LUAS.., Dublin

Luas is the new tram or light railway for Dublin.
Where it goes is quite limited and the two lines don't connect.
I don't share the official Government opinion that it's would be the "answer to many of our traffic problems"
I has not
For some reason the lines were not integrated with the bus routes
Incidentally, in 1948, Dublin had a very thorough and comprehensive tram service. It was closed down and the tracks torn up.
Incredible!

Luas are trams that run to different parts of the city than the DART trains, I used it to get to Heuston Station from Connolly Station. A round trip ticket in that zone cost me 2.90€, you can buy your ticket from the self service machines right next to the stops. The trip was less than 15 minutes, check the website below for frequency and operating times.

I asked the conductor if I needed to validate the ticket and he said if I got it from the machine that it was already validated. This tram is on the honor system, no one checked my ticket either way although I'm sure they must spot check tickets otherwise some people wouldn't pay.

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The LUAS system is a light rail tram that runs through Dublin with seeming efficiency. There are two lines, Red (running roughly east-west) & Green (roughly north-south). The two lines do not intersect and to transfer from to the other involves about 15min walk through the center of Dublin. The stops are pretty accessible to the major sites that visitors see, with some named after the site (most are on the Red). The central zone includes most of the main sites. Within the central zone, it is roughly (€1.50 o/w, with options for day and weekly passes. The ticket system is an honor system, which is said to be policed regularly. Purchase a ticket from an automated kiosk at the stop, indicating your destination or whether you want a pass. The kiosks accept coins (no 1 or 2 cents), bills, or cards (€5 minimum). After you select your ticket and pay, it will dispense the ticket and any change.

When the train arrives, press the buttons at the center of the doors on the tram if it does not open for people getting off. The doors will not open automatically (I was not paying attention & forgot to push it my first time; resulting in a 15min wait for the next tram). At the ends of each stop, there are large poles that display the time to the next train.

Luas means "speed" which I find funny when I think about these trains stuck in traffic along the red line. But basically it is a usefull means of transportation.

I guess I should start from the begining. Luas is a tram or "Dublin light rail system". There are two Luas lines oparating in the city:
The green line that runs from St. Stephen's Green to Sandyford (through Rathmines and Dundrum)
and the Red Line that has a slightly longer route which starts at Connolly Station and ends at Tallaght (this one stops at Heuston Station).
This division is accented by the Dubs as the "North" and "South" route, and many joke it is a good thing that the lines are not connected to each other!

The Luas is slightly more expensive than the bus, but then the tickets are purchased for a certain amount of time (I managed to use one ticket from the green, a quick stop at Dundrum and further to Stillorgan, which saved me like 1,5 - haha). Anyways, the ticketts are purchased at every stop in tickett machines. No you don't have to validate them in the tram itself - they are valid from the time they are purchased.

Trams operate from 05:30 to 00:30 Monday to Friday. On Saturday both lines close at 00:30.
But on Sundays the Green Line runs from 06:45 to 23:30, while the Red Line runs from 07:00 to 23:30. These are the only services that run reguraly and on schedule in Dublin, you can expect a train every 4-5 minutes and every 15 minutes at night.
Luas is a quick way to travel accross the Green line (since most of the time it has it's own lane), the Red line as I mentioned earlier is much slower, since it has to travel through the busiest streets of city centre, where it is stuck in regular traffic.

If you travel a lot by luas you can buy a smartcard, and if you plan to continue your journey on the dart you can buy a combined tickett for the day .

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A serious effort to tackle Dublin’s traffic and transport problems was finally made when the LUAS was introduced in 2004. The LUAS is a two line tram system covering much of the city and county of Dublin. I’ve always felt trams are aesthetically pleasing and the LUAS is no exception. The Red Line runs from Connolly Station to Tallaght while the Blue Line goes from Stephen’s Green to Sandyford.

I took a LUAS tram from Connolly Station to O'Connell Street. These trams are new, and the ride is very smooth.

Be warned: although the trams run very regularly, they are nearly always very busy, even outside peak hours, so don't bank on getting a seat. Also, be careful when getting off the trams, as people will try to barge and elbow their way on before you've even left the vehicle.

One of the two tram lines usefully links O'Connell Street to the two main rail stations (Heuston and Connolly). The other line serves the south of the city, and isn't of much use to tourists.

It's only two lines and they aren't even connected, which makes it not particularly useful for tourists, but it's a start on bringing Dublin's public transport network into the 21st Century. Plans are afoot to extend the line. I wait with baited breath.

I used The Luas to go from my hotel on gardiner street to Heuston train station. There?s 2 lines the red and green. Single ticket cost 1.30 euros and ticket for day trip cost 4.50 euros. Is a good way to go a places far from others one.