The new carriages will significantly enhance Ireland’s rail transport capacity, particularly to the expanding DART system in the Greater Dublin Area and Eastern region. The Dublin Area Rapid Transit system (DART) is an electrified commuter railway network serving the coastline and city of Dublin, Ireland.
The carriages will facilitate the wider DART+ Programme which is expanding the existing DART service from Dublin City Centre to Drogheda to the north, Maynooth/M3 Parkway to the west, and Celbridge/Hazelhatch to the south-west.
The DART+ Programme will dramatically increase the number of people that can avail of a frequent, high-capacity rail service, increasing the number of people living within 1km of a DART station from circa 250,000 at present to 600,000 in future.
Using a procurement framework already in place, the government has approved Irish Rail to purchase 90 train carriages from Alstom over the coming weeks, to be delivered to the Irish rail system in 2026. The train order will consist of 18 modern five-carriage battery-electric multiple units (BEMUs), funded by the Department of Transport through the National Transport Authority (NTA), at a total cost of circa €179m.
This is in addition to 95 new electric and battery-electric DART carriages approved by the government last December, entering service in 2025.
The BEMUs can operate in electric-only mode using overhead electric wires or, using batteries, in battery-electric operation in other parts of the rail network, maximizing flexibility and capacity, and helping to replace and decarbonize existing diesel-fleet operations.
Jim Meade, CEO of Iarnód Éíreann, said, “The funding for 90 additional battery-electric carriages for DART+ is hugely welcome, as it will enable us to bring capacity and emission benefits to current and future commuters in advance of electrification. Additionally, the benefits will be felt nationwide, as existing Intercity and Commuter carriages operating in the Greater Dublin Area are freed up for use around the national network for more frequent services and more capacity on a range of routes.”