On Thursday the National Transport Authority has announced that they will build an underground rail service from Sandyford to the Airport for EUR 3bn and that the 26km long train line will be operational by 2027. It will be called MetroLink (not Metro North anymore) and will go overground from Sandyford until Charlemont (that’s near Portobello) and will then go underground to the airport. The travel time will be 50 minutes along the whole route and just 20 minutes from the City Centre to the airport.
Sounds like a great plan! FINALLY an underground train service for Dublin instead of the annoying overground link between St. Stephen’s Green and O’Connell Street and finally a proper public transport link to the airport. But everybody who knows public transport plans in Dublin will probably ask if this is maybe too good to be true? And MANY people seriously question if 2027 will ever come for the MetroLink.
The building of the Dublin’s first subway will only begin in 2021 and a LOT can happen until then. In 2002 the MetroNorth was announced and it was meant to go into service in 2007. So we are JUST 10 years behind schedule. In the same way, cynics AND realists expect that based on “third time lucky” we might need to have one more announcement, maybe in 2039 before this Metro connection will ever happen! :-O
