Dublin-Belfast Rail Trips Set to Get Faster
Rail journeys between Dublin and Belfast are set to fall below two hours under a nearly €700 million upgrade of the Enterprise service. The cross-border route will receive new trains, more frequent departures and improved onboard facilities by 2028. The investment was presented this week at Belfast Grand Central station, with leaders from Ireland and Northern Ireland attending.
By the end of 2028, eight new intercity Stadler trains are expected to join the route. They will support the existing fleet and allow up to 16 daily services between the two cities. The Enterprise currently covers about 180km, with stops including Drogheda, Dundalk, Newry and Portadown, and can take up to two hours and 15 minutes.
What Will Change
The upgraded Enterprise service is expected to include:
- Journey times below two hours
- Up to 16 daily Dublin-Belfast services
- Eight new intercity Stadler trains
- Around 400 seats on each new train
- USB charging points, dining and bar areas
- Step-free interiors for better accessibility
The faster service should make it easier to combine both cities in one trip, whether for a weekend, work visit or longer stay. Dublin’s museums, pubs and Georgian streets, Belfast’s Titanic Quarter, markets and political history tours, plus stops such as Drogheda, Dundalk and Newry, should become easier to plan without relying on a car.
The investment gives the Enterprise route a proper modern reset, not just a timetable tweak. More trains and shorter journeys should make rail a stronger option for people moving between the two capitals. If the project lands as planned, Dublin-Belfast travel could feel less like a cross-border haul and more like a simple city-to-city hop.