Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

The latter is a complex issue and I do not have details of it here. I do not have an update but I will try and come back to the Deputy with more information with regard to that.

With the introduction of the assembly up North, and even if that does not take place, we will have to look at some mechanism of advancing the strategic rail review. It sets out recommendations in respect of line speed across the range of different type of routes that we have. Deputy Crowe will have heard, as will Deputy Ó Cuív who is beside him, this concept that we do the western rail corridor right the way from Rosslare to Ballina-Westport. We need to look at that as a whole. It is not only for passenger traffic; it is also for freight traffic.

I do not know if line speed is the key issue there. First, we need to connect up the missing pieces and also develop frequency. If passengers were given a choice between a more frequent service - earlier and later trains - versus investing in faster ones, frequency might be what we would go for first and foremost because it is very popular. Even though, as the Deputy states, it can be quicker to drive, people get stuck in traffic, they have to park, they have to pay for the parking and they have all the inconvenience of that. People are answering with their feet. When we put in public transport service, the demand goes up. The frequency and the length of the service is what we should invest in.

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