Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am glad to hear the Minister confirm again that he does not have any intention of closing the line. However, I could be forgiven for suspecting that Irish Rail does not have much of an appetite to keep it open. I still insist that this particular report, which would have been driven and very much determined by Irish Rail, is a flawed one. The Minister and the Taoiseach may not be captive to it, which is good news. I am sure the experienced external consultants referred to are very experienced, but they would have been totally captive to the way Irish Rail presented the information to them. What input did the Commission for Railway Regulation, CRR, have into the review, particularly in respect of attaching infrastructure costs to specific routes in the network? CRR is mandated to independently monitor the infrastructure costs of the network. That is distinct from the role of the NTA in awarding PSO services contracts, which is purely related to the operation of the services. The NTA is, therefore, not expert on infrastructure costs of maintenance and renewal.

The Minister must agree with me that assumptions on data on those infrastructure costs are critical to any analysis of route profitability. Although he says that neither he nor the Taoiseach have any intention of closing it, God knows that there may be a change of Government one of these days, and maybe Irish Rail will get its evil way and force the closure.

The Minister said that more money is being invested in this area. Is any money specifically targeted at the Rosslare-Dublin line? At the moment an express train runs from Gorey to Dublin, which is good. What about a train from Rosslare to Wexford and Enniscorthy, and which then goes on an express run to Dublin? The line needs help. I know it is not used by an awful lot of people, but we can change that. It would be a good thing to do all-round.

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