Iarnród Éireann Reveal Driver Recruitment Plans

Iarnród Éireann has launched a new recruitment campaign for train drivers, which will see a panel established to recruit up to 100 drivers over the next two years.

Investment in its network, fleet and customer service is set to see the role of rail expand significantly, as the backbone of Ireland’s sustainable transport network.

WATCH - Pamela and Robert discuss their experience of training to be DART drivers. https://we.tl/t-M5ZtsdIUwa 

The Driver roles will be based at locations including Dublin (DART – Fairview and Bray, Connolly and Heuston), Athlone, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Waterford and Westport.

The company is asking women to consider driving roles, with an increasing number of women in recent trainee classes.  It also highlighted the diverse range of previous careers from which recent driver recruits have come, from banking to airlines, from defence forces to archaeology and much more.

The company’s investment programme, part of the National Development Plan 2021 to 2030 and funded by the National Transport Authority and Department of Transport, is set to see our rail services grow and customer service enhanced over the coming years, with investment including:

• A record fleet investment, with 185 carriages of the largest, most sustainable rail fleet investment in Irish history on order, and up to 750 carriages planned over the coming decade
• The DART+ Programme, set to treble the electrification and double the capacity of the Greater Dublin Area, with infrastructure works to extend the DART to Maynooth / M3 Parkway, Drogheda and Hazelhatch
• Major investment confirmed in rail services for our regional cities, Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford
• An ambitious strategy to increase the number of freight trains five-fold
• Network investment to improve speeds and service frequency on the Intercity network

Benefits for successful candidates include:

• Competitive salary on a scale which reaches a maximum of €63,000, and career progression opportunities
• Opportunity to work for Ireland’s national railway provider – ranked 3rd in Ireland’s Best Employers 2023 research undertaken by Statista for the Sunday Independent
• Company Pension, Income Continuance & Welfare Schemes
• Access to Health and Wellness Programmes
• Reduced fares on the network
• Access to Talent Development Programmes, and further education support

Speaking about the recruitment drive, Chief Executive of Iarnród Éireann, Jim Meade said: “Iarnród Éireann is a dynamic organisation, which offers excellent progression opportunities. With the planned expansion of services as part of the National Development Plan, it is an exciting time to become part of a growing organisation.   We are also seeing great interest in careers in Iarnród Éireann from a range of backgrounds – we are a diverse and inclusive employer, and in particular we urge more women to apply for driver roles, and are encouraged by the increasing interest from women in recent recruitment drives.