Iarnród Éireann today unveiled the first of 67 new train carriages on its Dublin-Cork route.
The new trains will enter service by the end of the year to coincide with the introduction by Iarnród Éireann of an hourly service to Cork.
The new trains are made by Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles and aside from the Belfast Enterprise stock are the first new dedicated Intercity trains in the Iarnród Éireann fleet for over 20 years.
Almost four million passengers were carried on Dublin-Cork route last year, and Iarnród Éireann is hoping the expansion of services will ensure that growth in demand can be accommodated and developed.
The frequency of trains on the Cork route will double by December, an increase of passenger capacity of over 80 per cent to 16,000 seats daily.
The order marks the beginning of a three-year process that will transform Iarnród Éireann's Intercity fleet, with a total of 217 carriages on order at a cost of €440 million.
The fleet renewal programme is funded by the Government under the Transport 21 investment programme and will be complete by 2008.
