Heuston Station also known as Dublin Heuston, is one of Ireland's main railway stations, linking the capital with the south, southwest and west. It is operated byIarnród Éireann, the national railway operator. It also houses the head office of its parent company - Córas Iompair Éireann. The station is named in honour of Seán Heuston, an executed leader of the 1916 Easter Rising, who had worked in the station's offices.
History
The station opened on 4 August 1846 as the terminus and headquarters of the Great Southern and Western Railway. It was originally called Kingsbridge Station after the nearby Kings Bridge over the River Liffey. In 1966, on the 50th anniversary of the Easter Rising, it was renamed "Heuston Station" in honour of Seán Heuston, a young railway worker who commanded a nearby post in the 1916 Easter Rising. Heuston was one of the 16 executed by the British after that Rising, and had previously worked in the station's offices. The passenger terminal and buildings were built to designs by London-born architect Sancton Wood, and the train sheds and infrastructure were designed by Irish-born railway engineerJohn MacNeill. When first constructed the station had only two platforms separated by 5 carriage lines. Two of the lines were subsequently replaced by a two-sided platform and the remaining carriage line also removed. An additional platform was created in 1872 on the south side of the station beyond the station roof, this was known as the "military platform" and was intended that military personnel could be kept separate from the rest of the station. Due to the need to cater for increased demand and reduce delays, three new platforms were incorporated in August 2002 as part of a development incorporating improved signalling and approach track-work. Since its renewal it includes two branches of Eason's, a Marks & Spencer Simply Food store, as well as some dining facilities, including a Supermacs and a pub. A maintenance depot at the Inchicore railway works is located approximately three kilometres away and, as with Heuston Station itself, was also opened in 1846.
Operation
Rail services
InterCity
InterCity services from Heuston go to and from Cork, Limerick, Waterford, Galway, Mayo, and Kerry.
Commuter
Commuter services stop at all stations to Portlaoise Mondays to Saturdays, and on Sundays at all stations to Kildare. All services leave the station on a triple line as far as Inchicore, quadruple line until Hazelhatch, and thereafter only double line. Heuston is the terminus for the main line to Cork, and there are key service and transfer points in the Cork-bound direction at:
There are nine platforms: eight terminal platforms and one through platform. Platform 1 is an extension to Platform 2, and reachable only via that platform. Prior to Heuston's 2002-2004 upgrade, there were five terminal platforms. The through platform is numbered Platform 10 and is situated on the Phoenix Park Tunnel line, which connects to Connolly Station. There is no platform nine. Platform 10 is some distance from the main concourse and is not used for any regularly scheduled trains.
Proposed developments
A 2018 consultation paper for the proposed Dublin MetroLink project included a reference to a potential future station, labelled "Heuston West", with connections via the Phoenix Park Tunnel to Cabra. Other plans, first published in the 1970s, suggested that a proposed DART Underground project would link underground stations at Heuston and Pearse Street via a tunnel. As of 2015, these plans were subject to review, and as of mid-2018, the DART Underground project was not funded.
