Carol Nolan (Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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463. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if his Department has conducted a cost-benefit analysis of the commercial value of the Limerick to Ballybrophy railway line and its contribution to the local economy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38394/16]

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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​I presume the Deputy's question is in the context of the Rail Review 2016.

The National Transport Authority (NTA) is currently running a public consultation on rail in Ireland.  It was launched over two weeks ago with the publication of the Rail Review 2016 - which the NTA undertook in conjunction with Iarnród Éireann - together with an NTA consultation document "The Role of Rail in Ireland and Funding its Delivery".  Both documents are available on the NTA's website.

The public consultation process will give the public and all interested parties the opportunity to give their views and contribute to the debate on the future of heavy rail in Ireland.  The public consultation process will run until 18th January 2017 and the NTA will then prepare a report based on the findings; thereafter I intend to bring this report to Government. 

No decisions will be made about the heavy rail network, or individual rail lines, before the public consultation process has concluded and been evaluated.