Getting to Know Dublin - Dublin - page 40

Bus service runs daily throughout the city, starting at 6am (10am
on Sun), with the last bus at 11:30pm. On Thursday, Friday, and
Saturday nights, Nitelink service runs from the city center to the
suburbs from midnight to 3am. Buses operate every 10 to 15 min-
utes for most runs; schedules are posted on revolving notice boards
at each bus stop.
Inner-city fares are calculated based on distances traveled. The
minimum fare is

€ €

.80 (95¢); the maximum fare is 2 ($2.40).

€

The Nitelink fare is a flat 4 ($4.80). Buy your tickets from the

driver as you enter the bus; exact change is required, so have your
loose change available. Notes of

€

5 or higher may not be accepted.
Discounted 1-day, 3-day, 5-day, and 7-day passes are available. The
1-day bus-only pass costs

€ €

5 ($6); the 3-day pass costs 10 ($12);

€ €

the 5-day pass goes for 18

($22). For more information, contact Dublin Bus, 59 Upper
O'Connell St., Dublin 1 ( & 01/872-0000; www.dublinbus.ie).
BY DART While Dublin has no subway in the strict sense, there
is an electric rapid-transit train, known as the DART (Dublin Area
Rapid Transit). It travels mostly at ground level or on elevated
tracks, linking the city-center stations at Connolly Station, Tara
Street, and Pearse Street with suburbs and seaside communities as
far as Malahide to the north and Greystones to the south. Service
operates roughly every 10 to 20 minutes Monday to Saturday from
7am to midnight and Sunday from 9:30am to 11pm. The mini-
mum fare is

15 ($18); and the 7-day pass costs

€

1 ($1.20). One-day and 10-journey passes, as well as
student and family tickets, are available at reduced rates. For further
information, contact DART, Pearse Station, Dublin 2 ( & 1850/

366222 in Ireland or 01/836-6222; www.irishrail.ie).
BY TRAM The newest addition to Dublin's public transportation
network is set to be the sleek light-rail tram known as LUAS, which
opened in the summer of 2004. Traveling at a maximum speed of
70kmph (45 mph) and departing every 5 minutes in peak hours,
LUAS has already appeased Dublin's congestion problems and
brought the city's transportation into the 21st century. Three lines
will eventually link the city center at Connolly Station and St.
Stephen's Green with the suburbs of Tallaght in the southwest and
Dundrum and Sandyford to the south. For visitors, one of the
handiest reasons to use the LUAS is to get between Connolly and
Heuston stations. The one-way fare within the city center is

€

1
($1.20); 1-day and multiple-day passes are also available. For further
information, contact LUAS ( & 01/703-2029; www.luas.ie).