Doubling of Dublin-Belfast train services draws closer as the Enterprise arrives at the new Grand Central Station for testing for the first time
The cross-border Enterprise train has arrived in Grand Central Station as Translink gets ready to more than double the number of Dublin/Belfast services it runs.
The train bore no passengers though; its appearance at the station on Sunday was for tests, as safety inspectors continue to examine the newly-laid tracks before they can be used by the public.
Once trains are up and running from the station, Translink has confirmed that it will be running 15 trains to Dublin per day, and 15 back.
That compares with about seven Dublin-bound trains per days and seven back in the days of the old Great Victoria Street Station (which Grand Central Station has now replaced).
One of the main reasons for creating Grand Central Station in the first place was that it would bring the Enterprise closer to Belfast city centre (previously, it had to come and go from Lanyon Place Station, on the edge of east Belfast, because it was the only station with platforms suitable for taking it).
Though Translink has given no fresh indication of when trains will start running from Grand Central, the fact the Enterprise is now being tested there will stir hopes that approval will be granted soon.
The new station has eight platforms – double the number that the now-defunct Great Victoria Street had.
And whilst the Europa Bus Centre in Great Victoria Street had 17 bus stands, Grand Central Station has 26.
The opening of the station has been widely welcomed, but it has not been without complaints.
For example, there was disappointment from cyclists at the fact there were no bike racks at the station when it opened on Sunday, September 8.
It could be the end of 2025 before the planned complement of 200 or so racks are installed.
In the meantime, cyclists have to make do with 30 racks as a stop-gap measure.
Despite its name, the new station is also slightly less central than Great Victoria Street was.
Translink itself has estimated that getting there on foot takes about three minutes longer from the heart of the city centre.
In the end, the station was completed on schedule, but at £340m or so, it was between 10 and 15% over budget.