Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Noonan, to the House.

John McGahon (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I am bringing this issue to the House today for a number of reasons, but the first key reason is that since this Government has come into office, as the Minister of State will know, there has been a very strong shift towards the use of public transport in so many guises and forms. The way we can encourage people onto more public transport is to provide the opportunities for them to use it in the first instance.

How do we do that? Let us look at Dunleer train station in County Louth, for example. Dunleer is the second biggest town in County Louth after Ardee in terms of a rural hinterland. It had a train station that closed in 1981. The other two train stations in County Louth are in the middle of Drogheda and the middle of Dundalk. Unless a person lives in either of those two urban areas, the concept of getting a train is just not open to them. It is physically impossible with traffic and everything else to either get into Drogheda in the morning, because of where the station is centred, or even into Dundalk at the same time.

A year ago, during the county development plan process in County Louth, the National Transport Authority, NTA, poured cold water on the concept of opening a train station in Dunleer. It said it did not have the population. When one takes away the two populations of Dundalk and Drogheda, the population of the mid-Louth area is 25,000 people. However, it is not just that mid-Louth area; one has to take into consideration south Monaghan and the Kells-Slane-Nobber area of County Meath as well. It is a very substantial hinterland. The thing behind this is that, as I said, if we want to get more people off our motorways, out of cars and onto public transport, it is very difficult to do that when we are not providing them with various and a myriad of options.

Where we have seen in Limerick, for example, the reopening of a railway with the Foynes-Limerick line, there is now a real opportunity to consider some of our disused and closed railway stations around the country. Alongside the national rail strategy, which is taking place, there should be a dedicated Government strategy or policy examining the concept of reopening disused railways. I am not talking about reopening disused railways in areas where they would be of no use. For example, in County Louth there was a very famous one that used to go out to Greenore and Omeath. Something such as that would not be feasible. However, Dunleer train station is right on the main Dublin to Belfast line. That whole part of the island of Ireland is part of the economic engine of the island of Ireland.One other issue we have to consider is making sure it is not the case that people from outside the Dublin region are pouring into Dublin to go to work. This has to be able to show that we can provide jobs and economic opportunities in place like counties Louth or Wicklow or even in Newry and further afield in order that those people are then able to commute into our area, and that is not being sucked into a Dublin region. The concept of reopening Dunleer train station should strongly be considered.

I do not agree with the concept that the population is not there to do so. The population is set to grow dramatically by 2024. We want to expand the population of County Louth from 100,000 to 250,000 by 2050. At what stage, therefore, do we start to reopen railway lines? Do we just have to sit and wait for another ten years until the population grows further? If we provide the opportunities to increase public transport and get more people off our roads, reopening railway stations in particular areas such as Dunleer would be a good move. I am keen to hear the Government's views on that.

Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator. I agree with everything he said with regard to the modal shift. Trying to move people out of private cars and onto public transport is a critically important policy from a climate perspective but also from a development and balanced regional development perspective.

As the Senator may be aware, the Minister for Transport has responsibility for policy and overall funding of public transport, including rail. However, the operation, maintenance and renewal of the track network and stations on the network, including the former station at Dunleer, is a matter for Iarnród Éireann in the first instance.

The Senator may also be aware that Programme for Government: Our Shared Future commits toward a fundamental change in the nature of transport in Ireland. The Minister for Transport believes that rail has a critical and crucial role to play in achieving change. It is vital that we address the constraints in the rail sector and deliver a network that allows rail to fulfill its potential in pursuit of decarbonisation priorities, rural connectivity objectives and as a generator of prosperity for people across Ireland.

To this end, the Department of Transport co-commissioned an all-island strategic rail review, to which the Senator referred, with the Northern Irish Department for Infrastructure. The review will establish the strategic context for investment in rail across the island in the coming decades. Work on the review is at an advanced stage and a key consideration of the analysis is how the rail network can support regional and rural connectivity, encompassing service stopping patterns and the provision of stations.

In addition to the strategic rail review, the eastern and midland regional spatial and economic strategy supports the continued development of the Dublin-Belfast economic corridor through targeted investment in transport infrastructure and services, recognising its importance as a link to the core European Union trans-European transport network, TEN-T. The complementarity between EU-level investment priorities and local services would need to be considered, however, as would the potential integration with any relevant local development plans. The reopening of Dunleer station is not currently included in the Louth county development plan.

The delivery of any new rail infrastructure involves a multi-agency approach in the planning, design, funding and construction of a scheme. To protect the taxpayer, there are also guidelines and requirements in place surrounding the release of funds for capital infrastructure projects that must be adhered to by all agencies wishing to draw down public funds. These are set out under the public spending code drawn up by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.

Before Iarnród Éireann can receive public funding to proceed with any rail infrastructure scheme, the following conditions must be met: the proposal must be fully aligned with transport and planning policy; it must have a robust business case in line with the public spending code, as well as the transport-sector-specific common appraisal guidance; and a full demand assessment using the National Transport Authority’s regional modelling system is required as an input to the business case. The Minister for Transport is not aware of any current plans to reopen the station at Dunleer or to progress a business case. As noted, however, potential services and infrastructure along the existing and potential new rail lines are being considered as part of the strategic rail review.

The Minister has been assured by Iarnród Éireann that it will engage with any parties proposing station reopening projects such as Dunleer. Iarnród Éireann will ensure that no action is undertaken which would preclude any future reopening of the station. I hope that gives the Senator some assurance. A number of measures need to be addressed before a project like this can, excuse the pun, be brought back on track. It is important that it is reflected in the development plans as well and as I stated, that there is an aspiration and business case for such a project.

John McGahon (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State very much. I see where he is coming from. This is an issue that has been talked about for 40 years. I did not come to the House today expecting to be told that Government is going to look at it. This has been an ongoing issue. This type of stuff with the regulations made sense before Covid-19. There has been a total sea change in Irish attitudes towards modal shift, however, particularly under this Government over the last two and a half years.

This is a good example of how what Government plans to do and what it wants to do are actually at odds in officialdom. To me, this speaks of officialdom prior to the Covid era. People do not want to sit in their cars for two hours on the motorway into Dublin anymore. They want extra opportunities to take public transport. That is why we need some sort of particular strategy to be able to look at this and highlight the fact that if a person is coming from Dunleer, he or she does not want to have to drive to Dublin. People want accessible public transport. That is why we need to take a brand new approach and a new look at this. These types of regulations, while they are important, are very much a pre-Covid concept. New things should be considered when we have such a movement towards a modal shift in getting more people on public transport.

Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I agree wholeheartedly with the Senator in terms of the aspiration. A step-and-stage process has to be adhered to regardless of whether it is pre or post Covid. Certainly, there has been a sea change. The reduction in fares by 20%, and 50% for young people, has encouraged and put far more people back on to our public transport network. It is critically important that we as a Government respond to that and provide the infrastructure, facilities and funding in order that Bus Éireann and Iarnród Éireann can meet the demand.

At present, there are no plans for the reopening of the station at Dunleer or to open a station in north Drogheda. Iarnród Éireann has assured the Minister for Transport that it will engage with any parties proposing such projects and will ensure that no action is undertaken that could preclude any future reopening of the station. That offers some assurance to the Senator that this is open for consideration.

As I said, a business case must be made for it. The Senator certainly put forward a very good argument this morning. The next stage lays with the local authorities, in particular. It is important to highlight it in this forum. It is critically important that we expand our rail network and expand the opportunities for people to use public transport.

Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State and Senator McGahon for that excellent discussion in the contemporary context.