Given the focus on several suburban routes for TSW (GWE, Rapid Transit, LIRR) I would like to propose a very interesting and slightly unusual idea; Dublin, Ireland's suburban Commuter Network. THE BACKGROUND Since the advent of railways in Ireland in the 1830s, the South-Eastern mainline from Dublin to Wicklow, Wexford and Rosslare has been an important piece of Ireland's railway infrastructure. As Dublin City expanded north, south and west during the 20th century, the line only became busier and busier, especially in summer when special trains to the seaside town of Bray would run. As demand for fast, efficient commuter lines to the city grew, Irish Rail decided to electrify and upgrade the line between Bray and Howth in North County Dublin, in an attempt to improve services. This electrification was later extended to the towns of Greystones and Malahide, the Malahide line leaving the original Howth route at Howth Junction. Since 2000, demand has grown for commuter services from north, south and west, and the Greystones-Malahide/Howth network, as well as the unelectrified Maynooth line are today the busiest lines in Ireland. THE ROUTE The DLC should include at least the 33-mile electrified Dublin Area Rapid Transit (DART) lines from Greystones to Howth and Malahide, via Dublin Connolly. This line is the staple of the DART, Ireland's only electric mainline train service (see below), and features many famous vistas and locations in the City and beyond, including; Howth Head, Croke Park Stadium, Pearse Street Station, The Aviva Stadium, Sandymount Strand, Dún Laoighre town, Dalkey Cliffs, Bray Daly Station, The Bray-Greystones Cliff Line (DART unit arriving at Sutton Station) Also, to provide some variety, it would be interesting to include the unelectrified Commuter line to Maynooth, West of Dublin City, which has been an important commuter corridor since the 1950s. THE TRAINS For this DLC, I propose that the route be set in the modern period (2010-), to provide the greatest livery variety. I propose three items total of rolling stock; IÉ 8500 Class EMU: One of the staples of DART services today, these 4-car units, introduced in 2000, run as 8-car sets to increase capacity. (8600 DART arriving at Connolly Station) IÉ 8100 Class EMU: These 2-car trains were introduced for the opening of the DART network in the 1980s, but have since been extensively refurbished. They normally operate as 6-car trains, although 4-car sets are still used on off-peak services. (8100 DART at Clontarf Road Station) IÉ 29000 Class DMU: Introduced for Commuter services in 2003, these 4-car trains now provide a variety of services across the country, including services West to Maynooth, South to Rosslare, and North to Drogheda and Dundalk. As a result, these units would be optional for the route, but would add operational diversity, as well as more scenery at major stations like Dublin Connolly. For additional variety, they could be included in both the modern two-tone green and as-delivered green, white and blue liveries. (29000 unit at Connolly, in new all-over green livery) THANKS FOR READING Here's hoping this relatively unique (as far as Train Sims are concerned) route makes it in game!
