Irish Rail explains train timetable changes affecting Renmore and Oranmore students going to Athenry

Irish Rail has moved to explain a specific change to the Athenry train timetable said to be set to cause “chaos” for some students.

Parents claim kids traveling to school in Athenry from Oranmore and Renmore will now miss half their first class.

Irish Rail says the highlight of its revised timetable is the addition of two extra trains each way on the Galway to Dublin Route.

But it says the increased frequency meant the 8.40am departure time had to be moved up to 8.52am to avoid congestion issues.

Irish Rail acknowledges that some people are being inconvenienced, but says it has a duty to provide the most possible services for the largest amount of people.

It also points out that the entire new timetable went to public consultation, and this specific change drew very few responses.

Although some 2 thousand customers replied, the 12 minute deferral to 8.52am didn’t even make the top 50 issues.

Irish Rail does say that a planned passing loop in Oranmore, once completed in 2026, could see the issue addressed down the line.