Seán Kyne (Fine Gael)

The Minister of State is very welcome. First, I acknowledge and commend both the Department of Transport and the Government on commissioning the all-Ireland strategic rail review and the advocacy of the then Minister, Deputy Ryan, and that of the Minister of State. The review is a coherent document and it gives us a picture of where we are at the moment and where we can get to in that vision, which is important for our rail network. The renewed investment in the country's rail infrastructure is very welcome. For too long it was a case of closures and retrenchment. Now it is a case of acknowledging the sustainable and dependable mode of transport that is rail. If we look at where we are at in Europe, we have more to do. The investment received and the work that has been done is hugely important. Looking closer to home, I have been a long-term advocate for the western rail corridor, as has the Minister of State, who has led the charge on this, along with people like Éamon Ó Cuív and Pauline O'Reilly. It is important that we acknowledge those because there were some difficult times, and I have to say there were some nasty online campaigns as well over the years. That was not pleasant.

Phase 1 of the western rail corridor reopened in March 2010 and, after a slow start, understandable in terms of the economic situation at the time, we have seen a growing service. More than 70,000 journeys took place in 2024, far above the levels anticipated during the planning of this. I look forward to investment in some of the stations in phase 1, which was previously inadequate in terms of the length of the station platforms. We need longer trains to cater for the demand and, obviously, longer platforms. For too long, passengers in the first phase had to stand for long periods because we did not have the extra carriages.

Oranmore station was built as part of phase 1. It is now an extremely busy station with a packed car park and work under way to facilitate a second platform and provide a public transport corridor to Galway for the new Oranmore suburb of Garraun, which has plans for large housing developments. Last week, the underpass was completed to help increase the capacity of Oranmore, and a multistorey carpark is also planned. None of this would have happened without phase 1 of the western rail corridor. It was criticised at the time. Those who advocated for it and supported it were laughed at. There is no one laughing now. It is seen as a strategic, proper, sustainable investment.

The next stop is Tuam and Claremorris, and it is very heartening to see the next phase of the western rail corridor included in the strategic review. Tuam, with a population of 10,000 and a hinterland of tens of thousands more, will be connected to Galway, Dublin, Limerick and Mayo by train. The station in Tuam, with its large land bank ,will be focused on investment, transport and business, fitting for the largest town in the county. Its residents will have an alternative mode of transport to Galway if they want to avoid the traffic jams around the city. Thousands of people from north Galway and south Mayor travel to Galway every day for college, work, healthcare and business. This takes too long, but at last, the decision to turn north from Athenry has been made. I hope I get an invitation to the turning of the sod, whenever that is, which I hope is soon. The redevelopment of Ceannt Station is very welcome and it is great to see the increase in capacity and number of platforms. I see the review indicates double-tracking the line between Athenry and Galway, and I wonder if there is a timeframe for that work.

There is no better builder of balanced regional development than good infrastructure. Along the Atlantic arc we need good roads, good grid capacity and good rail service.The review is very welcome. We need to see it implemented as a matter of urgency. I acknowledge the Western Inter-County Rail Committee and all the local authorities, from Clare to Donegal, that have supported the cause of the western rail corridor and done much to preserve the alignment and track. I also acknowledge the West on Track community organisation, which drove the project in a determined, professional and focused way, as well as my colleagues, Councillor Peter Feeney, the Minister of State, Councillor Michael Connolly and others in the region. Of course, Dr. John Bradley, who passed away recently, played a pivotal role as well. While Claremorris is the first phase, we need to progress this to Sligo and onwards towards Donegal. This is a great opportunity to connect the Atlantic corridor in terms of rail infrastructure.