Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 17 June 2021
45. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Transport the way in which the western rail corridor can help to decarbonise transportation in the west of Ireland, helping the State to reach its climate action goals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32450/21]
View answerThe current Programme for Government (PfG) sets out an ambitious and wide-ranging set of commitments in relation to public transport investment, which will provide viable alternatives to car transport to reduce congestion and emissions, and enable the transport sector to cater for the demands associated with longer-term population and employment growth in a sustainable manner. Regarding modal shift targets, the Climate Action Plan (CAP) 2019 aimed for an additional 500,000 sustainable journeys in the transport system by 2035, and I expect that under CAP 2021 this ambition level will be raised further. The Climate Action Plan (CAP) 2021 will be published later this summer and will contain several key transport decarbonisation actions.
The Government has planned a transformative programme of planned rail investment, with electrification of the rail network playing an important role for future public transport provision. Projects such as DART+, Luas expansions, Luas Cork, and MetroLink will provide sustainable, reliable, and frequent rail services and significantly increase capacity on rail corridors around the country.
The PfG committed to consider the future of the Western Rail Corridor and take appropriate action. As the Deputy knows, in January my Department published both Iarnród Éireann’s financial and economic appraisal (EY Report ) and an independent review, which had been commissioned by my Department and conducted by JASPERS (Joint Assistance to Support Projects in the European Regions)—an agency of the European Investment Bank/EU Commission. This review noted a number of shortcomings in relation to the proposed re-opening of the Western Rail Corridor Phases 2 and 3—in particular around issues such as the need to demonstrate the strategic role of the proposal and how it sat within the broader proposed development of the network.
As a result, I stated my intention, in co-operation with the Department for Infrastructure (Northern Ireland), to prepare a strategy for the development of the railway sector on the island of Ireland over the period to 2040. The Strategic Rail Review will examine the role of rail in supporting relevant policy objectives in both Ireland and Northern Ireland with particular emphasis on achieving climate change objectives. The Review will strategically assess the rail network on the island of Ireland in relation to improving sustainable connectivity between the major cities, enhancing regional accessibility, supporting balanced regional development and rail connectivity to our international gateways, with the latter considering the role of rail freight. In addition, the Review will consider how we might decarbonise our rail services both on the main inter-urban routes and on inter-regional routes. This analysis will include an examination of the Western Rail Corridor.
As transport accounts for a little over 20% of Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions, there can be no doubt that the sector has a vital role to play in our national decarbonisation efforts. Providing meaningful alternatives to everyday car journeys across the country is fundamental to achieving our climate objectives. Increasing sustainable and active journeys offers many co-benefits in terms of citizen health, reducing congestion, and facilitating more accessible and vibrant communities. In this regard, I am fully committed to exploring every means possible to shift towards low-carbon, affordable, and accessible mobility.
