Archives



Freight News, Rail


XPO to double Irish rail service

[ May 23, 2022   //   ]

XPO Logistics is to launch a second weekly container train between Ballina in the west of Ireland and Waterford port from June 2021, reports Tim Casterton.

While loadings on the service when it was introduced in May 2021 were initially a little sporadic due to reduced output from the anchor customer and the effects of delays in Europe, these issues were resolved from the start of 2022 and further customers have been added.  
The service, although originally set up to connect Ireland and mainland Europe, is now attracting additional business with XPO now trialling two loads that originate from outside Europe.
The service between Ballina and Waterford was originally introduced in the wake of the suspension of a route between Dublin and Ballina operated by IWT. This was halted because of road congestion caused by a section of street-running track in the Dublin port area.

However, it is understood that this service has also been restarted after the train service was retimed to avoid the peak period for road traffic.

This, together with the Waterford service means that container freight traffic on the Irish rail system is at a higher level than at any time since the ending of the Bell Lines operation in the 1990s.

Tags: ,