Shane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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72. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the population and employment figures needed in the Navan and Dunshaughlin areas of County Meath to commence a high-capacity rail link between Navan and Dublin; and if he has he sought details from Meath County Council in respect of planning approvals and projected applications for the areas in making the determination that forecasts do not justify the expenditure and taken this into consideration. [6698/19]

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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The Deputy is aware that the National Transport Authority (NTA) has a statutory responsibility for the development and implementation of a Transport Strategy for the Greater Dublin Areaand such a Strategywas approved and published in 2016.

As part of its development, a detailed analysis of the “Navan Corridor” was conducted and is indeed available to view on the NTA’s website, at www.nationaltransport.ie. That study provides extensive detail on the forecasted demand and the design capacity offered by a full range of possible public transport modes, including heavy rail.

Based on that extensive analysis, the NTA’s Strategystated that the level of travel demand between Navan, Dunshaughlin and various stations to Dublin city centre was insufficient to justify the development of a high-capacity rail link at that current time.

As the Deputy knows, the Strategyinstead proposed a bus-based approach, with an enhanced bus service along the corridor and the development of a bus hub in Navan.

However, the Strategyand Project Ireland 2040both state the issue of a rail link to Navan should be kept under review, which will take into account the scale of new and planned development along the route, and that in the meantime the corridor previously identified for a Navan rail link should be protected from development.

The issue of settlement and employment strategies is a matter for the relevant regional and local authorities in line with the overarching requirements set by the National Planning Framework.

In the draft Regional Spatial and Economic Strategypublished by the Eastern and Midland Regional Assembly, and I note that Navan is designated as a “Key Town” and that such towns “shall act as economic drivers and provide for strategic employment locations to improve their economic base by increasing the ratio of jobs to workers.”

In line with the commitments given both in the NTA's Transport Strategy for the Greater Dublin Areaand in the Government's Project Ireland 2040, the issue of a heavy rail link to Navan will be reviewed by the NTA in line with its statutory obligation to review its GDA Transport Strategyevery six years.