Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd November - Due to Engineering works between Heuston/Newbridge and Dun Laoghaire/Greystones, service amendments will be in place including bus transfers. Please check our Journey Planner prior to travel.
Leap Cards can be purchased at Ticket Vending Machines in stations within the Short Hop Zone or online at www.leapcard.ie or in selected retail outlets. TFI Leap Cards are also available in many PostPoint outlets as well as all post offices nationwide.
The Leap Card can be used for rail travel between stations within the 'Dublin City and Commuter Zone'. All stations in the Greater Dublin area from Rathdrum to Drogheda, from Dublin City Centre stations to Enfield and Kildare including all DART services.
The Leap Card also works in the Cork Commuter area.
Usage outside of the Short Hop Zone and Cork commuter Rail services will result in a Fixed Payment Notice of €100 plus the relevant unpaid fare.
Travel Credit works in a similar way to mobile phone credit. Every time you use the card to travel the cost of the journey is deducted. If there is insufficient no credit on the card it cannot be used for any further journeys until it is 'Topped Up' at a ticket machine or online at www.leapcard.ie.
There are no Top-Up facilities at Ticket Offices.
1. Place the Leap Card in the slot provided.
2. Select the Top-Up Amount from options shown on the screen
3. Insert the amount selected - Notes/Coins/Credit or Debit Cards accepted
4. Remove the Leap Card from the pocket as indicated on screen
5. Your Leap Card is now Topped Up and ready for immediate use
Reservations made Online/Telesales:
We do not accept American Express cards.
Reservation made in person (ie at selected booking offices):
Tickets can only be purchased on the train if the ticket office is closed and if the ticket vending machines are not in operation. You may be charged an Onboard Supplement.
You must make all refund claims within 28 days of the end date of your ticket. We may ask for extra evidence to support your claim for a refund.
An administration fee will be charged and if you have purchased a reservation either online, telesales or at a booking office the terms and conditions you agreed to will apply.
If you did not buy your ticket from Iarnród Éireann, you should return it to the place where you bought your ticket from. They will arrange any refund due (if any) and may charge you an administration fee.
If we fail to honour your seat reservation, and no other seat of similar standard on the same service is available for you, we will refund the fare of your single journey in travel vouchers.
All free travel passes are issued by the Department of Social Protection not by the transport provider. Free travel passes are non-transferrable and can only be used by the named person.
Iarnród Éireann operates a fixed penalty payment scheme on all our routes, (Intercity, Commuter and DART). You must Purchase a valid ticket for the journey you are making, before joining the train.
If you don’t have a valid ticket on board the Train you will have to pay a fixed penalty payment of €100 plus the unpaid fare.
Here are the contact details for our Revenue Protection Unit
Revenue Protection Building
Connolly Station
Amiens Street,
Dublin 1
Email: rpu@irishrail.ie
Yes, a Luas add on is available for customer travelling on rail services. Simply select 'Dublin Connolly' if your selected services orgin or destination is 'Dublin Heuston' and if the origin or destination is 'Dublin Heuston' select 'Dublin Connolly'. Origin and destination of services can be seen on our Intercity Route Map.
For example; if you are travelling from Cork you would select 'Dublin Connolly' for the Luas add on. Or if you are travelling from Sligo you would select 'Dublin Heuston' for the Luas add on.
The Luas ticket allows customers to travel on the Luas Red Line between Dublin Heuston and Dublin Connolly/George's Dock or Dublin Bus Route 4 to Mount Street for the date or dates on the ticket only.
Cost: €1.40 each way.
Available from: irishrail.ie as an origin and or destination
Available from: Ticket vending machines or booking offices into Dublin only
Any ticket which has become defaced, illegible, mutilated, torn, split, lost, mislaid or stolen will not be valid for travel, replaced or eligible for refund. Customers must purchase a new ticket to travel.
Revenue Protection Unit
Revenue Protection Building
Connolly Station
Amiens Street,
Dublin 1
Email: rpu@irishrail.ie
Phone: Call our Customer Contact Centre
A Leap Card is a reusable plastic smart card that can be used instead of paper tickets to pay-as-you-go for transport in Dublin. This card is used to store travel credit that is deducted as and when you use it when travelling on public transport.
Customers pay less with a Leap Card than when paying for single fares with cash on DART and Commuter rail services, Dublin Bus and Luas services.
Customers can register their Leap Card online, so if it's lost or stolen, no one else can use it.
For more information, go to leapcard.ie
The Leap Card system Caps a customers use of travel credit so that once you hit the cap value you can continue to travel as normal on the applicable transport operator, but no further travel credit will be taken from your card on their services.
Once you hit the Cap value for the day of the week, you should continue to use their Leap Card as normal when travelling. You should still Touch On and Touch Off as normal in order to have a valid card for inspection.
If you make lots of trips with your Leap Card on a daily or weekly (Mon to Sun) basis, a maximum Cap value will be applied to your travel credit spend.
For more information, go to Leap Card Capping.
The system adds up how much travel credit you have used on the applicable services you have travelled on for a given day or week and then it stops taking any more fares once the applicable Cap value is reached.
For more information, go to Leap Card Capping.
A Daily Cap runs from the first service of the day to the last service in that same day.
A Weekly Cap (Mon-Sun) runs from the first service on a Monday to the last service on a Sunday.
There are a number of benefits as follows;
If you have any queries or concerns then you can contact Leap customer care and the team will investigate and liaise with you directly.
Customer Care: 0818 824 824
Calling from outside of Ireland: +353 (1) 907 9425
Monday to Friday: 7am to 7pm
Saturday and Bank Holidays: 9am to 3pm
Sunday: Closed
Check out our step by step guide to booking a Free Travel pass or Valid Ticket.
Looking for more information check out our FAQ Where do I find Information on the Free Travel Pass? Customers are advised their is limited availability for seat only reservations online.
Yes. You can reserve a seat where available by selecting a Reserve Seat Only
Ticket Vending Machines are in operation throughout our network. These machines are monitored and regularly maintained to ensure that they are operational. Irish Rail is automatically notified if the TVMs are out of order. In the unlikely event that the booking office is closed and all the Ticket Vending Machines are not working, you will be required to pay for your journey on the train or at your destination. Failure to pay the required fare will result in a Fixed Payment Notice being issued.
You must buy a ticket to cover your journey before travelling. Failure to buy a ticket will result in a Fixed Payment Notice being issued.
You are responsible for ensuring that you Tap On your Leap card at a validation point before travelling, otherwise you will be issued with a Fixed Payment Notice.
You will be issued with a Fixed Payment Notice as the ticket is not valid without the required DSP identification.
It is your responsibility to buy any additional ticket that you need to complete your journey before boarding the train otherwise you will be issued with a Fixed Payment Notice.
Any person aged 19 years or older who purchases a child ticket will be issued with a Fixed Payment Notice. Child tickets are only valid for persons aged 3-18 years.
Any authorised officer of Irish Rail can issue a Fixed Payment Notice.
Yes. The authorised officer can confiscate the ticket as it may be used as evidence if the Fixed Payment is not paid and the case is prosecuted before the courts.
No. You have 21 days to pay the Fixed Payment Notice.
If you have been issued with a Fixed Payment Notice and you wish to appeal the decision, you can do so via email to RPU@irishrail.ie or in writing to the Revenue Protection Unit, Connolly Station, Amiens Street, Dublin 1 within 21 days from the date of issue of the Fixed Payment Notice.
No. If you board a train without a valid ticket, you will be issued with a Fixed Payment Notice.
You will be issued with a Fixed Payment Notice, as a discounted student ticket is only valid on production of a valid student I.D card.Accepted Student I.D can be found in the fares and tickets section.
You will be issued with a Fixed Payment Notice and the card will be confiscated.
A Fixed Payment Notice can be issued for failing or refusing to give your name or address to an authorised officer or giving a name or address which is false or misleading. A Fixed Payment Notice can also be issued for trespass on a railway, unlawful use of an emergency cord or other system of communication between passengers and train drivers and failure to shut and fasten gates of level crossings or passage. Breach of CIE bye-laws can also be prosecuted before the District Court. A full list of CIE bye-laws as set out in the Córas Iompair Éireann Bye-laws (Confirmation) Order, 1984 can be found on irishrail.ie.
Where a passenger has committed more than one offence, the Fixed Payment Notice will reflect an increased fine.
Yes. If an authorised officer reasonably suspects that a person is committing or has committed an offence under Section 129 of the Railway Safety Act 2005, he or she may require the person to give his or her name and address and, if the person fails or refuses to do so or gives a name that the authorised officer reasonably suspects is false or misleading, the authorised officer may arrest that person without warrant and deliver, as soon as practicable, the person into the custody of a member of the Garda Síochána to be dealt with according to law.
In the event that the Fixed Payment is not paid, you can be prosecuted and face a potential fine of up to €1,000 upon conviction as well as legal costs.
Yes, in denominations of €10 and €50. Vouchers can only be used against tickets bought in stations and not online.
To purchase or for more information contact your local station.
Yes, go to our student section for further information on our fantastic offers.
Children aged from five years old up to nineteen years are entitled to purchase a child ticket or fare.
Children under the age of five years are entitled to travel for free any Iarnród Éireann services when accompanied by a fare paying adult provided children do not occupy seats required for other fare paying passengers.
Those who wish to book a seat on reservable trains for a child under five years of age, may do so only by selecting the "Free Travel Pass or Valid Ticket' option on the journey planner.
Leap card products can be used on the Cork – Cobh/Midleton routes.
Yes combined Rail and Bus Tickets are available on the Cork to Midleton route for more information please see our Fares Section.
Yes for more information please visit our Fares Sections.
Yes Leap epurse is now available in Cork for more information please visit our Fares Sections.
Yes, Annual cards are available on Leap cards in Cork.
Yes, see our Cork Smart Card section for further details on products available and applicable routes.
When you get close to a Daily or Weekly Cap you will only be charged the amount to bring you up to the Cap. After you have reached a Cap you will be charged €0.00 for subsequent travel that day or over the Week (Mon-Sun). Make sure you still 'tap-on' and 'tap-off' your Leap Card even when you have reached the daily or weekly cap.
Free Travel Pass holders wishing to book a ticket should select the option "Free Travel Pass or Valid Ticket" to book on to a train.
Each year Iarnród Éireann carries over 38 million passengers on its Intercity, DART and Commuter trains. If even a small percentage of passengers failed to pay for their tickets, the revenue lost to Iarnród Éireann would be substantial.
Fare evasion is a criminal offence. You must purchase a valid ticket for the journey you are making before you get on any train. If you do not have a valid ticket or validated Leap/Smart card when asked to produce your ticket, you can be prosecuted in the District Court under the Railway Safety Act 2005. A passenger who travels without a valid ticket faces a fine of up to €1,000 on conviction in the District Court as well as legal costs.
If you cannot produce a valid ticket when requested to do so by an authorised officer, you may be issued with a Fixed Payment Notice. This means that if you wish to avoid a court appearance and the possibility of receiving a criminal conviction, you may pay a fine of €100 plus your unpaid fare. The Fixed Payment option is only available for a period of 21 days as set out in the Railway Safety Act. If the fine is not paid within that period, a summons will issue and legal costs will be incurred.
If you have been issued with a Fixed Payment Notice you can pay it online.
You are responsible for ensuring that you buy a ticket that is valid for your entire journey before travelling. If you cannot produce a valid ticket when requested to do so by an authorised officer, you will be issued with a Fixed Payment Notice.
No. It is your responsibility to allow yourself reasonable time to buy a ticket before travelling. Ticket Vending Machines are provided at stations. Tickets can also be bought in advance of travel from ticket offices or on line at www.irishrail.ie
At the start of the journey, you need to 'Touch-On' using your Leap Card at a gate or validation pole. At the end of a journey you must 'Touch-Off' to ensure the correct fare is applied.
Touch-On - Identifies the origin of the journey
Touch-Off - Identifies the destination of the journey
If you don't Touch-On you are committing fare evasion.
If you don’t Touch-Off you will pay more.
Tagging on at our gate;
Gates and Poles may on occasion fail to identify the Touch-On / Touch-Off. It is up to the customer to ensure the card has been read successfully. The two main reasons for card failure are:
1. Incorrect Positioning of Smart Card
If the Leap Card is not placed against the reader/'target' on the pole or gate, it will not be read. Ensure that the card is held steadily against the Card reading 'target' for at least a second.
Do not wave the card over the Smart Card reading target. Do not put the Smart Card into the horizontal paper ticket slot on a gate.
2. Smart Card Interference
Remove the Leap Card from your wallet or bag before using it. Other Smart Cards you may have in your wallet or bag can cause interference with this card, which will make it inoperable.
At a ticket Machine in the station
Put your card in the 'pocket' and then follow the instructions on the ticket machine screen.
Online
Log on to www.leapcard.ie to view your account history and you will be able to view your card balance.
For information on schoolchild Leap Cards go to our ticket information section
You can now reserve seats on most Intercity trains:
Iarnród Éireann recommends purchasing tickets in advance to ease ticket queues at peak times.
*Advance reservations can be made up to 90 days in advance*
Alternatively; DART, Commuter and non-reservable Intercity tickets may be purchased in advance or on the day of travel from DART, Commuter and Intercity stations and a selection of monthly commuter tickets are available at your station.
Iarnród Éireann sells a variety of tickets. Click here for a list of ticket types
Most of our fares are available from our Fares and Tickets section. However, if you cannot find the fare you require then please contact us.
If your train was delayed due to circumstances within the control of Iarnród Éireann the following apply;
If you are more than one hour late in arriving at your destination, we will normally offer you discount vouchers for use against future ticket purchases. The value of discount vouchers is based on the length of delay and the fare you have paid for your single journey.
For delays of one to two hours, we will give you vouchers to the value of 50 percent of the fare you have paid for the portion of your journey affected.
For delays over two hours, we will give you vouchers to the value of 100 percent of the fare you have paid for the portion of your journey affected.
Click here to view our passenger charter.
