This article is from page 10 of the 2006-06-13 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 10 JPG
DETAILED business proposals drawn up by CIE on the re-opening of the Ennis to Athenry leg of the Western Rail Corridor are now with the Department of Transport and work could start this year, it has been revealed.
This section of the rail restoration and a future link to Shannon Airport were two of a tiny number of sections, which got the economic thumbs-up from the chairman of the group set up to examine the proposal.
Rail corridor working party chairman, Pat McCann, originally cast doubts on whether the €365 million cost of re-opening the line could be justified, given that just 750 passengers a day were expected to use it.
In his original report for the Government, the former chief executive of Jury’s Hotels said that he had not “heard any economic, commercial or social arguments that would justify the complete restoration of the line as one project and I would not support such a proposal.”
But he was more enthusiastic about the opening of the line between Ennis and Athenry, saying that the section “would appear to be one of the more viable as things stand.”
He also reported that having connections to Shannon and Knock “could add significantly to the economics of the line.”
News that the corridor is being actively looked at, came via a reply to a Parliamentary Question from Deputy Pat Breen.
“Subject to railway order approvals the expected completion date of the Ennis to Athenry section is 2008 with work expected to commence this year while the Athenry to Tuam section is expected to be completed in 2011,” Transport Minister Cullen replied.
Deputy Breen said that despite the small investment involved, the project was a “very important for the people of the West, particularly with a new age of uncertainty opening up at Shannon Airport with the advent of Open Skies and the privatisation of Aer Lingus.
“The Western Development Commission’s recent report underlined that the gap between the West and East is greater now than it was seven years ago; and that single-carriageway roads and other shoddy infrastructure will cause long-term decline in the region.
“Sound transport infrastructure will be critical to the future economic prosperity of this region.”