Brennan to seek dramatic rail service improvement

Dramatic improvements will be sought in the speed and regularity of intercity rail services in the short-term, the Minister for Transport Mr Brennan said today.

Mr Brennan welcomed the publication today of a Strategic Rail Review which contains a 20-year €8.5 billion plan to develop the rail network. However, he said he disagreed with the plan in two key respects.

"Firstly, I think the time-scale involved is not urgent enough. Secondly, I don't agree with the report in its coolness towards disused and lightly used lines. I think it is proper that we leave open to local business communities, to local authorities to land strategies to seek to develop these lines," he said.

The plan prioritises reducing the journey times and increasing the frequency on intercity routes by 2008. This would be assisted by improvements in rolling stock on these lines.

A second priority was improving commuter lines. "What the public should see are new carriages, better times, and all round a better timetabling," the Minister said.

A legacy of mostly single-track lines apart from the Dublin - Cork and Dublin - Belfast routes, has resulted in significant operational limitations and constraints, according to the report.

However, report noted strong demand for rail services with 24 million intercity commuter journeys in 2002 and a conservative estimate was for 54 million in 20 years time.

The plan suggests reform and restructuring of rail freight services and the possibility of private sector participation. Addressing this the Minister said increased rail freight was good for the economy but that Iarnród Éireann was losing up to €15 million a year on the service.

"My message to Iarnród Éireann would be simple if a little crude: if you can make it work than make it work but if you can't, come and talk to me and we'll see can we can open it to third party access and see if some other company can make it work," he said.

The sale or development of non-essential Iarnród Éireann properties is expected to contribute to the cost of developing rail services.

Although the report did not recommend the development of a Sligo to Cork western corridor the Minister said he favoured this and had already given the go-ahead for assessments of the cost.

The review said a Galway to Cork rail link (via Limerick) would support the overall development approach being taken at national level under the spatial strategy.

"This report is a framework, an agenda, but it is not a set of handcuffs," the Minister concluded.