Transport in Ireland

The Republic of Ireland's transport sector is responsible for 21% of the state's greenhouse gas emissions.

InterCity services are provided between Dublin and the major towns and cities of the Republic, and in Ulster along the Belfast–Derry railway line.

[citation needed] The rail network in Ireland was developed by various private companies during the 19th century, with some receiving government funding.

There is also a move to restore service on the Dublin to Navan line, and smaller campaigns to re-establish the rail links between Sligo and Enniskillen/Omagh/Derry and Mullingar and Athlone/Galway.

[5] Since 1984 an electrified train service run by Iarnród Éireann has linked Dublin with its coastal suburbs.

In 2004 a light rail system, Luas, was opened in Dublin serving the central and western suburbs, run by Veolia under franchise from the Railway Procurement Agency.

Plans to construct a Dublin Metro service including underground lines were mooted in 2001, but stalled in the financial crisis at the end of that decade.

Ireland has one of the largest dedicated freight railways in Europe, operated by Bord na Móna and totalling nearly 1,400 kilometres (870 mi).

[6] Ireland's roads link Dublin with all the major cities (Belfast, Cork, Limerick, Derry, Galway, and Waterford).

[8] Several road projects were progressed but the economic crisis that began in 2008–09 has prevented its full implementation.

[10] Ireland's first mail coach services were contracted with the government by John Anderson with William Bourne in 1791 who also paid to improve the condition of the roads.

TFI Local Link is a set of not-for-profit operators, funded via the National Transport Authority, that provide bus services in rural Ireland.

[14] Private hire companies offer groups travelling throughout Ireland with options ranging from cars to 56 passenger coaches.

According to an Irish Times article in September 2022, 14.3% of national journeys in the Republic of Ireland were undertaken by bus, compared to the European average of 8.8%.

Smaller ports exist in Arklow, Ballina, Drogheda, Dundalk, Dún Laoghaire, Foynes, Galway, Larne, Limerick, New Ross, Sligo, Warrenpoint and Wicklow.

Ferry connections between Britain and Ireland via the Irish Sea include the routes from Fishguard and Pembroke to Rosslare, and Cairnryan to Larne.

Dublin Airport is the busiest of these carrying almost 35 million passengers per year;[18] a second terminal (T2) was opened in November 2010.

Scheduled services from these regional points are in the main limited to flights travelling to other parts of Ireland and to Great Britain.

Services to the Aran Islands are operated from Aerfort na Minna (Connemara Regional Airport).