Public Transportation in Dublin

Dublin has an extensive bus network, as well as some rail and tram lines.

Public transport services are regulated by the National Transport Authority. The National Transport Authority has developed the transportforireland.ie website, as well as smartphone apps, to help you when using public transport services.

Tickets

Fares depends on the distance you travel. For example, traveling stages 1-3 is 2 euro. You usually just tell the driver your destination, and they will calculate your fare.

• Paying with cash: An exact fare system is operated by Dublin Bus and only coins (not notes) are accepted. No change is given. If you overpay, the driver will issue a Refund Due receipt with the ticket which can be redeemed at Dublin Bus Head Office, 59 Upper O'Connell Street, Dublin 1.
• Prepaid tickets: Magnetic prepaid tickets must be inserted into the bus validator when boarding. Prepaid smartcard tickets must be validated by holding the smartcard on the reader target for at least a second or until a light appears.

Public Transport Commuter Tickets

The TaxSaver Commuter Ticket Scheme is an incentive for workers to use public transport (bus or rail).

This incentive is seen as a positive way to encourage more people to avail of public transport in Ireland and to reduce traffic congestion. The employers and employees participating in the scheme sign a contract with each other agreeing to participate. The employer then applies, for example, to Iarnród Éireann and/or Dublin Bus for commuter tickets for employees who have chosen to take part.

Employees participating in the scheme benefit from reduced income tax, PRSI and Universal Social Charge (USC) payments. They receive tickets either as part of their salary package (salary sacrifice), in lieu of an annual cash bonus or as a benefit-in-kind. Savings arise because tickets are not subject to tax, PRSI or USC.

Information on where to apply is available on Citizensinformation.ie

Discounts

There is a Free Travel Scheme for residents over 66, as well as some special classes.

Leap Cards are another option. Similar to the Oyster card in London, this allows for you to pre-pay for credit and then pay a discounted fare as you go.

Buses and Light Rail in Dublin

Public bus services are regulated by the National Transport Authority. There is a range of public bus transport services (both private and State-owned) offering services on a number of routes.

Operators providing public bus passenger services are required to be licensed unless the service is subject to a Public Services Obligation Contract.

Luas (Irish for "speed") is Dublin's light rail tram system. The system consists of 54 stations and 36.5 kilometres (22.7 miles) of track. There are two main lines:

• Green Line - Entirely on the south side of Dublin.
• Red Line - East-west through Dublin's Northside, crosses the River Liffey, southwest to suburb of Tallaght, and then through Citywest campus to Saggart.

Trains in Ireland

Iarnród Éireann (or Irish Rail) is responsible for operating rail services. The company operates passenger rail services nationwide and provides commuter rail services, including the DART service in Dublin.

• DART: The DART (Dublin Area Rapid Transport) runs along the east coast of Ireland from Malahide in county Dublin to Greystones in county Wicklow. DART fares can be paid in cash or passengers can buy pre-paid tickets to avail of discounts on their journeys. You can also use Leap Cards.
• Commuter: Commuter services operate in the Dublin area between Dundalk, Dunboyne, Longford, Portlaoise and Gorey. You can also use Leap Cards on commuter services.
• InterCity: InterCity services depart from Dublin's Houston and Connolly Stations and serve the following destinations: Belfast, Sligo, Ballina, Westport, Galway, Limerick, Ennis, Tralee, Cork, Waterford and Rosslare Europort. The Enterprise service operates between Belfast and Dublin and is jointly run by Iarnród Éireann and Northern Ireland Rail.

Other InterCity services run between Rosslare Europort and Limerick; Cork and Tralee; Cork and Limerick; and Limerick and Galway. The InterCity service has carriages divided between first class and standard class.

Many stations have "park and ride" facilities to encourage commuters to leave their cars in station car parks and reduce the volume of traffic.

Ferries in Ireland

Dublin's ferry port is located centrally and is at the heart of Ireland's road and rail network. It is the biggest and most popular port in Ireland. More than 1.7 million passengers pass through annually arriving from or sailing to England, Wales, France and the Isle of Man. There are 3 terminals with Irish Ferries and Steam Packet using terminal 1, Stena Line terminal 2 and P&O Ferries terminal 3.

Irish Ferry Operators:

• Irish Ferries: Traveling from Dublin (Ireland) to Holyhead (UK) and to Cherbourg (France)
• Isle of Man Steam Packet Company: Traveling from Dublin (Ireland) to Isle of Man (UK)
• P&O Irish Sea: Traveling from Dublin (Ireland) to Liverpool (UK)
• Stena Line: Traveling from Dublin (Ireland) to Holyhead (UK)

Dublin Airport

Open since 1940, this is Ireland's busiest airport. The old terminal is a listed building and still in use, thought there have been major renovations and updates. There are almost 600 aircraft movements per day and they reach over 180 destinations.

Dublin Airport (DUB): https://www.dublinairport.com

How to Get to/from Dublin Airport

The airport is located 5.4 miles north of Dublin in Collinstown. Allow for at least 30 to reach the city centre from the airport (60 minutes to southern suburbs).

Shuttle: Airlink Express, AirCoach, Airport Hopper & CityScape also offer shuttle services. Expect to pay about 7 euros one-way, with discounts for booking online.
Bus: Dublin Bus offers many routes throughout Dublin, including the 16 to Ballinteer, the 41 to Lower Abbey Street and the 102 to Sutton Station
Drive: Near the M50 and M1 motorways
Taxi: Taxi is the best option for groups of three or more, even one euro is charged for each extra passenger. Expect to pay around 30 euros.

Find out how to get to/from Airport on DublinAirport.com

Taxis in Dublin

All taxis in Ireland have a large yellow and blue roof-sign and door signage. Taxis may be hailed on the street, picked up at a taxi rank or ordered by phone/app.

Taxi Fares in Dublin

All taxis are metered and charges are the same throughout the country. Taxis have a fare sticker on the dashboard and fare cards in the seat pockets which explain the fares. If you want an estimate of the fare in advance, use the official online fare calculator.

The initial fares are:

• €4.10 during the day 8am to 8pm
• €4.45 8pm to 8am and all day Sunday & Public holidays

There are no charges for luggage or an airport pick up and few taxis have facilities to take credit or debit cards in the cab.

Car Hire in Ireland

Driving in Ireland can be a bit of the challenge for those not accustom to driving on the left. Not to mention, narrow winding roads, rain, mist and fog, sheep and cows, roundabouts, and the dreaded loose chippings. However, if you take it easy you should do fine.

If you plan to rent a car in Ireland, it would be wise to familiarize yourself with the operation of the manual transmission. The vast majority of rental cars have manual transmissions.

Best car rental companies in relend:

• Rent A Car
• Enterprise
• Hertz
• Avis

Roads in Ireland

Roads in Ireland are generally of a high standard. In the Republic of Ireland, motorways are prefixed with an "M" (for example M50). National roads are prefixed with an "N" (for example N18) and can be either national primary or national secondary roads. National primary roads almost always consist of several driving lanes in each direction, while national secondary roads may also include those with two-way traffic. Distances on road signs are shown in kilometres and speed limits are given in kilometres per hour (km/h).

• Toll roads: Generally, tolls are paid at the barrier of the tollbooth. There is one exception: M50 eFlow Barrier System.
• M50 eFlow Barrier System: There is a barrier-free toll system in operation on the M50 ring road around Dublin, where the system will record your trip by photographing your vehicle's licence plate number. It is important to pay your toll before 8pm the next day, either online, in branded Payzone outlets or by LoCall 1890 501050.

Driver's License in Ireland

You will need either a valid full national driving licence or an international driving permit to drive in Ireland.

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