ELECTED members of the Shannon Municipal District are to examine the merits of a rapid bus system versus the potential of a rail spur for Shannon Airport.
Speaking at Friday’s meeting of the Shannon MD, Cllr Michael Begley (IND) touted a new suggestion to improve connectivity to Shannon Airport with no light at the end of the tunnel regarding the potential provision of a rail spur.
He stated, “We’ve all been listening about the provision of a rail link from Sixmilebridge to Shannon Airport for the last thirty years, the last discussion with Iarnród Éireann a few weeks ago didn’t give much solace to anything happening in my lifetime anyway”.
Recently, he came across Glider in Belfast and believed it served as a viable alternative to the rail spur.
Translink operate Glider, a rapid bus transit system in Belfast which connect East and West Belfast with the Titanic Quarter via the city centre. Glider has two routes, the busways total 24.5km in length using both dedicated bus lanes and mixed traffic lanes. Its development cost in the region of €115m, construction began in 2014 and it opened in 2018. It uses a fleet of 18m-long Van Hool ExquiCity articulated buses. Weekday services run for eighteen hours daily, operating on a seven to nine minute interval, increasing from four to six minutes at peak times.
Explaning the service to his colleagues, Cllr Begley commented, “this is the Luas on wheels. It is a hop on hop off service, all that is required is suitable stopping points, it uses the existing road network or sweeper, it could be done quite fast and a fraction of the cost of doing a rail link”.
A Clare equivalent could be set up from Sixmilebridge to Shannon Airport, he said. “It wouldn’t be confined to connection times, it could be used for Shannon Town, Sixmilebridge and Newmarket-on-Fergus for the in-between times”. He proposed a meeting be arranged by the Shannon MD “with the appropriate people in Belfast as a start to have a look at this”. He was adamant, “it would be the answer to the connectivity”.
Seconding the proposal, Cllr John Crowe (FG) said, “it is an absolutely fantastic idea, we’ve been on about the rail link for years and will be for years to come”. He continued, “It is well worthwhile that we investigate it and put a case together for the relevant bodies”.
Limerick City could also be included, Cllr James Ryan (SF) suggested.
€2m has been allocated in the capital programme plan for the rail spur, Cllr David Griffin (FF) noted. Begley’s proposal “would be significant for cost-saving,” he said. “We’re forever and a day to talking about a rail link,” the Newmarket-on-Fergus native stated.
Cathaoirleach of the Shannon MD, Cllr Pat O’Gorman (FF) pointed out that the rail spur has been included in the County Development Plan. He felt local farmers “would be happy” with Glider rather than the spur. He said approval was needed from the Council Chief Executive for councillors to meet a Belfast delegation.
