Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail)

I too welcome the Minister of State to the House and acknowledge how much time he has spent in the Seanad in recent weeks dealing with legislation. This Bill is one of the most important to come before us in this session. It has been around for some time and I am happy that it is now in the Seanad and moving towards its final stages. We on this side of the House will do anything necessary to ensure its speedy passage. I welcome Senator Paddy Burke's comments that his colleagues will co-operate in the passage of the Bill.

The origins of the Bill lie in a derailment in Knockcroghery in 1997 as a result of which an independent review was established. The subsequent report showed that under-investment in the rail infrastructure had compromised rail safety leading to the derailment. This lowering of safety standards due to poor investment led to other minor accidents over the years.

The Government at the time decided to take a proactive approach. It had two options, one, to do nothing and allow the rail infrastructure to disappear over time, keeping services on certain lines at a reduced speed; or two, to grasp the nettle, find the money and invest in the infrastructure. This was difficult because it involved making up for the sins of omission of successive Governments which did not invest in upgrading the rail infrastructure.

We should all recognise the efforts made by the Leader of this House, Senator O'Rourke, who as Minister for Public Enterprise fought her corner in Cabinet when maybe there was less money available than now. She can take pride in the work she did to lay the foundation for Transport 21. It is critically important to enact this Bill and we do not want it to be delayed in this House.

The DART has been upgraded recently, with more frequent and longer trains, and the extension of some of the facilities around the rail lines. Commuter services into Dublin from various areas on the outskirts have also increased. In County Clare the trains on the Ennis to Limerick line are more frequent which is most welcome.

Work has been done to reduce the number of accidents, which is at the root of the Bill. Now we are ensuring the legislation is put in place to prevent further derailments. It is important also to reduce the risk of accidents, in line with international best practice. The powers of inspection, investigation and enforcement created for the proposed railway safety commission, about which Senator Paddy Burke spoke, will ensure that future rail operations in an expanded environment will minimise risk. The obligation the Bill places on railway companies to prepare a safety management system that will be documented in the safety case to which the Minister of State referred will ensure the development by the railway companies of a new focus on safety, on a new ethos of safety and on the maintenance of safety standards. That is critically important with the extra investment being made, and the new companies being involved. Luas, for example, is clearly a separate company to Iarnród Éireann. We will see a great deal more activity in terms of upgrading the western rail corridor and the extra work in and around Cork. With all these companies involved, and all the different projects going on, it will be critical that the overarching provisions of the Bill are in place to ensure there is no fall-off in safety standards.

The establishment of the railway investigation unit as part of the railway safety commission is important, particularly as it will provide the wide-ranging powers necessary to ensure that the cause of accidents is investigated at an early stage, and established without delay or equivocation. It is only through understanding why accidents happen that we can increase their prevention and ensure nothing like the case referred to occurs in the future. The provision to establish the independent statutory public body, the railway safety advisory council, comprising representatives of various organisations with an interest in rail, rail procurement, rail management and operation, is important because it brings together the significant players in the sector, ensuring best practice is followed at all times.

It would be remiss not to recognise today the proposals made by Government in the past few days with regard to the expansion not just of rail infrastructure but of the entire Irish rail network and transportation network, including roads. It is significant that the Government has taken the decision to reopen the western rail corridor and extend it. The line from Ennis to Galway will open up a significant commuter belt which will be welcomed by Clare and the entire western region. We would all like to see the western rail corridor extended all the way from Limerick to Collooney without delay, and onwards to Sligo, but the Government efforts to extend the line on a phased basis are welcome. The extension works need to be expedited.

The rail spur to Shannon Airport, which will ultimately tag onto the western rail corridor, was mentioned in the Transport 21 plans but not as specifically as I would have liked. I know Iarnród Éireann is currently conducting a feasibility study on the spur, and if a positive business case can be made for it through that study, I hope the Government will be in a position to provide the necessary funding to put it in place. It is essential that the western rail corridor provides access to what is a key piece of infrastructure in the west. I know the Government is serious about the national spatial strategy and the plank of balanced regional development is in line with the recent transport announcements, ensuring that the key access points to the region, particularly Shannon Airport as part of the gateway strategy — Shannon being recognised as a gateway town — are taken into account. I hope some work can proceed in that area.

It is important that the western seaboard be recognised as having the potential to correspond with the eastern coast in terms of having the Atlantic corridor road along the west coast. Together with the western rail corridor it will assist in providing a counterbalance, and create the potential for developing growth both in investment and in tourism infrastructure in the west.

Senator Paddy Burke raised a number of points, including the issue of level crossings. We must address that matter without delay — I am aware Iarnród Éireann is working on it. In resolving the issue we must take into account the needs of those affected, in particular farmers. Within the farming community there are specific groups of people who need to be assisted in this regard. I am thinking first of dairy farmers, who need to move cows in the mornings and evenings. Beef or cattle farmers only have to herd their cattle on a daily basis and do not have to bring their animals to and fro. They can perhaps afford to take them by tractor, trailer or truck and find a bridge rather than go directly across the railway line. We must however give due consideration to dairy farmers who need to move their cows twice daily. We need to consider putting in place the necessary bridges or underpasses. I understand that from a safety point of view it is probably easier to construct an underpass than a bridge, but at any rate investment is needed to protect our dairy farmers.

I agree with Senator Paddy Burke regarding freight. Those of us who travel to and from Dublin on a weekly basis, usually very early in the morning or late at night, find that the roads are becoming increasingly cluttered with heavy commercial goods vehicles, particularly at night, avoiding the congestion that tends to build up during the day. Many people involved in Irish transportation systems probably share my view that our railways are an underutilised asset, particularly at night, when standard commuter services are not in operation. Without any cost to the State, we could, as Senator Paddy Burke noted, allow international operators to utilise, through some kind of tendering or contract process, the infrastructure which is there. They could then deliver a freight service which would not conflict with what Iarnród Éireann has become very good at, namely passenger traffic and management. I would like to see that happen as quickly as possible.

To some extent there has been an effort to undermine the great work done in particular by the Minister of State, Deputy Callely, in getting the metro included as part of the Transport 21 agenda. Any modern European city the size of Dublin has an underground travel system. Considering how Dublin is growing, it is important we put such an infrastructure in place, because surface travel has limited capacity. This is the time to make the investment and put the infrastructure in place so that the city can continue to grow.

I was disappointed to hear the comments of one individual, whom I will not name, but who is involved in the airline business. This person has done extremely well from the growth of Dublin's population, and incidentally provides a very good service in his area. He has developed his business on the back of a thriving economy and a growing city, yet in his mind the issue is only about the passengers he wants, and how they get to the airport.

The metro link will provide much more than a service to the airport. It will serve the airport but will go onwards to Swords. There is a substantial developing community in that north County Dublin area which will use the metro on a daily basis to get to and from the city. I do not see why the person I mentioned should make the comments he made, undermining a great achievement of the Minister of State in ensuring the metro was included in the transport plan, and blackmailing the Government into pandering to his agenda in order to increase his profits and make his company more attractive on the stock market. I hope that people will see his comments in that light, rather than as those of someone who has a real interest in the development of a transport infrastructure for this country. It is quite clear that this man does not have such an interest, and little heed should be paid to his comments.