Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the officials and thank them for their presentations. However, I broadly concur with some of the comments made by my colleagues, Senator Coffey and Deputy Fitzmaurice. We all experience frustration dealing with bureaucratic bodies. That is the perception of the witnesses' organisations. Rather than engage with stakeholders or affected persons in a practical way, much of the time agency personnel clothe themselves in the armour of bureaucracy. I could give a multitude of examples after 35 years as an elected representative.

I do not know anything about the flooding in County Clare, but listening to the discussion about it brings to mind the flooding of Westmeath from the Shannon, which was heartbreaking. In 2000, I brought forward legislation which sought to get all of the organisations talking to each other. All of the agencies are working in silo, like cocks crowing on their own dunghill.

The CFRAM report is an excellent document, in respect of which I salute the OPW. It is well drafted. It is an iconic document on which the OPW is to be commended. In my experience, getting a practical response from some of the agencies is as rare as a white blackbird. When I was a member of Westmeath County Council, Jim Hearn, the county engineer, was always trying to come up with solutions, but when it came to getting a response from Iarnród Éireann, one had a better chance of winning the lottery. When it came to proposing solutions to road issues, for example, taking a piece of land from Iarnród Éireann, the process was mind-boggling. The agencies need to buck themselves up and accept that they are public servants working on behalf of the public. They need to treat the public as their paymasters. We have had enough of them passing the buck.

As I said, I know nothing about the problem being discussed today but this has all the hallmarks of passing the buck. We were told earlier by the witness from the National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS, that he only received most of the documentation required for this meeting late last night, which is desperate. The 2011 RPS Consulting Engineers report included no cost-benefit analysis. A first-year student would know that such analysis is vital.

In regard to the work done by Clare County Council, county councils can be a little obstructive at times but generally they can be brought around because local authority members require to be elected every five years so they can be held to account. The local authority executives know they have to run a show but they generally come around to practical solutions. I have no doubt that Clare County Council will rise to the occasion.

In September 2014, the OPW, Iarnród Éireann and Clare County Council came together on the issue. In 2015, they had another run at it, yet in 2018 the issue has still not been resolved. As stated by Deputy Fitzmaurice, this is unacceptable to those who are being flooded and cannot access their homes and so on. There are all sorts of emergencies, which we are hearing about constantly on "Liveline" and "Morning Ireland". The agencies need to get their act together. The Ballycar problem tallies with what I have experienced. Many ordinary Joes and elected members have been dealing with flooding issues for many years and they have good ideas on how to address them. Many years ago, we had small stone drains. There was many a good job done by people who did not have expertise or a list of letters behind their names. We sometimes need to listen to ordinary people because they often have the solution to the most complex problem. I am flabbergasted but not surprised that eight years on this problem has not been resolved.

I would like to deal now with rail issues. I note Mr. Meade is new to his position and I wish him well. I am an advocate for public transport provision. I know that, as in the case of hospitals, it is not possible to have light rail at every corner. People travelling to Dublin from Mullingar, however, benefit indirectly from light rail transport. It is to be hoped the issue around Luas provision at Maynooth will be sorted out soon. I would like to be able to leave my car at home and travel to Dáil Éireann via light rail transport. The Dublin local authority wants a ban on cars in the city centre, but that is a nonsense without proper connectivity. At what point will I be able to connect to the Luas to get to Dáil Éireann? Theory must complemented with practical solutions.

When it comes to heavy rail infrastructure, what is proposed in the national development plan, Project Ireland 2040, and the national planning framework sounds great. The Sligo-Edgeworthstown-Mullingar-Enfield-Maynooth to Connolly Station route is one of Iarnród Éireann's busiest. I travelled on this line many times 35 years ago when I was studying law in Dublin and I regularly took part in the so-called guess the breakdown station competition. Every winter I could be certain that the train would break down at the Hill of Down. My wife also travelled on this line when she was going to the health centre in the Croke Park area. It was horrendous. From November to March each year this service was a disaster and it left a sour taste in people's mouths. In fairness, the service has improved but more needs to be done.

We need more carriages. I note it was mentioned that 300 carriages will come on stream over the next number of years. A good share of them is required for the Sligo-Longford-Mullingar-Maynooth to Connolly service. As the Chairman will be aware, people do not mind standing an odd time but in general people paying a weekly or monthly fee want to sit down. Some people do some work on the journey to Dublin. We have a huge migration from west to east, unfortunately. If IDA Ireland did more work for the west, people would not have to travel east for jobs. People need to be properly accommodated in terms of seating and I appeal to the witnesses to ensure it is provided.

I am a supporter of greenway development. I was one of the first people to get involved in the restoration of the Royal Canal from Spencer Dock to the Shannon. I am delighted with the Athlone-Mullingar greenway. It is being well used. However, there is a huge lack of commonsense when it comes to the rail structure between Mullingar and Athlone. Mullingar is akin to the capital of Westmeath and Athlone is a huge industrial belt in Westmeath. There has been mass migration of students to Athlone Institute of Technology. People from Athlone come to Mullingar to attend the Midland Regional Hospital and for various other reasons. The railway structure from Mullingar via Castletown and Streamstown to Athlone is in pristine condition. There is a rail connection between Athlone and Galway and Athlone and Tullamore. There is also a rail connection from Athlone to Dublin, yet there is no connection between Mullingar and Athlone. Every time it is suggested it is rejected. It is included in the Westmeath County Council county development plan. The greenway has been developed. It runs alongside the railway line and would not interfere with a rail service.

I will give another example. I am sure Deputy Fitzmaurice will go mad when he hears it. The area of east Westmeath has exploded. Kinnegad, Killucan, Raharney, Milltownpass, Rochfortbridge and The Downs have exploded in population. A huge number of people could access the train at Thomastown. There is an area at this location where the train could pull up. Currently, every train that passes it has to pull up to allow the train coming in the other direction to pass.

A local businessman, Mr. Shay Murtagh of Riverdale, was prepared to put in money to help as Iarnród Éireann, like everybody, was down in the dumps during the recession. Mr. Meade knows who I am talking about. We acknowledge that. Mr. Franks knew about this and he was positive and kind of saw the benefit. It would cost approximately €500,000. The company would have had to run more trains but it would have been environmentally friendly and people would have had to park their cars. There are people willing to deal with the company over bits of land to make sure parking would be available. It is common sense. With a gobdaw like me suggesting this solution, one might say, "He is half loony, he knows nothing." That is fair enough but many other people far smarter than me are also looking for this.

My colleague, Mr. Denis Leonard, was a councillor out there. He is a guy with an interest in the environment and he was absolutely on fire about this. The Minister, Deputy Ross, promised on floor of the Dáil in December 2016 to come down but I have never had sight or light of him. It was a solemn commitment given on the floor of the Dáil to come down to see it. Mr. Meade knows about it and somebody has tipped him off about it. It is an example of the type of frustration felt by people. The company could make a major contribution to getting more people to use its service by advertising the rail links. I agree with Deputy Fitzmaurice and although it is not my bailiwick, I go to Westport and its environs. There is a large tourism element in this and people love travelling by train. If they get to Westport, they can go on the bike trail for as long as they like, as some of my relations do. It would all contribute to the economy. Despite being "culchies", as many people call us, we should not be put on the back burner. We are entitled to respect and we pay our taxes. We contribute a fair bit to the economy. We might not have the population levels of cities but we might if we got the same level of infrastructure development and accommodation that everybody else gets.

I am concentrating on Iarnród Éireann this morning and I thank the Chairman for allowing me to do so. I heard good things about Mr. Meade and I was delighted he got the job. The company had a few issues and dealt with them. As a Labour Party representative, I ask him to always look after the working people on the railways and on buses. If he does, it will pay him well. The Minister must have bitten his tongue while saying he would be prepared to have a share option with workers. Hear, hear. The entire matter has somersaulted. The workers play a positive role in ensuring transport in Bus Éireann and Iarnród Éireann. They have taken many cuts over the years and they made a contribution to sustaining services. The company should play a positive role and explore every option to ensure they see decent standards as well.