Twin-tracking of Glounthaune to Midleton rail line to begin next week
Bus transfers will run between Midleton and Cork in place of the evening trains. Picture Dan Linehan
Iarnród Éireann is advising customers that works to twin-track the Glounthaune to Midleton rail line will begin next Monday.
Along with works on a new through platform at Kent Station, and new signalling across the full Cork Commuter network, the twin-tracking of the Glounthaune to Midleton line will facilitate the proposed capacity and service frequency increases.
The company said the works have the potential to treble existing service frequency to a 10-minute frequency on all Cork commuter routes in the future.
The works are set to begin this month and be completed in 2026, and will impact some evening services over the 18-month period.
The final train from Cork to Midleton will be at 7:15pm and the final train from Midleton to Cork will be at 7:45pm on Mondays to Wednesdays from September 23 to December 18 2024, with bus transfers to operate between Glounthaune and Midleton for later evening services.
Further works will be advised for 2025 and early 2026.
The works will deliver a 10-kilometre second track on the Glounthaune to Midleton line under the Cork Area Commuter Rail (CACR) Programme, a series of interrelated projects being undertaken by Iarnród Éireann to enhance the capacity of the Cork commuter rail network.
Essential maintenance works to Cork Tunnel are also ongoing and will continue until Thursday 31 October this year, resulting in bus transfers between Mallow and Cork from 10pm onwards Mondays to Thursdays.
The track works will include fully twin-tracking the line, over a distance of 10 kilometres, associated track turnout and crossover works at Glounthaune, Carrigtwohill and Midleton, including two new crossovers at Midleton, level crossing works and new cable containment routes.
Phase 1 of the programme is largely funded under the EU’s Recovery and Resilience Facility (EURRF).
The Plan NRRP was developed to spur a green recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic supported by the EU’s Recovery and Resilience Facility. Ireland is expected to receive €988 million in grants under the Facility.
The aim is to help repair the immediate economic and social damage brought about by the pandemic and to prepare for a post-Covid Europe that is greener, more digital, more resilient and fit to face the future.
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