On Monday, Translink announced the phased opening date of Belfast’s £340 million Grand Central Station transport hub.
Work on the project has been ongoing since 2020, with construction accelerating over the summer months as Translink works towards the full opening of the site.
While the opening of the new bus station at the hub has been confirmed for Sunday, September 8, there is no confirmed date yet for when rail service will begin from Grand Central Station.
Since May this year, public transport users have been affected, particularly due to the closure of the railway line between Lisburn and Lanyon Place. Passengers travelling from Belfast to Dublin have had to switch to a replacement bus service to and from Newry.
Translink issued updated guidelines for passengers this week with the recent announcement of the phased opening of Grand Central Station – here’s how their services will operate (at least for the next few weeks).
Bus connections
The Europa Buscentre will close on Saturday 7 September. Trains operating from the Europa Buscentre will be rerouted to the new station, with the first service departing at 5am on Sunday 8 September.
Cross-border rail services
A new two-hourly cross-border train timetable will come into effect from Monday 26 August to accommodate the new hourly Enterprise Belfast/Dublin services due to be introduced later this year.
When the new Grand Central Station opens, all Enterprise services will run to and from the new station and will no longer serve Lanyon Place Station.
The current arrangements for replacement bus services for cross-border passengers will also remain in place until the station opens and the railway line between Belfast and Lisburn is restarted.
Translink is currently unable to provide a reliable date for the relocation of train services from Lanyon Place to Grand Central Station or for the reopening of the rail line between Lisburn and Belfast.
Regulations for local train connections
Currently the railway line between Lisburn and Belfast Lanyon Place is closed to allow for the completion of siding works and the installation of new signalling for the new station, as well as the necessary safety testing, commissioning and training. This will also facilitate the construction of the new bus stops.
Until Monday, August 26
Travel to and from Belfast City Centre and Lisburn Train Station, including train stops along the Lisburn Road:
When travelling to Belfast from stations on the Bangor, Larne or Derry~Londonderry lines, you will alight at either York Street or Lanyon Place stations and can walk, cycle or use scheduled underground or glider services to change between Belfast stations (including Botanic and City Hospital) or into the city centre.
Botanic and City Hospital stations are closed.
Express bus replacement services will operate between Lisburn Station and Europa Buscentre until Saturday 7 September and Grand Central Station from Sunday 8 September.
Replacement bus services run between Belfast Lanyon Place and Europa Bus Centre, serving stops near City Hospital, Queens University and Botanic.
Route as follows: Lanyon Place – Northern Mall, Great Victoria Street – Bradbury Place – Lisburn Road – University Road – Bradbury Place – Bruce Street – Lanyon Place Station
Adelaide, Balmoral, Finaghy, Dunmurry, Derriaghy, Lambeg and Hilden stations will remain closed. Passengers from these stations can use the scheduled Metro/Ulsterbus services along the Lisburn Road.
Valid train tickets are accepted on scheduled services.
From Tuesday, August 27, until further notice
Travel to and from Belfast City Centre and Lisburn Train Station, including train stops along the Lisburn Road:
When travelling to Belfast from stations on the Bangor, Larne or Derry~Londonderry lines, you will alight at either York Street or Lanyon Place stations and can walk, cycle or use scheduled underground or glider services to change between Belfast stations (including Botanic and City Hospital) or into the city centre.
Botanic and City Hospital stations are closed.
Replacement buses will operate between Lisburn Station and Europa Bus Centre until Saturday 7 September and from Grand Central Station from Sunday 8 September.
Monday to Friday
Replacement bus services operate between Belfast Lanyon Place and Lisburn railway stations, serving train stops along Lisburn Road and serving surrounding schools.
Route as follows:
- Lanyon Place Station
- Northern Mall, Gt Victoria Street (Out) Bruce Street (Rtn)
- Bradbury Place (Botanical)
- Elmwood Ave/City Hospital, Lisburn Road
- Adelaide, Lisburn Road
- King’s Hall, Balmoral
- Finaghy Junction
- Dunmurry, Tesco
- Derriaghy
- Lambeg
- Hilden
- Lisburn Station
This shuttle service runs approximately every 10 minutes during peak hours (morning and afternoon/evening) and every 30 minutes outside of peak hours.
Weekend only:
Replacement bus services run between Belfast Lanyon Place and Europa Bus Centre, serving stops near City Hospital, Queens University and Botanic.
Route as follows: Lanyon Place – Northern Mall, Great Victoria Street – Bradbury Place – Lisburn Road – University Road – Bradbury Place – Bruce Street – Lanyon Place Station
Valid train tickets are transferable to these connections and travelers also have the option of purchasing a ticket on board.
From Monday, September 2nd, the new smart school tickets can also be transferred to the replacement bus service and students can travel by bus with a simple tap.
Regular Metro and Ulsterbus services along Lisburn Road will also be improved.
Bus timetables and changes to bus stops in the city centre
Ulsterbus/Goldliner and Metro timetables are currently being adjusted to maintain bus service reliability and performance during increased congestion on the city centre network. The locations of some city centre stops have also been changed, this will remain in place until further notice.
These are necessary to maintain service reliability as improvements to the public realm around Grand Central Station require the closure of streets and roadways.
