Rail link and airports

Sir, – A letter writer (February 22nd) writes that “Dublin will soon be the only capital city in Europe which doesn’t have a rail link to its airport.”

At present Nicosia (Cyprus), Zagreb (Croatia), Valletta (Malta), Bratislava (Slovakia), Ljubljana (Slovenia), and Prague (Czechia) all, like Dublin, lack a rail link to their airports. Reykjavik (Iceland) airport is close to the capital but also does not have a rail connection. In addition, both Luxembourg and Riga (Latvia) have not got an airport rail link but the infrastructure is currently being built.

Work may begin shortly on a S-Bahn link to Belgrade airport (Serbia) and a rail connection to Tirana (Albania) airport is currently being funded. Similar Western Balkans funding of rail infrastructure should see a new link eventually from Pristina (Kosovo) to the airport. There is a rail connection from Podgorica (Montenegro) to the Aerodrom train station but it is a strenuous walk to the airport terminal, especially with luggage.

The new M11 Metro line from Istanbul (Türkiye) to the new(ish) international airport opened last month. Further afield in Europe, Baku (Azerbaijan), like Dublin, hopes to have an airport rail connection sometime before 2040.