The Strategic Rail Review will consider how the rail network on the island can improve sustainable connectivity between major cities, enhance regional accessibility including to the North West and support balanced regional development.
Pretty disappointed with the quality of material presented for a project of this magnitude. Not much to provoke thought or engage on for the public at large; responses like to be an echo chamber of the usual interest groups.
They could have done with elaborating on some of their objectives, in a practical sense for rail users.
It feels rushed but the project was awarded end of July. Have they gone early to avoid trickier optioneering type engagement down the line? or is there another engagement proposed at a later stage?
Also, what does the goal 'achieve economic and financial feasibility' mean?
There's nothing in it to consult on????
Very comprehensive document on rail links to west Cork
I am not affiliated with them.
it would be correct to deliver a railway back in west cork but i can't see how they would deliver one now given i believe part of the alinement has been taken over, and of course the whole lot of the line was obliterated in the first place.
getting it through the city would require a tunnel, even if the main line had remained bypassing and removing the city railway would have been prudent.
so i can't see it being done, as much as i would support the campaign.
I'm not sure why we would want to bring back trains on the old alignments. Those alignments close decades ago and were built when the country and our population was quite different. The alignments were restricted to the amount of civil engineering works capable by victorian engineers. We'd be better off coming up with new alignments that serve our current population locations using alignments to faster modern alignment requirements.
I stopped reading when they stated that 2,500 was a major population centre.
'Comprehensive'? Are you sure you don't mean 'Delusional'?
Would be great to see the towns of west Cork connected to the city by rail. But new lines at this point are very far happening. Modernising the existing network has to be priority.
Exactly, the focus need to be on strengthen the core network before we start tacking bits on to the periphery.
Think someone failed to read the terms of reference, this review is about regional rail and connections between major population centres
"The Review’s focus is not on commuter rail services within the major cities, but it will consider the interactions between proposed improvements to inter-urban rail and existing, or proposed, commuter rail services."
Is there any suggestion when the strategic rail reviews findings will be published?
It was supposed to be published this summer when the process started but I think it'll be the end of the year now.
Fair play to this lad for spending the time to do a review of rail in Ireland and looking at a potential overhaul.
https://metrovelododo.wordpress.com/2019/08/09/modernisation-of-passenger-rail-in-ireland-a-very-rough-draft/
Not very reassuring when the author needs to be alerted via Twitter of the types of trains (DMUs) run on the network outside of the Dublin-Cork mainline and forgets trains between Portarlington and Athlone (still forgetting Galway trains?), but hey it's all good as it is supported by "awesome" maps 😀
No mention of Navan. Drogheda - Navan - Mulingar would be a huge improvement to the layout.
Anyone seen anything from the webinar on this today?
What webinar?
They're still reviewing the submissions.
You might be confused with the DART+ Coastal North consultation?
That’s a completely different project with a separate thread here:
The first webinar on that isn’t until tomorrow evening - why not join it and hear it first hand?.
This "Rail Ambition" event, Eamon Ryan and Nichola Mallon were speaking at it about the review.
Bumping this. Eamon Ryan commenting on it in a FB post regarding additional bus services which are being launched in the NW.
Does anyone have any more info?
At best the review may say they should improve the journey time for Derry-Belfast line. Thats all that could ever happen in our lifetimes - NI does not have the funds, and ROI does not have the interest in rail connections to the NW.
It's a shame we can't have more vision here. A rail link between Dublin and Donegal / Derry (Londonderry) would create strong links between NI and ROI and could include Navan, Kells, Cavan, Enniskillen, Strabane, Letterkenny and Derry.
The benefit wouldn't be limited to NI and God knows the island would benefit from forging stronger all island ties.
Enhanced and direct bus connections with the new rail stations would massively increase the reach of the project.
Can’t imagine their being any political will to stand up to NIMBYs.
Given the cost of extending from Pace to Navan is flagged to cost between €777m - €1.4bn how much would your proposed rail link cost? It's a total non-runner. What population is there along your proposed route?
Costs from here
Just out of curiosity do you think that's a lot of money? It cost more to connect Tuam and Galway by motorway and you can bet that a Navan to Dublin rail link will be more heavily used than said motorway by an order of magnitude.
Regarding Derry. Our existing intercity rail network needs ALOT of work. If we invested in creating a Dub-Bel service that ran every half hour and took no longer than 90 minutes, and a Bel-Der service that ran every half hour and tool no longer than 60 minutes there wouldn't be much if a case for a direct Dublin-Derry route. Both are very doable with a bit of spending and a 2.5 hr rail journey from Dub to Der would be possible.
To clarify - I'd support the Navan extension. I'd also support serious investment in Dub-Bel and Bel-Derry but I wouldn't support (which is what I was replying to) a greenfield rail line to Derry.
Jaysus. I hardly suggested we submit this for planning today like. My God. Calm down.
@cgcsb thanks for being very constructive there. I think you're spot on.
I'm very calm, can't see how what I stated could be seen otherwise. Doesn't matter when it's proposed it will never achieve the Business Case requirements given population density and the massive costs of rail infrastructure.
Okay so just to go back to my original 'pie in the sky' question - the answer is "no we can't have any vision in this country".
The NW will forever more remain without a direct rail link to Dublin.
Grand.
You can have all the visions you like, that's all they'll remain if you're talking about a greenfield rail link that extends from Navan to Derry via Enniskillen.
What purpose would it serve, how many services a day do you think it would warrant given the population along the route?
You're essentially talking about Metrolink levels of expenditure.
I think that we have to be realistic here.
Getting governments to invest in the existing network over the years has been like pulling hen’s teeth. It has been minimal and that needs to be fixed.
The notion of a new line on the scale of one from Dublin to Derry is fantasy I’m afraid. We need to get significant investment in the current network so that it is fit for purpose. That’s going to cost a lot of money in itself.
I can see small scale re-openings on the network happening, such as Portadown-Armagh, the Foynes branch and others.
But what I do hope to see is a commitment to increasing capacity and reliability on the existing network through additional double track on single track lines, more passing loops, four tracking some of the Northern Line, and line speed increases where possible.
A timetable that supports regional travel, connectivity and development, facilitating commuters has to be an outcome of this study, linked into the Connecting Ireland project, along with earlier and later services on main lines.
