Rialto Luas stop
Luas Red Line · Rialto
About Rialto
The reason the Red Line runs dead straight through Rialto is that it is following a canal. The Grand Canal opened in 1779 and ran from James’s Street out through Sallins and on to the west; in 1796 a branch was added that took a circular route around the city centre from Suir Road to what is now Grand Canal Dock at Ringsend. The original main line was later closed, its course lay empty for many years, and it was eventually chosen as part of the route for the Luas.
The stop itself opened in 2004, on the southern side of St. James’s Hospital beside James’s Walk, between the Rialto and Kilmainham districts. It is one of a run of Red Line stops laid on that old alignment, together with Suir Road and Goldenbridge further west, and the flat, straight, fenced-off right of way they share is the clearest trace of the waterway left on the ground.
First and last trams from Rialto
Departures from this stop in the NTA’s published timetable for a representative week. A day type with no departures is shown as no service rather than filled in from another day.
From Rialto: Red Line towards Tallaght, about one tram every 3 minutes at the busiest times (316 departures on a weekday) and Red Line towards The Point, about one tram every 3 minutes at the busiest times (316 departures on a weekday).
Connections and interchange
Rialto is served by the Luas Red Line only. There is no change to another line here and no walking transfer to another station nearby.
Facilities
luas.ie publishes no facility list for individual Luas stops, so the only stop-level facts here are the Park & Ride and Cycle & Ride flags from the operator’s own stop data. Absence of a row is not evidence that something is missing.
What is near Rialto
Hospitals are the main business of the area. St. James’s Hospital lies about 250 m from the platforms, and the site of the new National Children’s Hospital Ireland, under construction, is roughly 200 m away. James’s Walk, the green strip beside the line, is about 220 m off, and Flanagan’s Fields Community Garden some 370 m. Beyond that the stop serves the streets of Rialto and the edge of Kilmainham, neither of which has much immediately at the platform.
| Place | Straight-line distance from the stop |
|---|---|
| National Children's Hospital Ireland | 200 m |
| St. James's Hospital | 250 m |
| James's Walk | 220 m |
| Flanagan's Fields Community Garden | 370 m |
Named places from OpenStreetMap within 400 m of the stop. The distance is a straight line, not a walking route.
Frequently asked questions
Because it is built on the bed of a canal. The original main line of the Grand Canal, opened in 1779, ran from James’s Street westwards; after it closed its alignment lay derelict for years and was later taken for the Luas, which is why this stretch is flat and straight.
In 1796, when a branch was added that curved around the city from Suir Road to the present Grand Canal Dock at Ringsend. That branch is the stretch of water still in use; it was the older main line through Rialto that was closed and later used by the trams.