Michael Lowry (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

By early 2025, we will have a new Government and a new European Commission and Parliament. Over the coming months, big policy decisions will be made that will shape our future until 2030 and beyond. As a country we are running to catch up on infrastructure required for a growing population. When it comes to airports, which are critical to our success as an island nation, the passenger cap at Dublin Airport has highlighted the abject failure of aviation policy, leading to an embarrassing public row. This daft situation continues while opportunities and solutions at Shannon and Cork airports are ignored.

Shannon Airport has the infrastructure and capacity to handle 3 million more passengers. Likewise, Cork Airport has the capacity for an additional 2 million passengers. Ireland does not have an airport capacity problem, it actually has a policy problem. That should be turned into a national opportunity. By addressing the policy issues Ireland can transform its national airport network into a cohesive system that supports balanced regional development and enhances national connectivity.

Dublin Airport has severe constraints. At times it is choked with passengers and clogged with slow excess, car parking and accommodation issues. Ireland is struggling to meet binding decarbonisation targets. Of the 7 million journeys between the west of Ireland and Dublin Airport, almost 4 million are by inbound tourists destined for the west of Ireland. These tourists would prefer, and should be able, to land at Shannon Airport rather than travelling to and from Dublin.

Shannon Airport's catchment area contains 38% of the population but accounts for only 4% of Ireland's airport traffic. We are relying on Dublin and the already strained infrastructure of Dublin city to accommodate 86% of air traffic. This is happening despite the fact that the primary objective of 40% of passengers is to visit locations beyond Dublin. This situation is inefficient and imprudent.

Failing to utilise fully and maximize the current potential of Shannon and Cork airports which can immediately handle an additional 5 million passengers is not only short-sighted but in the current atmosphere and climate is irresponsible. As an island nation we can no longer afford the risk of one airport becoming a single point of failure. Shannon airport is the under-utilised resource that can immediately assist with constraint problems.

We must deliver a national aviation policy that brings passengers to where they wish to go. That will relieve congestion in Dublin and deliver connectivity to the Shannon region, including north Tipperary. It will further stimulate tourism and bring about investment and economic growth in the region. We have three major State-owned airports, Dublin, Shannon and Cork. Talk of capacity constraints is an artificially created bind created by the tunnel vision of our aviation policymakers. We must take the opportunity to review strategy and set out a strong, sustainable policy for the development of Irish aviation across the regions.

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