Mark Duffy (Fine Gael)

The Minister is very welcome. I thank him for his work in an exciting period in Ireland's ambitions for transport. As he outlined, there are many exciting and ambitious projects being proposed at different stages across the country. BusConnects will be a very positive measure in improving connectivity and access for people across the cities. The improvements to the regional bus networks have been welcomed, while the expansion of rail services to different regions across Ireland and the reduction in fares have seen a pronounced increase in users of the services.

The Minister outlined the many ambitious plans for rail that were at different stages. MetroLink is a real statement of intent, if it can proceed as we would like, to transform the city centre and connectivity from Dublin Airport into the city. Another key project the Minister outlined coming from the all-island rail review was the western rail corridor. Being from Mayo and understanding the importance of transport infrastructure to rural communities, I cannot overstate the importance of the delivery of the western rail corridor in that first phase from Athenry to Claremorris. The track - about 33 km - is there and in public ownership. Various estimates have been made and evolve all the time because of inflation. That investment would be value for money, given that the land is in public ownership and can connect the western seaboard, a region that has been identified as lagging in terms of investment and is ranked sixth from the bottom in European regions for transport infrastructure. The west needs positive discrimination and investment. The western rail corridor is a project that can help revitalise towns and villages across the west. The land is in public ownership and can have a massive benefit for the region as a phase 1 project. In time, I would love to see it being connected to Sligo. If we can move at speed to deliver the western rail corridor in the coming years, we should set out metrics to determine whether it is feasible for the Sligo line. If and when the western rail corridor is reopened, I believe it will prove to be hugely successful and will push the business case for the continuation to Sligo.

On regional airports, in County Mayo we have Knock Airport, which is a roaring success. I compliment the team there, including Joe Gilmore, who is leading the line. Some 834,000 passengers went through Knock last year. That is an incredible figure for a regional airport. It is supporting and complementing the impressive figures from Shannon, which are at about 2 million passengers per year. Improved connectivity on our roads can also help take pressure off the likes of Dublin Airport, where travel times to the airport are being reduced constantly because of improvements in road infrastructure. The connectivity east to west from Mayo to Dublin is improving and the travel times are decreasing. The Scramoge to Ballaghaderreen road will be a great addition for improving the attractiveness of Knock Airport as a destination for people to fly form.

This is an exciting moment for transport. There are significant projects that can help connect and bring communities and people closer together and to our key infrastructure and our towns, cities and villages. I compliment the Minister's work.

At a more granular level in our towns, local transport plans have been created. I understand that, through the NTA, a lot of funding has been spent on active travel measures. Perhaps that is more the case in cities, but these towns have created local transport plans to connect schools, workplaces and communities. They need to be supported in their delivery of them. In my own town of Ballina, and as the Minister will know well, we have a local transport plan that has recommendations to help unlock the congestion challenges, which are a big issue in the town, and to do with road infrastructure like the N26, tying us closer to key pieces of infrastructure in key cities like Dublin. Key airports like Knock can have a significant and positive economic impact.

Regarding the western rail corridor and the west's connectivity, the pharmaceutical company Hollister in Ballina announced just last week an €80 million investment, supported by the IDA. Coca Cola is also based in Ballina and we have pharmaceuticals in Westport and Castlebar that can benefit a great deal from the freight lines all the way down to Foynes Port. This can have a positive impact from an economic point of view as well as for passenger connectivity.

I welcome the Minister's work in such a consequential Ministry that affects many people's lives every day. The Government is taking key steps to support what the Minister requires financially to make the transformative change on our island.Projects such as the western rail corridor, MetroLink and BusConnects, along with supporting regional airports, could have a greatly transformative effect on our whole economy and the quality of life of our citizens. The Minister has my full support for anything we can do to advocate for and support the delivery of these projects.