Results 241-260 of 1,065,744 for in 'Dáil debates' OR speaker:Tom Kitt in 'Committee meetings'

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Pádraig O'Sullivan: I am sitting here kind of amused though I probably should not be. There is obviously a regional disparity in the investment in rail services. I listened to the contributions of the Social Democrats and there is obviously a Cork bias because the Cork representatives, even within my own party, seem reasonably happy with the level of investment we are receiving. Things in the west are starkly...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: I thank the Deputy and very much welcome this debate. As my colleague, Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan, has set out, a major plan, the Cork metropolitan area plan, has been set out and was published on 18 June. Public consultation is currently taking place and it is important that people engage. We are not just planning for the next five or ten years but for the next 50 or 60 years. One of...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Fionntán Ó Súilleabháin: We must do far better for the people of Wicklow and Wexford. For years, I have raised the issue of the inadequate rail network in these counties, including most recently last week at a meeting in Buswells Hotel with representatives of Iarnród Éireann. My hopes were briefly lifted with the all-Ireland strategic rail review when the Wicklow and Wexford rail line was mentioned....

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Jen Cummins: I represent Dublin South-Central which is a densely populated area. A huge amount of building is going on, particularly in areas like Bluebell, Inchicore, Ballyfermot, Park West and around that area. Our access to rail is actually quite limited. The Luas goes through it but it is constantly jammed. Bus services are being re-evaluated at the moment in terms of BusConnect and people are...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Liam Quaide: There have been some exciting developments in east Cork rail over the past 16 years. The return of the Midleton to Cork line in 2009 has been hugely progressive for the region and the number of passengers is increasing year on year. Ten-minute frequencies from 2026 onwards will be a game changer as will the proposed new stations for Water Rock and Carrigtwohill west. Cobh, Carrigtwohill,...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

John Connolly: I welcome the outcome of the rail review study. I particularly welcome the outcome as it pertains to the recommendations it makes for my own constituency and for the west in general, especially the doubling of the rail track to Athenry and the proposed reopening of the western rail corridor. I know the Minister is familiar with this. However, I go back to the publication of the national...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Erin McGreehan: I am very pleased to contribute to these important statements on the all-island rail review recommendations. This is a chance to make a generational change, transform people's lives, connect people and communities across the island, strengthen our economy and, importantly, reduce our carbon emissions. Fianna Fáil welcomes this work, which was undertaken by the Department of...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Martin Kenny: I congratulate the Minister of State on his appointment. It is good to have someone from the west in this role. I know he has always had a strong commitment to the development of the western rail corridor. It always strikes me that the western rail corridor only extends halfway up the west. We need to bring it the rest of the way. It is clear from the map produced with the proposals in...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Jennifer Whitmore: I welcome the all-island strategic rail review. It is a vital step towards connecting the unconnected throughout the country. Ultimately, however, it is a missed opportunity because it is not ambitious enough. Even if it were fully implemented, the review would still leave us behind the Ireland of 1906. It is not often that we look back at the country 100 years ago and say, "Jesus, if we...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Gerald Nash: I will cut to the chase. North Drogheda objectively needs a train station. It should already be in place. I was on Louth County Council more than 20 years ago when we masterplanned the provision of 5,000 new homes. Half of those homes have been or are in the process of being built. These plans included a site for a train station, but then came the crash. Up to half of those homes, as I...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Conor Sheehan: As a public representative from the west of Ireland, I want to talk to the Minister of State as another public representative from the west of Ireland about the need to connect Shannon Airport to the rail network. This can be done within five years. It needs to be included in the NDP review. What a testament it would be to the Minister of State and what a legacy he would leave if he was...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Malcolm Byrne: I have listened in envy to some of my colleagues talk about the wonderful rail services they have and how much more they need, because in this rail review the Rosslare line was an afterthought. Hardly any consideration was given to improving the services south of Wicklow town. While I welcome that we are talking about extending the DART services to Greystones in Wicklow, it is intended in...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

John McGuinness: No pressure.

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Keira Keogh: I thank the Minister of State for being here. I will address the all-Ireland strategic rail review from the perspective of its profound significance to County Mayo. I am lucky to have a door-to-door service from Westport to Dublin, but if I want to go to Galway, which is the nearest city, I would have to go to Athlone and then back to Galway and if I want to go to Sligo, I have to drive or...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: I support my colleague. I well understand why Waterford people might want to come to Cork. I do not think we should deprive them of that opportunity at all. Any time there is a debate on rail infrastructure, there is a fair bit of interest right across the country. That reflects a significant shift in people's mentality in the last 20 or 30 years. If we go back 50 or 60 years or even...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Ciarán Ahern: I am delighted to speak on the all-island rail review. We need to see a major modal shift in how we get ourselves from one place to another on this island so that we are not so dependent on our cars. Rail will obviously play a huge role in that. We have a somewhat sorry history in this country when it comes to rail infrastructure. What was once a fairly comprehensive rail network in the...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Duncan Smith: I welcome the time to speak on this topic. The northern commuter line is one of the most stressed lines in this country. The plan in the all-island strategic review, which is a long-distance project, aims at four-tracking that line. That is a must for towns like Donabate, the population of which is going to increase by up to 5,000 people in the next couple of years, or 25%. It is the...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Mark Wall: I want to talk about my hometown of Athy. I have been dealing with Irish Rail over the last period about increasing the frequency of rail services from the commuter town of Athy into Dublin. I was pleased with a recent response from Irish Rail that told me the imminent DART+ fleet coming on stream would free up additional carriages. We are looking for an hourly service from Athy and also...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (2 Jul 2025)

Louis O'Hara: The differences are striking when we look at a map of Ireland's current rail network compared to the network of 100 years ago. I refer in particular to the absence of infrastructure from the west, the north west and Border counties. The reality is that we have gone backwards in recent decades. Plans are one thing but we need implementation to progress new projects in a timely manner and to...

All-Island Strategic Rail Review: Statements (2 Jul 2025)

Pearse Doherty: Investment in rail infrastructure in the north west is crucial if we are in any way serious about balanced regional development. Donegal is one of the few counties on the island of Ireland that does not have a rail network. That is simply unacceptable. The rail review has proposed linking Derry and Letterkenny, which is crucial for the north-west city region, as well as connectivity with...