↑ New Citadis trams arrive in Dublin. In: Alstom.com. March 2, 2009, accessed December 22, 2017 . 
22. ↑ Alstom completes Dublin tram overhaul. In: Railway Gazette. September 8, 2015, accessed December 22, 2017 . 
23. ↑ Urban Rail News in Brief April 2014. Retrieved on October 18, 2014 : "The 5 6 km route from St Stephen's Green to Broombridge will have 13 stops, and the project includes the acquisition of 10 more trams." 
24. ↑ ^{a b} Dublin orders nine-section trams. In: Railway Gazette. November 25, 2015, accessed December 22, 2017 . 
25. ↑ New trams ordered for Luas Cross City. Transport for Ireland, November 25, 2015, accessed December 22, 2017 . 
26. ^ Luas Cross City . In: Twitter . December 16, 2017 .: "First of new LCC trams arrives from France via Rosslare and on to Sandyford Depot. Countdown to 9th Dec !!! "
27. ↑ Longer Luas trams to be Introduced on the Green Line . In: Independent . January 2017.
28. ↑ € 100m investment to bring longer Luas trams to Green Line . In: Dublin Live . December 9, 2017.
29. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from January 3, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
30. ↑ https://www.luas.ie/leap-card-fares.html
31. ↑ https://www.luas.ie/single-and-return-tickets.html
32. ↑ https://www.newstalk.com/Metro-North-Dublin-Airport-capital-investment-plan-Swords-map-stations-trams-züge-construction
33. ↑ Seán McCárthaigh: Light rail system part of € 3.5bn Cork transport plan . Irish Examiner. May 13, 2019.

Web links

Commons : LUAS tram system  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Tram website (English / Irish)
• Luas photos ( Memento from July 28, 2007 on WebCite )