Construction is to begin on a new 140 million euro national train control centre at Heuston Station.
The state of the art building will manage over 250 thousand train movements a year and will replace the current centre at Connolly Station.
It will also house a unit of the gardai and the traffic management section of Dublin City Council.
Once built it will improve train punctuality, allow for the expansion of the network, and improve customer information at stations and online.
Jim Meade, Chief Executive of Iarnród Éireann said: “It is a great day for Iarnród Éireann to see the commencement of construction of our new NTCC, which will greatly enhance our signalling and communications abilities, improve punctuality for customers, and transform train management. It will also enable growth of our network in the futureproof the signalling of the railway for generations to come.”
A Garda Síochána spokesperson said: “The new NTCC building will also house members of An Garda Síochána in a purpose built Control Centre. The Control Centre will manage a large proportion of the State’s emergency 999/112 calls. The building will also cater for a unit within Dublin City Council who are responsible for monitoring specific small or large events in Dublin, such as St. Patrick’s Day, a State visit, etc. The new location will provide modern support office space, meeting space and other ancillary facilities for both parties while facilitating designated spaces to allow ease of collaborative working between An Garda Síochána and Dublin City Council, when required.“
Anne Graham, Chief Executive of the National Transport Authority said: “I very much welcome that work on the NTCC is getting under way. This piece of investment is a key component in the modernisation of our rail network and is indicative of the commitment to improving services for customers well into the future.”
