To ask the Minister for Industry and Commerce whether he is aware that considerable inconvenience is being caused the residents of Cobh, Co. Cork, and surrounding district, as a result of the destruction of the bridge on railway line at Fota station; whether he will state to the Dáil the cause of the delay in repairing of this bridge, and the re-opening of this very important branch line to the town and port to passenger and goods traffic; whether the Minister can state definitely when repair work on this Bridge will commence, and if the engineering department has given him any idea of the length of time it will take to execute this work?
CEISTEANNA—QUESTIONS. [ORAL ANSWERS.] - FOTA RAILWAY BRIDGE.
No definite proposals for the repair of this bridge could be obtained from the railway company, and the Government has, therefore, had to undertake responsibility for the work. Tenders have been received for a new span, and are now being considered. It has been arranged that the Railway Maintenance Corps should carry out a temporary repair to enable traffic to be resumed, and it is expected that this will be completed within a fortnight.