Updated / Monday, 14 Sep 2026 17:51
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When it comes to transporting goods by train, Ireland is falling behind its European peers.
According to Eurostat’s latest data on rail freight transport, published today, only 0.03 tonnes per capita are transported that way here.
In comparison Austria’s volume of rail freight transported last year was 10 tonnes per capita.
Ireland has also seen a sharp drop in rail freight transport between 2024 and 2025 – by more than 35%.
There was a decline across in the use of railway for transporting goods across the EU.
The bloc’s overall performance fell by 1.8% to 368.2 tonne-kilometres in 2025 compared to the previous year.
Germany remained by far the largest contributor to rail freight transport performance in the EU, with one third of the EU total.
It is followed by Poland and France.
According to the Iarnród Éireann’s Rail Freight 2040 Strategy, it wants to connect the country’s ports and increase the market share of rail freight.
