Minister pledges to protect the Western Rail Corridor for rail use only

Transport Minister Eamon Ryan has assured members of Northern and Western Regional Assembly regarding the future Western Rail Corridor north of Athenry.

He confirmed he undertook to protect the line for rail use only and that this policy would not change while he is in office.

The announcement was made durng a zoom meeting was attended by Galway Councillors Tim Broderick and Jimmy McClearn, members of the Regional Assembly.

Minister Ryan further clarified the he was, on foot of the recommendation of JASPERS, undertaking an “All Island Rail Strategic Review."

This review would look at the role of commuter and rail freight on the Island including the Western Rail Corridor.

“This clarification from the minister refutes any thought of putting a Greenway on the line as he is of the opinion that the development and expansion of rail infrastructure is part of Government Policy in resolving our Climate Action challenges,” stated Councillor Broderick.

“I believe we have a minister who sees the potential in reopening the Western Rail Corridor and wants to protect the rail infrastructure in order to provide rail services in the west.

Councillor McClearn pointed to the need to have a strong rail service to support 'Park and Ride' proposals for the Galway city and the Western Rail Corridor was needed to ensure the effectiveness of these proposals in addressing the traffic issues in the city.

“The minister was very interested in the focus on the Western Rail Corridor and how important its development was in finding solutions for the city traffic problems and the minister demonstrated a great knowledge of the merits of linking the west by rail," stated Councillor McClearn.

The meeting was organised to discuss the upcoming review of the National Development Plan and to brief the minister on the submissions from the Regional Assembly and in particular the need to positively discriminate in favour of the North and Western Region, due to the fact that the region has been downgraded from “A More Developed Region” to “A Region in Transition."

The Northern and Western Region is the only region in Ireland to hold such a status.

The European Parliament’s Committee on Regional Development has categorised the region as a ‘Lagging Region’, which is characterised by extremely low growth and long-term underinvestment in the region.