*Shannon Airport.
A RAIL SPUR for Shannon Airport “can be done and it is a matter of getting it done,” the Junior Minister in the Department of Transport has said.
Time is ticking for the €165bn National Development Plan (NDP) which runs from 2021 to 2030 and includes references to the provision of a rail spur to Shannon Airport.
Last July, the rail spur received a further boost when the All-island strategic rail review was approved by the Government with a €30bn rail investment strategy detailed for the next two decades.
At the end of June, the Shannon Airport Group submitted a proposal to the Government’s review of the NDP urging decisive action to address critical infrastructure deficits in the Southern Region. Their proposal urged for the Shannon Airport rail link to be prioritised which they called a transformative project that would enhance regional accessibility for over 10,000 daily commuters. “Its inclusion in the All-Island Strategic Rail Review highlights its importance for sustainability, decarbonisation, and economic growth. The Group is calling for funding to accelerate the planning, design and construction of the project”.
Shannon Airport will enter a new direction with the forthcoming departure of Mary Considine who has served as CEO of the Shannon Airport Group since October 2019. Her move to Iarnród Éireann where she will succeed Jim Meade as CEO is another source of optimism for progressing the long-held vision of a rail link to the Airport.
Jim Meade has said the rail spur to Shannon would cost of hundreds of millions of euros. A report published in October 2003 by the Shannon Railway Company detailed that a €60m commuter rail link between Shannon, Limerick and Ennis was “a viable commercial entity” through a public-private partnership. The now liquidated Beaux Walk Properties said it was prepared to invest €16m in the project.
Speaking to The Clare Echo, Minister of State at the Department of Transport with responsibility for International and road transport, logistics, rail and ports, Seán Canney (IND) detailed that providing connectivity via rail to airports around Ireland offers a counter-balance to Dublin Airport’s dominance of aviation traffic. “From my own point of view, I’m responsible for the all-island rail review, it is important to look at how we can get connectivity to the airports onto the rail network, how we can open up that, I also believe we need to encourage more airlines to look at what is happening here, how easy it is, there’s plenty of space, it is very relaxed and it is a scenic part of the country”.
When asked if it was feasible or realistic that the Government would invest hundreds of millions in the rail link, the Junior Minister stated, “Nothing is impossible, I do believe if we are to create a vibrant public transport system we need to be able to link our airports to the public transport system, we’re looking at metro link in Dublin, a luas in Cork and it is important we look at the airport here and also Knock has the potential of connecting to the railway, it doesn’t have to be huge, we see the connection from Limerick to Foynes Port by rail is almost complete and will be open next year, it is all there to be done and it is a matter of getting it done”.
He wished Mary Considine well on her move to Iarnród Éireann. “She is coming into my own Department to take over as CEO of Iarnród Éireann, that is a vital component within the Department of Transport, there is exciting things to be done there, exciting things have happened under Jim Meade, I must compliment him and his team. Shannon Airport is a vital asset in this country, it is a vital asset for the region and it has been here a long time, people love coming to Shannon when they want to fly some place, what we need to do is continue to promote Shannon, Knock and Cork not as regional airports but international airports and we can deliver as good as Dublin, it is not that it is Dublin or these, Dublin has huge pressures whereas here (Shannon) we have capacity, we can expand and deliver more passengers without any actual further investment for the moment. I was down here with Mary Considine a couple of weeks ago, it is great the assets we have in the West of Ireland and in the region, I will continue to make sure we are delivering for the regions in Ireland”.
