Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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87. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will outline the improvements made to the rail network across the country in recent years; and if he will outline any plans for further expansion and improvements. [9033/23]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for policy and overall funding of public transport, including rail. The operation, maintenance and renewal of the rail network is a matter for Iarnród Éireann in the first instance.

The Programme for Government – Our Shared Futureincludes a priority to deliver the DART+ programme. The DART+ programme comprises of five projects for the development of rail in the Greater Dublin Area (GDA), with DART+ Fleet and DART+ West being the most advanced. The Programme also includes DART+ South West, DART+ Coastal South and DART+ Coastal North projects. Collectively these projects will extend and/or enhance the current DART system and services west to Maynooth and Celbridge/Hazelhatch, south to Greystones and north to Drogheda.

In December 2021, the Government gave Decision Gate 1 approval under the Public Spending Code for the DART+ Programme and a fleet framework agreement. 185 new carriages have been purchased under this framework in two orders. The first of these carriages will enter operation in 2025 and extend DART services to Drogheda on the Northern Line.

This decision also granted Decision Gate 1 approval under the Code to DART+ West which allowed the project to enter the statutory planning process. The Railway Order for DART+ West was submitted to An Bord Pleanála in July 2022.

As well as the expansion of fleet under the DART+ Programme, which will effectively double capacity on the rail network serving the GDA, 41 new intercity railcars will enter service in 2023. Delivery of these carriages commenced in September 2022 and all units will have arrived by the end of Quarter 1 2023.

Another significant area of investment is the Cork Area Commuter Rail Programme, which represents the largest investment in the rail network in Cork undertaken by the State. The programme comprises a number of separate but interrelated projects. The frequency of a number of rail services in the Cork Metropolitan Area were doubled in July 2022 with a frequency of every 30 minutes to/from Cork-Cobh and Cork-Midleton and a frequency of every 15 minutes to/from Cork and Glounthaune.

Phase 1 of the Cork Area Commuter Rail Programme was included in Ireland’s National Recovery & Resilience Plan, as submitted to the European Commission in 2021. Works associated with Phase 1 are to be completed by end-2026 as required by the European Commission. This will see a €185 million investment (€164m of EU funds) in Cork’s rail infrastructure, which will facilitate the longer-term electrification of the network through construction of a new ‘through’ platform at Kent Station to create an integrated suburban network, re-signalling of the network, and double-tracking from Glounthaune to Midleton.

Funding has been announced for redevelopment of Ceannt Station and track and station improvements at Oranmore in Galway and both projects are scheduled to be completed by 2025. A feasibility study on the Athenry to Galway Corridor to consider the feasibility of incremental improvements in train capacity between Galway and Athenry is now complete. The study considers the nature of infrastructure interventions required to deliver increased service frequency on the line.

The NTA published the Limerick Shannon Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy (LSMATS) in December 2022. The strategy was prepared by the NTA in collaboration with Limerick City and County Council, Clare County Council, and Transport Infrastructure Ireland, with the cooperation of Iarnród Éireann, and provides a roadmap for sustainable transport in the region over the next 20 years.

Proposals for investment in rail under LSMATS include:

- Additional stations at Moyross and Ballysimon (including Park and Ride)

- More frequent train services on the Ennis line and on the Ballybrophy line

- Dual tracking on the line from Limerick Junction to Colbert

- Upgrading of Colbert Station

LSMATS also proposes a detailed feasibility study to determine future investment in rail infrastructure and commuter services in the Limerick area. The proposed study will assess future development in the region, evaluate future demand based on projected increases in population and economic activity and outline medium to long term investment in rail. Options around investment in improving existing infrastructure and investment in new infrastructure will be examined in detail.

In November 2022, the Government approved the final business case for the Waterford North Quays project under Decision Gate 3 of the Public Spending Code. The Government also approved €170.6m funding for the project. This investment includes funding to relocate Plunkett Station to a new location on the North Quays, a move which is supported in the Waterford Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy published by the NTA in December 2022.

As the Deputy may be aware, the Infrastructure Manager Multi Annual Contract (IMMAC) provides the funding framework for the protection and renewal of our railway infrastructure.

This is the fourth year of the five-year IMMAC programme, as approved by Government in 2020, and over the five years of the programme in excess of €1.3billion in Exchequer funding will be made available to support delivery of maintenance work across the network. This funding enables the delivery of safe rail services for passengers and will help improve service reliability, punctuality and journey times.

In 2022 €64 million was allocated from my Department to Iarnród Éireann (IÉ) in respect of the Foynes Line Rehabilitation Works. Further additional funding of €6.4 million was also allocated to IÉ for the renewal of 9.5 miles of track on the line, which will saw the full length of the Ballybrophy line upgraded to continuous welded rail, bringing journey time improvements for passengers. This was additional to the total allocation already provided for in the IMMAC for the year for the entire rail network.

In 2020 July Stimulus provided €18m toward track improvement works and that was further supported by an additional allocation of €25m in Budget 2021; these additional allocations were largely directed toward works on the Dublin – Cork line.

As the Deputy may also be aware, an All-Island Strategic Rail Review is currently underway, having been jointly commissioned by my Department and the Northern Irish Department for Infrastructure. The Review will inform investment in the rail network over the coming decades and, among other things, is considering the potential for improved services and infrastructure along existing and possible future lines on the network. Work on the Review is now at an advanced stage. I look forward to receiving the final report, and it will be published after it receives appropriate approval in Ireland and Northern Ireland.