Madam, - While Brendan Quinn (October 16th) is surely right to be concerned about the dearth of facilities for walkers, the scrubbing of the Collooney to Claremorris section of the projected Western Rail Corridor - or any other part of it - in favour of a walking-cycling route is not the way to go. Nor should the old Dungarvan-Waterford railway suffer the same fate.
Collooney, Claremorris, Dungarvan and other small towns are now commuter satellites of larger centres such as Sligo, Castlebar and Waterford. The inadequate roads are clogged with their cars and vehicles, so good rail transport links are vitally necessary. Thankfully, the people are back; let us cater for them. In the past, we have been far too good at closing down things, such as the achievements of the master railway builders of the Victorian era. They are still far in advance of what passes for today's vision. Let us therefore save what we can, and be glad we still have the opportunity.
The dedicated work over several years of the people behind the Western Rail Corridor is to be commended, and may success crown their efforts as soon as possible. Walkers may then travel by rail up the western seaboard to Sligo, but what awaits them there, in Mr Quinn's home county, might perhaps also exercise his mind.
Walkers have been made unwelcome, abused and even assaulted in the Benbulben-Gleniff area of the famous Yeats country. The closure of long-standing accesses has irresponsibly been supported by farming bodies such as the local IFA and ICSA, without a peep out of the local authority. This is the real crisis for walkers, and for outdoors tourism, which has collapsed over recent years not just in Sligo but all across the western half of the country for the reasons I have given.
This organisation is committed to lobbying for legislation which will require the identification, mapping and legal protection of our wealth of old tracks and paths on to the uplands, many of which at present are blocked and closed off by landowners looking for yet more of taxpayers' money.
It is clear that Mr Quinn's heart is in the right place in wanting to do his bit for walkers and cyclists. But walkers will not be turned on by being confined to old railway cuttings, and less so when it means that such usage will be at the expense of the best western regeneration project in decades - the realisation of the Western Rail Corridor linking Limerick and Sligo.
There is a bigger picture to be considered - that of the right for all, particularly the coming generations, to share access to our common outdoor heritage. We therefore invite Mr Quinn to take a look at what has been allowed to happen in his own county, and to make an appropriate protest to Sligo County Council. - Yours, etc,
MICHAEL MURPHY, Hon Sec, Western Branch, Keep Ireland Open, Westport, Co Mayo.