Train routes in Ireland
15 routes · classic 13 · scenic 1 · heritage 1
15 routes cross Ireland in the World Train Map atlas. The longest is the InterCity at 333 km; the fastest is the InterCity, running up to 160 km/h; the oldest line dates to 1848. Every route links to its facts, photo and story, and to the interactive world map.
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Classic (13)
- InterCity
Heuston to Kent in 2 h 15 on Mark 4 push-pull sets, over the 1849 Great Southern and Western main line through Limerick Junction and Mallow.
Wikipedia ↗ - Enterprise
Jointly run from both capitals since 1947, it rolls over the 1855 Boyne Viaduct at Drogheda and crosses the invisible Irish border without a pause.
Wikipedia ↗ - InterCity
Iarnród Éireann’s diesel railcars strike west across the boggy Irish Midlands, crossing the Shannon at Athlone to the Atlantic city of Galway.
Wikipedia ↗ - InterCity
Leaves the Dublin–Cork main line at Limerick Junction, a curious station where trains long had to reverse, before the final run to the Shannon at Limerick.
Wikipedia ↗ - InterCity
The old Midland Great Western route from Dublin Connolly over the drumlin lakelands to Sligo, W. B. Yeats’s country beneath flat-topped Ben Bulben.
Wikipedia ↗ - InterCity
Curves south-west from Dublin through medieval Kilkenny to Waterford, Ireland’s oldest city, founded by Vikings on the tidal River Suir.
Wikipedia ↗ - DART
Ireland’s only electrified railway, running around Dublin Bay from the Howth peninsula past Killiney’s Irish Riviera to Greystones since 1984.
Wikipedia ↗ - InterCity
Across the midland bogs and Mayo’s drumlin country to Clew Bay: Ireland’s western rails since 1866, with Croagh Patrick rising past the buffer stops.
Wikipedia ↗ - InterCity
Ireland’s longest ride: off the Cork line at Mallow and west past Killarney’s lakes to Tralee, with Kerry and the Atlantic at the end of the rails.
Wikipedia ↗ - Western Rail Corridor
The Western Rail Corridor, reopened in 2010 after 34 years: north from Limerick through Ennis and the stone-walled edge of the Burren to Galway Bay, west of the Shannon the whole way and never near Dublin.
Wikipedia ↗ - Ballina Branch
Mayo’s surviving branch: half an hour down the Moy valley from Ballina to Manulla Junction, meeting the Dublin trains on the Westport line.
Wikipedia ↗ - Limerick–Waterford
Ireland’s quiet cross-country line of 1854: a change of trains at Limerick Junction, then the Suir valley through Cahir and Clonmel to Waterford.
Wikipedia ↗ - Limerick–Ballybrophy
The Nenagh branch, joined up in 1864: along the Shannon past Castleconnell’s rapids, then North Tipperary farmland through Nenagh and Roscrea to the mainline junction at Ballybrophy. Two through trains a day.
Wikipedia ↗
Scenic (1)
- Dublin–Rosslare
DART territory then the wild bit: Killiney bay, Wicklow’s cliff ledge above the sea, Wexford’s quays, and the Europort at the end.
Wikipedia ↗
Heritage (1)
- Waterford & Suir Valley Railway
Narrow-gauge trains follow the tidal River Suir on the trackbed of an 1878 mainline, running alongside the Waterford Greenway cycle path.
Wikipedia ↗
Photos via Wikimedia Commons; each route page credits the author & licence
What is the fastest train in Ireland?
The InterCity, running Dublin to Cork at up to 160 km/h. It is one of 15 routes in Ireland in this atlas.
Are there night trains in Ireland?
Not in this atlas. Ireland has 15 routes here and none of them is a scheduled sleeper, though night trains from neighbouring countries may still reach it.
Can you cross the border by train from Ireland?
Yes, 1 of its 15 routes continues into another country: Enterprise (Dublin – Belfast).
Which is the most scenic railway in Ireland?
Ireland has 1 scenic or mountain line in this atlas. The longest is the Dublin–Rosslare, 165 km.
Cross-border lines continue into
Train routes in United Kingdom 107 routes