Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Deputy Gallagher. He will be aware that rail services are the poor relation to our road network when it comes to investment. No new rail lines have been built in the past decade despite the millions poured into our roads infrastructure in that period.

There was finally some recognition of the potential of the existing rail network in the proposals contained in Transport 21 which were unveiled last November. There is much that is flawed about the Transport 21 plan, most of which involves a re-packaging of previously announced plans. The interests of the west, the south and the north west were not served by the failure to provide for motorways in the Atlantic corridor roads plan. The Western Development Commission's recent report underlined that the gap between the west and the east is greater now than it was seven years ago and that single carriageway roads and other bad infrastructure would cause long-term decline.

The name Atlantic corridor is a misnomer because it ignores a huge chunk of the country that faces onto the Atlantic — west Clare, north Kerry, south Kerry and west Cork. In the same vein, it was shocking to learn that the planned spend on the long-neglected western rail corridor of between €300 million and €400 million is around 1% of the total €34 billion spend.

The decision to re-open the line is a victory for the campaigners on the issue, for people who believe in train services as a viable means of transport, and for the people of County Clare and the west in general. The Minister may be aware of the success in my constituency of the re-opening of the Ennis to Limerick rail line in 1988. Many services are provided to Limerick and an increased frequency of trains travel onward to Dublin, Cork and Waterford.

As someone who uses the service from time to time I can vouch for its comfort. The rail service is preferable to driving through traffic chaos. The story of the remainder of the western rail corridor is a sadder one. Passenger services between Limerick and Claremorris ceased in 1976. Just as with the earlier closure of the west Clare railway in 1952, people were given empty assurances by the Government of the day that they would be compensated with other infrastructural projects.

I urge the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Deputy Gallagher, and his colleague, the Minister, Deputy Cullen, to sanction immediately the proposals submitted by Iarnród Éireann for the re-opening of the Ennis to Athenry section, which is phase one of the rail corridor project. These proposals have been with the Department for more than three months. The delay in sanctioning them has cast doubts on the Government's assurance that phase one of the project would be complete by the end of 2008. That was the timetable agreed by the Taoiseach when he stated that Transport 21 would be completed on time and on budget.

I do not wish to hear that the timetable for the Athenry to Tuam section is for it to be completed in 2011 and that the Tuam to Claremorris section is to be completed in 2014. I already know that. I also do not wish to hear that the cost of the project is commercially sensitive until the public procurement process is complete. I wish to hear the Minister of State at the Department of Transport state whether EU Structural and Cohesion Funds are available for the project, how much is available, whether the Department has applied for such funds and, if not, when it plans to do so. It is my understanding that the Department has until the end of this year to make an application and a further two years to complete the project.

Despite the small investment involved, this project is of great importance to the people of County Clare and the west in general. Phase one of the rail project will provide a valuable regional link between Limerick and Galway via Ennis, which will be of significant benefit to Shannon Airport.

I seek an assurance from the Minister of State that the timetable will be adhered to, that the investment will be made as planned and that the Government will avail of EU grant assistance. I also seek assurances that a bedding down period for the project will be provided when it is up and running so that passengers will be able to avail of low fares as an inducement to use the service and that, subsequently, passenger subsidies will be the same as apply to the rest of the Iarnród Éireann network.

I am delighted the Minister of State at the Department of Transport is in the House and I look forward to hearing positive answers from him in regard to this project. It is vital for infrastructure in County Clare and the west.

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