Iarnród Éireann lodges planning application for new train station and park-and-ride at Dunkettle

The new Dunkettle station will be served by two commuter lines, Cork-Cobh and Cork-Midleton, providing an initial 15-minute service.

Iarnród Éireann has on Friday lodged a planning application for the development of a new train station and park-and-ride at Dunkettle in Cork.

It comes just weeks after the rail body lodged an application for another new station at Blackpool. Both developments will be located on existing Iarnród Éireann land.

The two new stations are the first of eight set to be delivered under the Cork area commuter rail programme, which will transform rail services in the Cork region by delivering a 10-minute frequency across all three lines of the commuter network.

Construction of the stations is expected to commence in 2027 and take up to two years to complete, subject to planning approvals and funding allocation.

The Dunkettle station is also to be a major park-and-ride, strategically located near the busy Dunkettle Interchange, providing access to major roads such as the M8 and N25.

The new Dunkettle station will be served by two commuter lines, Cork-Cobh and Cork-Midleton, providing an initial 15-minute service.

There is a significant service uplift expected following completion of the wider Cork commuter rail programme, with train frequency expected to be up to every five minutes each way.

There will be a 300-space park-and-ride facility alongside the new station, with scope for additional parking capacity to be introduced on a phased basis, based on demand.

Green Party councillor Oliver Moran welcomed that the park-and-ride would also include 166 bicycle spaces, including 42 secure bicycle lockers.

He added Cork City Council would complete active travel links from Glanmire to the proposed new station by October this year.

Mr Moran said the planning application was “a major step forward for commuters on the northside of the city".

“It will be the first park-and-ride on the city's northside and the first in the city served by rail. In some ways, it could serve as the Cork equivalent of what the Red Cow park-and-ride does for Dublin at the other end of the Cork-Dublin motorway.

“For people in Glanmire, it means a genuine alternative to commuting to the city by car. For motorists arriving in the city from the east or from the motorway, it means avoiding the Dunkettle and not having to wrestle with traffic in the city centre.

“It’s also relief for communities around Horgan's Quay, where congestion from the eastern approaches to the city builds up.” 

Iarnród Éireann is also set to apply for planning, via a railway order application to An Coimisiún Pleanála later this year, for electrification of the Cork network, an additional six stations and a depot for the new fleet.