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Explore Ireland’s railways across time—from historic lines and stations to today’s network and proposed future projects.
Use the interactive map below to search, choose layers and explore the timeline.
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ireland-railway-past-present-future-modern-timeline.html
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❤️ Support My Work on Dereliction, History & Heritage
If you value my work documenting Ireland’s dereliction and vacancy, and helping to preserve its history and heritage, you can support my future research, restoration and photography through:
:patreon-round-color: Patreon: Become a supporter
:paypal: PayPal: Make a donation
📧 Get in touch by email for commissions, collaborations and general enquiries : [email protected]
Thank you for your support. It helps me continue sharing Ireland’s rich history and heritage with a wider audience.
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This is an interactive research prototype, not a complete or verified historical operating timeline or a live network map.
Most ATU historic line dates are unverified and may refer to railway companies rather than individual route openings or closures. Most ATU station records are undated and remain unchanged with the year, although a small researched set now follows the timeline. Modern railway geometry comes from a 2023 snapshot: some sections now have approximate researched timeline dates; undated modern sections appear from 2023 when filtering, which is not their opening year. Planned projects and their illustrative dates may change.
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The route, stations and station names have separate controls; choose View DART route to zoom to the full network. The Year Explorer shows the original Howth–Bray DART from 1984 and the Malahide and Greystones extensions from 2000. Grand Canal Dock appears from 2001, Clongriffin from 2010 and Woodbrook from 2025. These are DART service or station years, not the opening dates of the underlying railway. Geometry is adapted from the ATU 2023 snapshot, with an approximate connection near Connolly; Woodbrook's position is from OpenStreetMap. Positions and section boundaries are approximate, and the map is not live. Sources: Iarnród Éireann’s DART station list, RTÉ’s DART history, Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council on Woodbrook and OpenStreetMap contributors.
Modern railway geometry is based on the ATU 2023 snapshot. The Historic preset now includes 30 researched modern-route sections, shown from approximate opening or conservative full-section years. The 1937 Dublin Sligo connection and 1976 Belfast connection use service milestones, not construction dates. Other modern records without researched dates are shown from 2023 when filtering; this is the snapshot year, not their opening date. Modern station records remain undated. Lines can overlap; historic geometry, interruptions and later realignments are not comprehensively modelled. Select a modern line for its source and confidence note. Research sources include RAILSCOT’s Great Southern & Western chronology, Midland Great Western chronology, Translink’s Northern Ireland railway history and Ask About Ireland’s Mayo railway history.
Dublin Luas route sections appear by opening year: the original Red and Green lines in 2004, Docklands in 2009, Brides Glen in 2010, Saggart in 2011 and Cross City in 2017. Stop visibility uses the opening year of the associated section, not independently checked dates for each stop. Section boundaries are approximate, based on the 2023 route shapes, and interruptions or later alignment changes are not modelled.
The preferred route, stops and names have separate controls. Choose View Cork route to zoom in. When the year filter is enabled, the route and dated-scenario stops appear from 2036 as a user-set illustrative completion year—not a confirmed opening date. The undated unnamed future stop is hidden while filtering. The route is proposed, not operating, and its simplified geometry may change. The source dataset does not state a reuse licence, so check permission before publishing.