'We got it wrong' - Irish Rail in u-turn over timetable

Iarnród Éireann has confirmed that train services in Dublin will revert to the previous timetable from 14 October.

The new timetable had increased some intercity services but led to congestion and knock-on delays on routes that feed into Dublin's Connolly Station.

Some changes were already made on 16 September. Iarnród Éireann said they improved evening punctuality but "it is clear that the impact to morning commuting was continuing".

The company has acknowledged the disruption seen in recent weeks and apologised to customers, with spokesperson Barry Kenny saying they "got it wrong".

Speaking on RTÉ's Today with Claire Byrne, Mr Kenny acknowledged the disruption in recent weeks.

"We got it wrong and we are genuinely very, very sorry to our customers, it's been very disruptive in recent weeks for customers," he said.

"People build their work, their education, their childcare around their travel with us and we have let them down. We're sorry for that.

"The changes we made on 16 September did improve the situation in the evening peak but the issues were continuing in the morning."

From Monday 14 October, morning timetables on routes operating to and from Connolly Station up to 10am will go back to the pre-26 August timetables, with some small time changes.

This will include trains that previously terminated at stations such as Pearse, Grand Canal Dock and Bray, Iarnród Éireann said, adding that it will reduce the need for interchanges at Connolly Station.

Changes to the Belfast to Dublin service include the 6am and 7am trains now arriving at 8.23am and 9.20am respectively.

The proposed 7.50am Dublin Connolly to Belfast service will start at 7.40am to prevent congestion at Malahide.

As part of the scheduling changes, departures from Drogheda will also be revised.

Some evening commuter services which currently commence from Pearse Station or Grand Canal Dock will now commence from Bray and Dun Laoghaire.

There will also be some minor changes to departure times to a number of DART, Northern, Maynooth and Phoenix Park Tunnel commuter trains, and one Dublin to Rosslare train.

Increased services on the Galway, Waterford and Belfast lines, which were introduced on the new timetable, will be maintained and there will be no change to weekend timetables.

Iarnród Éireann has apologised for the impact caused by the August timetable and that it "deeply regrets the disruption".

"In accommodating increased services on the Dublin to Belfast route, and managing overall capacity in the city centre area, the changes had a disproportionate negative impact on commuting punctuality and overall journey times, for which we are sorry."

Full details of the changes will be available to customers from Monday 7 October.