Sandyford village is 9 km south of Dublin city centre, just south of the M50 motorway, accessed from the R117 or M50 junctions 13 and 14, while Sandyford Industrial Estate is just north of the motorway. An Aircoach service links the area with Dublin Airport24 hours a day. Dublin Bus routes 11, 44 and 47 link the area with the city centre whilst route 114 provides a local service to Blackrock.
The Luas Green Line was built through the Industrial Estate and the Kilmacud, Stillorgan, Sandyford and Central Park stops serve the area, the middle two lying along the eastern edge of the original estate. All four of these stops are in the Sandyford Business District. Sandyford was the Green Line terminus until the extension to Cherrywood opened in October 2010. The depot for the Green Line is located on the eastern edge of the Industrial Estate.
Metrolink
In March 2018, it was proposed that the MetroLink project could have its southern terminus at Sandyford. MetroLink, not yet commenced, was originally scheduled to be completed in 2027, and intended to connect Sandyford via the city centre to Dublin Airport. In February 2019 it was suggested that the line would not connect to Sandyford, and stop 8km to the north at Charlemont.
Sandyford Business District
The Sandyford Industrial Estate and surrounding areas is one of the biggest business parks in Ireland, consisting of over 500 companies employing approximately 20,000 people. It was officially opened in June 1967 on a site of 120 acres; 85 acres allocated to light industry and the rest to offices. The area includes several separate business estates and sites, including Sandyford Industrial Estate, Stillorgan Industrial Estate, Central Park, and South CountyBusiness Park. A proposal to establish a Sandyford Business District area, to include the core Sandyford Industrial Estate/Business Park as well as the other areas, resulted in the establishment of the Sandyford Business Improvement District Company in January 2017. The area has capacity for 17,500 more employees, 350,000 sq m of commercial floor space and 1,000 residential units. Microsoft have over 1,000 employees in Sandyford, and there is also a substantial workforce at Vodafone's Irish HQ. Other companies in the Industrial Estate include American Airlines, Barclaycard, Canon, Novell, and Vodafone Ireland. The Irish Management Institute also has its headquarters in northern Sandyford. The Irish Mint, a division of the Central Bank of Ireland, which has been in operation since 1976 is located in Sandyford, west of the M50 and north of the village. The Beacon Hospital is located in the estate.
Well known residents of Sandyford include radio personality Ray D'Arcy, singer/songwriter Paul Brady, and comedian Hal Roach, while David Kennedy, the former Formula 1 driver and RTÉ and Setanta Sports commentator lived for many years on Sandyford Road. Frank Aiken, a founder member of Fianna Fáil lived in Sandyford and a local housing development called Aiken's Village is built on what was his land. Christopher Ewart-Biggs the British Ambassador to Ireland was killed by the IRA on Murphystown Road in Sandyford while leaving his residence, Glencairn House, on 21 July 1976. Máire Comerford, Republican activist lived at her home St. Nessan's in Sandyford from 1935 to 1982.
Sports
Sandyford is home to the Meteors Ladies' Basketball Club. The club was founded in 1965, and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2016. Naomh OlafGaelic Athletic Association Club is located in Sandyford Industrial Estate. It was founded in 1981. The club has teams from under eight up to senior level, and also operate an academy for boys and girls from four through seven years of age. Sandyford Cricket Club has a cricket team which celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2014.
Arts and media
In the centre of Sandyford village is a monument to the working men of the village, Pater and Ned. From series 3 onwards, children's TV series ROY was produced in Sandyford.
