Transport museum proposed for Galway rail station site

An Taisce in Galway has called for a transport museum to be included in plans for the redevelopment of the city's bus and rail station.

According to the heritage body, the many historic limestone buildings, rail track and artefacts on site could be used to create a significant tourist amenity.

An Taisce says the site would be more appropriate than Howth, Co Dublin, where there is a transport museum.

CIÉ, Galway City Council and private enterprise are looking at the possibility of redeveloping the station to include a commercial development incorporating a hotel, apartments, a shopping centre and a revamped bus and rail station.

However, according to Mr Derrick Hambleton, chairman of the Galway branch of An Taisce, the development should also include a transport museum.

Criticising the Howth museum, he said: "It is obvious that in any other European country a transport museum would be much better laid out and provided for than seems to be the case in Howth."

Even without the rivalry there could be room for both museums.

There were 122 steam preservation societies in the UK, he said, many of which had working trains running on lengths of track.

He also said there were "umpteen rail museums dedicated to exhibiting the past glories of steam".

He argued that Ceannt Station could provide an excellent backdrop to a tourist amenity based around "a historic rail museum complete with track in the heart of our city".

Mr Hambleton was also critical of the recent document, Developing Sustainable Tourism in Galway: A Framework for Action, which was introduced by the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, Mr O'Donoghue, in Glenlo Abbey recently.

It was ironic, he said, that the Glenlo Abbey Hotel had passing through its grounds the line of the original Galway-Clifden railway, yet nowhere in the 78 pages was there a mention of steam railways.

"The route of the Galway-Clifden railway line is in many places extant and not yet built upon.

"Perhaps here is site of the 'flagship' tourist attraction which is suggested in that report?" Mr Hambleton asked.

Meanwhile, Galway Chamber of Commerce has confirmed that it is in negotiations with the Department of Defence over land near Oranmore which the chamber feels could be used to relocate Galway Regional Airport.

The chamber, which owns the airport, has pointed out that the development potential of the existing airport is limited.

A location close to the city at Oranmore would give all the benefits of open space over the bay for use as a flightpath and would also offer the potential to have a longer runway, catering for larger aircraft.

While larger aircraft could land at Shannon and Knock airports, the chamber pointed out, the road infrastructure from Knock was poor, while the travel time to Shannon, pending the completion of the Ennis by-pass, was prohibitive.