LUAS 164

Irish Railway Record Society

Journal 164 - LUAS

Line Extensions

Line B1 (Sandyford-Brides Glen) The B1 400 infrastructure contract has been awarded to Sacyr-Somague-Bowen JV, a group of companies from Spain, Portugal and Ireland. Sacyr is a Spanish company, which specialises in civil works and building construction. It has been involved in large civil works, including high-speed railway lines and metro construction in Madrid, Seville and Barcelona. Somague is based in Portugal and its portfolio includes work on the metro systems in Lisbon and Porto as well as on heavy rail lines operated by CP (Portuguese Railways). Bowen Construction, from Cork, has been involved in a wide variety of civil works, including the construction of the Laois Traincare Depot outside Portlaoise for IÉ.

The design phase has commenced and it is expected that construction work will commence in February 2008. The contract covers the design of, construction and commissioning of the infrastructure, power supply and control systems for the line. This work will be carried out under a design and build form of contract. As an option it is envisaged that there may be a requirement for approximately 30 km of additional light rail lines in various phases and, as a further option, the authority may award a contract for the maintenance of the infrastructure.

For consultation and planning purposes Line B1 has been divided into three areas. The numbering of these follows on those used during the development of the original two lines.

Area 13 (Sandyford-Murphystown Rd) Utility diversion works are underway along Blackthorn Ave and Burton Hall Rd, as well as at the Brewery Rd roundabout. Formation works are in progress through Central Park, while preparatory work on the foundations for the piers that will support the bridge carrying the line over the M50 is underway.

Area 14 (Murphystown Rd-Ballyogan Wood) Formation works are underway where the alignment runs adjacent to Glencairn View and Glencairn Heath and also alongside Ballyogan Rd. Work on the realignment and upgrading of Ballyogan Road is also in progress.

Area 15 (Ballyogan Wood-Bride’s Glen) Construction of the pier foundations for the bridge over the M50 has commenced. Clearance of the former Harcourt St rail line’s trackbed has begun. The extension to the former station at Carrickmines, which lay across the alignment, has been demolished.

The section of Glenamuck Road where it crosses the alignment, adjacent to the former Carrickmines station, was closed on 1 August to facilitate the replacement of the bridge. The works will include widening the road to incorporate new footpaths and cycle lanes, as well as modifications to provide clearance for the Luas overhead line equipment. Street lighting and utilities will also be upgraded as part of the works.

Construction of the Cherrywood viaduct commenced in May.

Line B2 (Brides Glen-Bray Area) Details of the emerging preferred route were announced by the RPA and the Government on 6 June. The selected route was the second of the three options previously identified by the RPA as part of a public consultation process (see JOURNAL 161).

The selected route, which will be over 6 km, will follow the alignment of the former Harcourt St railway over the Brides Glen viaduct to the M11, which it will cross. It will then parallel the motorway to the Wilford interchange, where it will cross back to the western side of the M11 on a new bridge and continue southwards through Old Connaught to Fassaroe. Possible stops include St. Colmcilles, Stonebridge Road, Crinken Lane, Wilford, Old Connaught and Fassaroe.

Two alignments are under consideration for a possible connection to the DART line. The first would run from Crinken Lane to a new DART station in the vicinity of Woodbrook (see JOURNAL 161). The second option would be for a line diverging from the ‘main line’ at Wilford. It would then run east along Old Connaught Ave to the Dublin Rd, where it would turn south. The line would then pass through the former Bray Golf Course lands to an interchange with the DART at the existing Bray station.

Line C1 (Connolly Station-Point Depot) The line has been divided into two areas for design and planning purposes.

Area 16 (Store St/Connolly-Mayor Sq) The refurbishment of the George’s Dock Bridge on Mayor Street Lower commenced on 13 June. The work undertaken involved resurfacing the roadway and installing embedded tram tracks. It also involved the replacement of the bridge’s parapets and repainting the structure.

Delivery of rails to the site took place on 12 July and these have been cast into the reinforced concrete trackbed.

Utility diversions have been undertaken in Harbourmaster Place and are ongoing in Mayor St Lower, between Commons St and Mayor Sq.

Area 17 (Mayor Sq-Point Depot) Utility diversion works are in progress on Mayor St Lower, between Mayor Sq and Guild St. This work is also underway on Mayor St Upper, between New Wapping St and Castleforbes Rd.

Line F (City Centre-Lucan) The RPA anticipates starting the public consultation process for Line F during autumn 2007.

Rathfarnham Line A feasibility study to determine the practicality of this line is currently underway and it is expected that this will be completed by the end of 2007

The remainder of this article appears in IRRS Journal number 164, published October 2007.