Dublin Pearse railway station

Pearse railway station (Irish: Stáisiún na bPiarsach) or Dublin Pearse is a railway station on Westland Row on the Southside of Dublin, Ireland. It is Ireland's busiest commuter station and second busiest station overall (behind Dublin Connolly railway station) with 9 million passenger journeys through the station in 2016.^[1]

Dublin Pearse Stáisiún na bPiarsach
General information
Location	Westland Row, Dublin 2, D02 RV00 Ireland
Coordinates	53.3433°N 6.2483°W / 53.3433; -6.2483
Owned by	Iarnród Éireann
Operated by	Iarnród Éireann
Platforms	2
Tracks	3
Bus routes	31
Bus operators	Bus Eireann Dublin Bus Matthews
Connections	4 7 7A 7E 15A 15B 15D 26 27X 44 44D 47 52 60 56A 77A 100X 101X 111X 120 133 904 910 C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 NX P29
Construction
Structure type	Elevated
Parking	no
Bicycle facilities	yes
Other information
Station code	PERSE
Fare zone	Suburban 1
History
Original company	Dublin and Kingstown Railway
Pre-grouping	Dublin and South Eastern Railway
Post-grouping	Great Southern Railways
Key dates
17 December 1834	Opened, as Westland Row
1857	Re-gauged to 5 ft 3 in
1880s	New roof and enlargement
1891	Dublin loop line opened
1937	Services to West of Ireland
1966	Renamed Pearse
1983	Upgraded
2007	Renovation commences
2013	Renovation completed
2019	New roof built

Pearse Station sign - (Irish: Stáisiún na bPiarsach)

v t e Dublin to Rosslare
Legend
Year closed Dublin–Belfast Main Line Dublin–Sligo Main Line Dublin Connolly Luas Red Line to Tallaght or Saggart R. Liffey Tara Street Dublin Pearse Grand Canal Street railway works Grand Canal Dock Grand Canal Gasworks Lansdowne Road Lansdowne Road Ballsbridge Showground Passengers 1941 Goods 1971 Serpentine Avenue Sandymount Sandymount Sydney Parade Sydney Parade Merrion Gates Merrion 1934 Booterstown Williamstown 1841 Blackrock Seapoint Salthill and Monkstown Kingstown Harbour (west pier) 1837 Dún Laoghaire Mallin Carlisle Pier 1980 Sandycove Cutting Sandycove and Glasthule Glenageary Dalkey (Atmospheric) 1854 Dalkey Killiney Hill Tunnel Obelisk Hill 1858 Killiney moved 1882 Ballybrack 1863 1882 Shankill MP 11 (to Pearse) Shanganagh Junct., to Harcourt St. 1958 MP 11 (to Harcourt St.) Woodbrook Halt 1960 County Dublin County Wicklow Bray Bray Daly Bray Cove Halt 1929 Bray Head Tunnel No.1 Bray Head Tunnel No.2 Bray Head Tunnel No.3 Bray Head Tunnel No.4 Greystones Kilcoole Newcastle 1964 Wicklow Murrough 1976 R. Vartry Wicklow Rathnew 1964 M11 motorway Glenealy 1964 Rathdrum Avoca 1964 Woodenbridge Junction 1964 Shillelagh branch line 1945 Glenart platform 1925 (private halt for Earl Carysfort) M11 motorway Arklow M11 motorway County Wicklow County Wexford Inch 1963 Gorey M11 motorway Camolin 1963 Ferns 1977 Enniscorthy R. Slaney Enniscorthy Tunnel Edermine Ferry 1963 Waterford line 1963 Macmine Junction 1963 Killurin 1963 Killurin Tunnel Ferrycarrig Tunnel Wexford (Carcur) 1872 Wexford Wexford South 1977 Felthouse Junction 1910 Limerick-Rosslare Line 2010 Rosslare Strand Kilrane 1963 Rosslare Europort

v t e South Eastern Commuter
Legend
Dublin Connolly Luas Red Line to Tallaght or Saggart Loopline Bridge Tara Street Dublin Pearse Grand Canal Dock Lansdowne Road Sandymount Sydney Parade Booterstown Blackrock Seapoint Salthill and Monkstown Dún Laoghaire Sandycove and Glasthule Glenageary Dalkey Killiney Shankill Woodbrook (planned) Bray Greystones Kilcoole Wicklow Rathdrum Arklow Gorey Dublin–Rosslare Line

v t e Dublin Area Rapid Transit
Legend
Belfast–Dublin Main Line Malahide Portmarnock Clongriffin Howth Sutton Bayside Howth Junction & Donaghmede Kilbarrack Raheny Harmonstown Killester Clontarf Road Fairview Depot River Tolka Western Commuter & Sligo Line Docklands The Royal Canal Dublin Connolly   to Dublin Heuston Luas Red Line to The Point Loopline Bridge over River Liffey Tara Street Dublin Pearse Grand Canal Dock Lansdowne Road Sandymount Sydney Parade Booterstown Blackrock Seapoint Salthill & Monkstown Dún Laoghaire Mallin Sandycove & Glasthule Glenageary Dalkey Killiney Shankill Woodbrook (under construction) Bray Daly Greystones Dublin–Rosslare Main Line

Facilities

The station has two through platforms, 1 and 2, the former on the Boyne Street side for northbound "up" services towards Connolly station, the other on the Pearse Street side for southbound "down" services towards Bray and Wexford.^[2] It also has a café, shop and public toilets.^[3]

The southbound entrance (Pearse Street and Trinity BioScience) is open from 7:00 AM to 7:30 PM daily from Monday to Friday excluding Bank Holidays, and on Saturdays from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM, in addition to the main entrance on Westland Row, which is open all during station opening hours. The ticket office is open from 7:30 AM to 9:50 PM, Monday to Sunday.^[3]

History

Origins

The station building originated from a design by Charles Blacker Vignoles. As the lines from the south were elevated above street level, tracks were laid on the first floor of the building.^[4] The initial covering chosen for the passenger station was a two-span structure covering the platforms as far as Cumberland Street.^[5] It was designed to facilitate the arrival and departure of trains every 15 minutes.^{[6][verification needed]}

The station opened for service traffic on 17 December 1834 as Westland Row Station, the city terminus of the Dublin & Kingstown Railway (D&KR), serving Blackrock and the West Pier Kingstown Harbour.^{[citation needed][a][citation needed]}

The precise details of the original 1834 trackwork may be uncertain, but a diagram from 1835 shows three platformed tracks each terminating in linked 10 feet (3.0 m) connecting turntables and a non-platformed carriage siding, all set well back from Westland Row entrance. The arrivals road and platform were nearest to Merrion Square. This was in common with most platforms until the 1870s of the low-level continental style. On the other side of the arrivals track was an island platform which was the only means of access to a train on the next track. The island platform was of a raised height design and was accessed by a lower-able drawbridge ramp from the arrivals platform. The departure track was on the side of the middle line of pillars supporting the two-span roof that extended as far as Cumberland Street. The track was serviced by a departure platform that allowed separate access for first-class passengers at the southern end of the train. The final track was a siding on the Pearse Street side of the station. The station entrance from Westland Row contained two sets of stairs to the upper platform level. There was also a (horse-drawn) cab entrance and ramp to the far end of the arrival platform which would have been convenient for first-class passengers.^{[5][citation needed]}

In 1857, the gauge was changed from 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) to 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm) to match the Irish standard.^{[citation needed]} By then Dublin and Wicklow Railway (D&WR) had taken over operations from the D&KR and trains were able to run over the course of the old Dalkey Atmospheric Railway through to connecting at Shanganagh junction with the line from Harcourt Street to Bray.^[7]

Patronage grew to 4.5 million passengers per annum in the late 1870s with powers and land obtained for the enlargement of the station.^[8] A map of the station in 1878 shows a "departure local & arrival mail" platform of not more than 400 feet (120 m) on the Great Brunswick Street (Pearse Street) side where platform 2 is now, and a similar platform opposite for "departure mail & arrival local" purposes. A turntable existed at the end of the line which could enable an engine to draw away from its train, turn, and proceed up the other line if the station was empty.^[9]

There ensured various alterations in the 1880s including the replacement of the roof and thereafter had four platforms and five tracks,^[4] later becoming five platforms.^[8] The main span covered the two long platforms where the tracks were later to be extended northbound and two southbound bay platforms one to each side of them. There was also a roof span to the southwest which covers a smaller southbound bay platform.

The ownership of the station remained with the D&KR until the amalgamation to Great Southern Railways in 1925. During the interim period, the main operating company the D&WR changed its name to Dublin, Wicklow and Wexford Railway (DW&WR) in 1860 and Dublin and South Eastern Railway (DSER) in 1907.^{[citation needed]}

1891 rebuild as a through station

The station was extensively rebuilt for the opening of the City of Dublin Junction Railway in 1891. During this process, the station was converted into a layout through the station with three terminus platforms that were to remain unchanged until the early 2000s with the northeast bay filled in towards the end of that period.^[8] The existing tracks at the Northern end of the station had to be raised by 18 inches (460 mm) to give the required clearance over Westland Row Road and the platforms had to be sloped upwards towards the platform exit to compensate.^[7] Some DW&WR suburban trains started working through to Amiens Street and boat trains and mail could subsequently be worked round to Broadstone and Kingsbridge.

An 1893 and 1924 diagram show the platforms numbered as follows:^[10][8][b]

1. A bay southbound platform in the smaller canopy on the Merrion Square side. The 1893 diagram shows the platform as the same size as platform 2, and the 1924 diagram shows it as shorter.
2. A bay southbound platform in under the main canopy.
3. The 'down' through platform which is now platform 1 generally used for southbound trains.
4. The 'up' though platform which is now platform 2 generally used for northbound trains. The 1893 diagram shows this shorter than platform 3.
5. A bay southbound platform under the main canopy. The 1893 diagram shows this bay of a long length, in the 1924 diagram it is shown as the same length as platform 2.

Former services

Prior to 1936, the station handled commuter services and boat trains. In January 1937, the station took over services to Sligo, Westport and Galway over the Midland and Great Western Route via Mullingar, which were transferred to Pearse (then Westland Row) in 1934 with the closure of Broadstone Station on the north side of the Liffey. Great Southern Railways (GSR) facilitated this by installing colour light signalling in 1937 allowing reversible working for the main platforms. These express trains used platform 4 as the departure and arrivals platform which was convenient for the boat trains which generally ran into platform 5. On occasion the train for Galway train would be driven engine-first into platform 5 and the passengers loaded; it would then reverse out and pass through the station on platform 3.^[11] Services running south of Bray on the ex-DSER route to Wicklow, Arklow, Wexford and Rosslare also operated out of Westland Row, though the principal terminus for that route was, for many years Harcourt Street station until 1959.

The upgrading of the Portarlington to Athlone branch in the mid-1970s saw Westport and Galway trains transferred to Heuston station, whilst Sligo and Rosslare trains were retimed to originate and terminate at Connolly station.^{[citation needed]} A very small number of passenger services to Heuston or its mainline continued to pass through Pearse station until the about the time of the closure of the Dún Laoghaire pier branch around 1989.^[12]

Station renaming

The station was renamed in 1966, when several Irish railway stations were renamed as part of the Easter Rising 50th-anniversary celebrations, after the Pearse brothers, Patrick and Willie. Probably due to confusion with the nearby Pearse Street, Dubliners often refer to it as "Pearse Street station".^[13][c]

Bay platform removal

The bay platforms have been used as a set for movies including Johnny Nobody, Michael Collins, Angela's Ashes, Nora and the 2005 remake Lassie. Until 2007 the former platform 2 was occasionally used for special services. The former platform 1 continued to exist but was unsuitable for modern passenger trains and was used as a siding before conversion to a car park. Platform 5 had also been unused for some time. By 2008 all the bay platforms had been removed or filled in.

Station renovation

Major renovation commenced in 2007 with publicity erected in the station for this in March 2008. As part of phase 1, automatic ticket validation machines were installed on platforms 1 and 2. The front entrance of the station was changed. The former Spar shop was completely taken out of the station and the old ticket barriers were removed. Platforms 3, 4 and 5 were removed. New signage and CCTV cameras were added on both active platforms and, on Platform 2, a larger waiting area for passengers was provided.

An additional Southbound entrance (Pearse Street and Trinity Bio Science) was opened on 9 April 2013.^[15] At the official opening of the entrance by Minister Leo Varadkar the National Transport Authority used the term Pearse Street Station^[c] in the title of a page on its website although there was no evidence of any official renaming.^[16] with other examples of that usage in media elsewhere.^[17][18]

Signalling improvements

The completion of the Irish Rail City Centre Re-signalling Project^[19] has seen an increase in the number of Northern and Maynooth line suburban trains stopping. Trains from Newbridge now also serve Pearse station. This was made possible by increasing the ability of the signalling system in the city centre to operate 20 trains per hour in both directions instead of the previous 8. The project began in March 2015 and was commissioned on 17 July 2016.^[20]

Roof renovations

The roof structure comprises two main sections - the main station area roof has 40 barrelled roof trusses, each spanning 28 metres, over 38 bays, with additional gable end structures at both ends. Adjacent to the main station roof there is a second similar roof, which covers a car park and station infrastructure area. This is smaller and comprises 19 trusses over 18 bays.^[2]

A €10m roof replacement project started in August 2018 and was completed in June 2020.^[21]

Pearse Station was closed for 13 weekends over the two years to facilitate the replacement project.^[22] During these weekends, northside DART, Maynooth and Drogheda services operated to and from Connolly Station, with southside DART and Rosslare services operating from Grand Canal Dock.^[21]

Services

Train services

All DART services stop at the station. Additionally Pearse is on the South Eastern Commuter (Dublin Connolly to Gorey) and South Western Commuter (Grand Canal Dock to Newbridge) routes, and is a terminus for the Northern Commuter (to Balbriggan / Dundalk) and Western Commuter (to Maynooth / Longford) services. An evening peak service operates to Newry. It also services the InterCity (from Dublin Connolly to Rosslare Europort) route.^[3]

Preceding station	Iarnród Éireann			Following station
Tara Street		InterCity Dublin-Rosslare		Dún Laoghaire Mallin
Tara Street		Commuter South Eastern Commuter		Lansdowne Road
Tara Street		DART		Grand Canal Dock
	Disused railways
Terminus		Dublin and Kingstown Railway		Sandymount
Tara Street		City of Dublin Junction Railway		Terminus

Bus services

The station is served by a number of Dublin Bus, Matthews Coach Hire and Bus Eireann routes,^[23] stops for which are located just outside the station on Westland Row and around the corner at stop number 399 on Pearse Street.

Proposed underground station

The National Transport Authority proposed a DART Underground connecting Heuston Station to the northern DART network via the Docklands railway station. As part of this project, an underground station would have been constructed beneath Pearse station. The proposed project was shelved in 2011,^[24] and, as of 2024, not scheduled for any development or funding until "after 2042".^[25]

Gallery

• 
  First service departs over Cumberland Street for Kingstown in December 1834
• 
  Pearse Station in 1993 looking north. The through platforms are numbered 3 and 4
• 
  Train crossing Westland Row and entering the station building in 2003
• 
  The interior of Pearse Station in 2006
• 
  DART electric train on platform 1 in 2007

See also

• List of railway stations in Ireland
• Rail transport in Ireland
• History of rail transport in Ireland

Notes and references

Notes

1. In 1837, the original terminus station was abandoned and the line extended to the current Dún Laoghaire station.
2. The platform numbering here is evidenced by Shepherd's book "The Dublin & South Eastern Railway" in a diagram dated 1924 and by photographs in the early 1960s by O'Dea in the National Library of Ireland and others taken in 1993. Images from film scene sets show different numbering. O.S. Nosk in his book Irish Steam in a passage referring to 1937 labels the platforms 1 to 5 in the opposite direction with the small bay as 5. It is possible the bay platforms may have been renumbered when the through platforms were renumbered 1 and 2
3. The name Pearse Street Station is also used to refer to a nearby 1915 Garda Síochána (police) barracks formerly known as College Station which was also renamed in 1966 to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the 1916 rising.^[14]

References

1. "National Heavy Rail Census Report 2016" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 November 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
2. "Pearse Station Roof Replacement". IrishRail. 11 March 2019. Archived from the original on 28 May 2019.
3. "Dublin Pearse". Irish Rail / Iarnrod Eireann. Archived from the original on 19 January 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
4. Kullman, Kurt (28 May 2018). The First Irish Railway: Westland Row to Kingtown. THP Ireland. pp. 35–36, 70–78. ISBN 978-0750987646.
5. Grierson, Thomas B (1 June 1887). "The enlargement of Westland Row Terminus Part I". Transactions of the Institution of Civil Engineers of Ireland. 18. Institution of Civil Engineers of Ireland: 66, 116, plate IX. Archived from the original on 23 July 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
6. "The Dublin and Kingstown Railway". The Dublin Penny Journal. 3 (113): 65–68. 30 August 1834. JSTOR 30004368.
7. Ahrons, E. L. (1954). L. L. Asher (ed.). Locomotive and train working in the latter part of the nineteenth century. Vol. six. W Heffer & Sons Ltd. pp. 38–39, 43.
8. • Shepherd, Ernie (1974). The Dublin & South Eastern Railway (1974 ed.). David and Charles. pp. 135–137. ISBN 0715363611.
9. Hutchinson, C. S. Major General (1878). "Dublin and Kingstown railway : high rate of charges". GB Board of Trade Railway Department. Plates 2–3. Retrieved 17 July 2019.
10. Grierson, Thomas B (5 April 1893). "The enlargement of Westland Row Terminus Part II". Transactions of the Institution of Civil Engineers of Ireland. 22. Institution of Civil Engineers of Ireland: 125, Plate VIII. Archived from the original on 23 July 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
11. Nock, O.S. (1983). Irish Steam. David & Charles. pp. 153–155. ISBN 0715379615.
12. O'Rourke, Alan (February 2017). "Passenger services through the Phoenix Park Tunnel" (PDF). Irish Railway Record Society. 27 (192): 227–230. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 July 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
13. Boyd-Hugh, Gary (6 April 2016). "How the railways remembered Ireland's 1916 Easter rising". The Railway Magazine. 162 (1381): 38–39.
14. McCann, Debbie (10 January 2016). "The garda, his lilting air and a classic 50s hit movie". Irish Mail on Sunday. Archived from the original on 19 January 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2021 – via Pressreader.
15. "New entrance to Dublin Pearse Station opens - access to Pearse St & Trinity Bio-Science". Archived from the original on 16 June 2013.
16. "New Entrance to Pearse Street Station opened by Minister Varadkar". National Transport. 10 April 2013. Archived from the original on 5 July 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
17. Power, Jack. "Dart service disruptions due over Pearse station roof repairs". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 5 December 2020. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
18. "Dart driver arrives to marriage proposal at Pearse Street station". BreakingNews.ie. 16 December 2020. Archived from the original on 19 August 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
19. "City Centre Resignalling Project". Archived from the original on 17 December 2014. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
20. "Linking Heuston with city centre 'a priority' - Independent.ie". 8 August 2013. Archived from the original on 17 December 2014. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
21. "One of the country's busiest train stations to shut for 13 weekends 'for new roof' - Independent.ie". 19 December 2017. Archived from the original on 21 April 2018. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
22. "Explainer: Pearse Station roof replacement- Irish Rail on youtube.com". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2 November 2018. Retrieved 25 October 2018.
23. "Pearse Station, Dublin City". bustimes.org. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
24. "Office plan scrapped to facilitate shelved Dart Underground". irishtimes.com. Irish Times. 5 June 2018. Archived from the original on 2 September 2018. Retrieved 8 August 2018. the [DART Underground] project having been shelved by the Government [in 2011, does] not have government funding [and] was not included in the 10-year National Development Plan published earlier [in 2018]
25. Kilraine, John (9 November 2021). "MetroLink postponed for ten years - NTA draft strategy". rte.ie. RTÉ News. Archived from the original on 9 November 2021. Retrieved 10 November 2021.

External links

• Irish Rail Pearse Station website
• Video explainer of Pearse Roof replacement project
• DART Underground
• Video tour of how Pearse Underground station might appear