Dublin Pearse railway station
Encyclopedia
Dublin Pearse, also known (and referred to on all station signage) as Pearse Station , located on Westland Row
Westland Row
Westland Row is a street on the south side of Dublin city, Ireland, dating from the year 1776. It was originally known as Westlands after William Westland who owned property in the area in the 18th century....
in the Southside
Southside (Dublin)
The Southside is not an official administrative area but a colloquial term referring to the area of County Dublin bounded to the north by the River Liffey to the east by Dublin Bay, to the south and west by the boundaries of County Dublin...
in Dublin, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, is Ireland's busiest railway station and an important commuter terminus for the Dublin area.
Services
The station is the terminus of the Northern Commuter (to BalbrigganBalbriggan
Balbriggan is a town in the northern part of the administrative county of Fingal, within County Dublin, Ireland. The 2006 census population was 15,559 for Balbriggan and its environs.- Name :...
/Dundalk
Dundalk
Dundalk is the county town of County Louth in Ireland. It is situated where the Castletown River flows into Dundalk Bay. The town is close to the border with Northern Ireland and equi-distant from Dublin and Belfast. The town's name, which was historically written as Dundalgan, has associations...
) and Western Commuter (to Maynooth
Maynooth
Maynooth is a town in north County Kildare, Ireland. It is home to a branch of the National University of Ireland, a Papal University and Ireland's main Roman Catholic seminary, St. Patrick's College...
/Longford
Longford
Longford is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It has a population of 7,622 according to the 2006 census. Approximately one third of the county's population resides in the town. Longford town is also the biggest town in the county...
) services. DART and South Eastern Commuter (Dublin Connolly
Dublin Connolly railway station
Dublin Connolly, commonly called Connolly station , is one of the main railway stations in Dublin, Ireland, and is a focal point in the Irish route network. Opened in 1844 as Amiens Street Station, the ornate facade has a distinctive Italianate tower at its centre...
to Arklow
Arklow
Arklow , also known as Inbhear Dé from the Avonmore river's older name Abhainn Dé, is a historic town located in County Wicklow on the east coast of Ireland. Founded by the Vikings in the ninth century, Arklow was the site of one of the bloodiest battles of the 1798 rebellion...
) services also serve the station, as do InterCity services from Dublin Connolly to Rosslare Europort
Rosslare Europort
Rosslare Europort is a modern seaport located at Rosslare Harbour in County Wexford, Ireland, near the southeastern-most point of Ireland's coastline, handling passenger and freight ferries to and from Wales and France....
.
Facilities
The station has two through platformRailway platform
A railway platform is a section of pathway, alongside rail tracks at a train station, metro station or tram stop, at which passengers may board or alight from trains or trams. Almost all stations for rail transport have some form of platforms, with larger stations having multiple platforms...
s (Nos. 1 & 2). Until 2007, one terminal platform (No. 3) was occasionally used for special services. A fourth platform also existed, but was unsuitable for modern passenger services and was used as a siding. This platform (and Platform 5, which had been closed for some years and later converted into a car park) has been used as a set for several movies, including Michael Collins
Michael Collins (film)
Michael Collins is a 1996 historical biopic written and directed by Neil Jordan and starring Liam Neeson as General Michael Collins, the Irish patriot and revolutionary who died in the Irish Civil War. It won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival....
, Angela's Ashes
Angela's Ashes (film)
Angela's Ashes is a 1999 Irish-American drama film based on the memoir of the same title by Frank McCourt. It was directed by Alan Parker and starred Emily Watson, Robert Carlyle, Joe Breen, Ciaran Owens, and Michael Legge .-Plot:Angela's Ashes tells the story of Frank McCourt and his childhood...
, Nora
Nora (film)
Nora is a 2000 film directed by Pat Murphy about Nora Barnacle and her husband, Irish author James Joyce. It stars Ewan McGregor as Joyce and Susan Lynch as the title character of Nora Barnacle.-Cast:-Plot:...
and the 2005 remake Lassie
Lassie (2005 film)
Lassie is a 2005 family-based film directed by Charles Sturridge. When a family hits financial crisis, they have no choice but to sell Lassie...
. In summer 2008, Platform 3 was filled in as part of the station's partial renovation while the disused Platform 4 was shortened.
The station also has a café on the southbound platform. This was closed during autumn 2006, although it reopened (as SoBo Café) in February 2007. However, a Spar
Spar
In sailing, a spar is a pole of wood, metal or lightweight materials such as carbon fiber used on a sailing vessel. Spars of all types In sailing, a spar is a pole of wood, metal or lightweight materials such as carbon fiber used on a sailing vessel. Spars of all types In sailing, a spar is a...
convenience store, which had been operational in the station for many years, closed in February 2008.
There are public lavatories at the station.
It is the headquarters of Iarnród Éireann
Iarnród Éireann
Iarnród Éireann is the national railway system operator of Ireland. Established on 2 February 1987, it is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann . It operates all internal intercity, commuter and freight railway services in the Republic of Ireland, and, jointly with Northern Ireland Railways, the...
's DART/Commuter sector.
History
The station was renamed in 1966 (after the Pearse Family, notably brothers Patrick
Patrick Pearse
Patrick Henry Pearse was an Irish teacher, barrister, poet, writer, nationalist and political activist who was one of the leaders of the Easter Rising in 1916...
and Willie
Willie Pearse
William "Willie" Pearse was an Irish republican executed for his part in the Easter Rising. He was a younger brother of Patrick Pearse, a leader of the rising.-Background:...
) as part of the Easter Rising
Easter Rising
The Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
celebrations that saw many Irish railway stations renamed. Because of its proximity to Pearse St., many Dubliners refer to the station as "Pearse Street Station" – in December 2004, Iarnród Éireann
Iarnród Éireann
Iarnród Éireann is the national railway system operator of Ireland. Established on 2 February 1987, it is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann . It operates all internal intercity, commuter and freight railway services in the Republic of Ireland, and, jointly with Northern Ireland Railways, the...
even posted a list of station departures headed with that name – though that is not its official name. Although a number of Intercity lines operated out of the station in the past (including, until the mid-1970s, the Dublin–Galway
Galway
Galway or City of Galway is a city in County Galway, Republic of Ireland. It is the sixth largest and the fastest-growing city in Ireland. It is also the third largest city within the Republic and the only city in the Province of Connacht. Located on the west coast of Ireland, it sits on the...
railway line), no Intercity services now regularly terminate at the station, though it is still served by Rosslare InterCity services.
The station was temporarily closed on 11 March 2008 due to roof damage, though it reopened the next day.
Future
The Transport 21Transport 21
Transport 21 is an Irish infrastructure plan, announced in November 2005. It aims to greatly expand Ireland's transport network. A cost estimate of €34 billion was attached to the plan at the time....
initiative plans an Interconnector tunnel
Interconnector (rail tunnel)
DART Underground , previously known as the Interconnector, is a planned railway tunnel in Ireland, projected to run under the city centre of Dublin. The tunnel would allow for the expansion of the electrified DART and the Dublin Suburban Rail network, and connect Heuston Station with Pearse Station...
connecting Heuston Station with Pearse Station and onwards to the northern DART
Dublin Area Rapid Transit
The Dublin Area Rapid Transit is part of the suburban railway network in Ireland, running mainly along the coastline of Dublin Bay on the Trans-Dublin route, from Greystones in County Wicklow, through Dublin to Howth and Malahide in County Dublin.Trains are powered via a 1500V DC overhead catenary...
network via the new Docklands railway station
Docklands railway station
Docklands Station is a new railway station serving the Dublin Docklands area in Ireland owned by Córas Iompair Éireann planned as part of the Government Transport 21 initiative....
in Spencer Dock
Spencer Dock
Spencer Dock is a location within North Wall, Dublin, Ireland. The dockland area was originally part of the end of the Royal Canal, which still reaches the River Liffey here...
to be open by 2015. As part of this project, an underground station with two additional platforms will be constructed beneath the present station. Until recently Pearse Station was the only one of Dublin's four terminal stations which has not or is not the subject of a recent major upgrade project, the others being Connolly, Heuston on the west of the city and Tara Street Station. This major renovation commenced in 2007 as part of the Interconnector project, with publicity erected in the station for this in March 2008. As part of phase 1 of this project, new automatic exit ticket validation machines were installed on both platforms 1 and 2.
The front entrance of the station also was changed. The former spar shop was completely taken out of the station and the old ticket barriers were removed. Also on the platforms, Platform 3 and 4 were removed. New signage and CCTV cameras were added on both active platforms and, on Platform 2, a larger waiting area for passengers was provided.
There are also plans to build a new southbound entrance, to be fully operational before DART underground opens, towards the direction of Ringsend.