Aidan Davitt (Fianna Fail)

I want to speak about our rail infrastructure, particularly the line from Dublin Connolly to Sligo. Mullingar is on the line. It is quite a large and growing town. It is well supplied with the infrastructure of a modern town, with a link road and a dual carriageway all the way to Dublin. There are slight complications with water but it is extremely well served and there are many options in this regard. The power is quite good and the national grid has been upgraded in the area recently. There has been some improvement on the train line recently, with extra trains and new carriages, but dual rail tracks between Connolly Station and Mullingar would be a great help. Mullingar has a large conurbation outside the commuter area that stretches beyond Maynooth and towards Enfield. Mullingar should come under this general upgrade. Improvement and upgrade of the dual line would be part of this process. This is something we should look at in the national infrastructure programme.