A procurement process for a new fleet of trains to operate an hourly Belfast-Dublin ‘Enterprise’ service began on April 25.
Translink and Iarnród Éireann (IE) operate the cross-border service jointly and consider the replacement of the current fleet of 201/8201 Class locomotives which were first introduced in 1994, and De Dietrich/Mk.3 coaches (first introduced in 1997 and 2011 respectively) as essential in company corporate plans.
The Mk.3 vans removed the need for the locomotives to provide Head End Power (HEP) that had proved to be problematic. However, reliability remains an issue with the locomotive-hauled sets, which are intensively used.
More than one million passenger journeys were made between the two capital cities during the year ending March 2023. Rail Express understands that a fleet of multiple units powered by an environmentally friendly fuel source is the favoured option, while electrification remains a long-term objective.
Specialist companies have been invited to indicate an interest in providing “Rail Fleet Advisory Services” in order “to assist with technical support, safety approvals, supply and quality assurance, testing and commissioning support
