Viability report on reopening of railway elicits a divided reaction
THERE has been divided reaction to a report into the viability of reopening of a section of the Western Rail Corridor.
The now closed railway line provided a passenger rail link between Sligo and Limerick up until the the early 1960s, with freight trains continuing for some time after that.
In Sligo the line runs from Collooney, through Coolaney, Lavagh, Tubbercurry, Curry and Bellaghy and in recent years a community group called Sligo Greenway Co-op has been working to see that 35kms stretch of disused railway from Collooney to Bellaghy (Charlestown) developed into a greenway – a walkway, cycleway and tourism trail.
Last Friday a report by a company called EY Consulting into the viability of reopening the Claremorris-Athenry line section of the line, and an additional report by Jaspers (the consultancy arm of the European Investment Bank), which completed a review of the EY report, were released by Transport Minister Eamon Ryan. Prior to that the Minister had indicated that he would be seeking a further report.
He said that according to the published reports, the case for extending the Western Rail Corridor from Athenry to Claremorris “is weak”, but he said he wants a “wider review” to see if there is a case for the development of the Claremorris line in a larger context.
He said he would like to see a rail review that looked at the potential for the line in the context of the overall rail network in the region, a Statewide review that also covered the potential for freight, consideration of the Waterford to Limerick line, and other matters.
The West On Track group, established in May 2003 with the aim of campaigning for re-opening the closed line, has rejected the findings of the EY report (which cost around €500,000), describing it as “fundamentally flawed” and “not fit for purpose” . And Sligo-based MEP Chris MacManus has said the report was “too narrow in its appraisal of the Western Rail Corridor”.
However, there was a very different reaction from Brendan Quinn of the Western Rail Trail Greenway campaign, which has as its objective to preserve the line from Athenry to Collooney by using it as a greenway until such time as a railway may be possible. He said that neither report has found a case for investing in a railway line along the route and that Mayo and Galway county councils should now follow the lead of Sligo County Council in seeking funding for a greenway (cycling and walking track) on the route.
And Sligo councillor Marie Casserly, pictured above right, said it is now time to move on with the construction of greenways.
In its statement on Monday, West On Track said the EY report was “riddled with inaccuracies, many of them schoolboy errors”, and that it “seeks to gold plate the costs of reopening the railway in a most extraordinary manner, while understating the benefits in order to ensure that the resultant cost-benefit analysis will be negative”. West On Track said that “crucially, while the report projects initial passenger numbers of more than half a million, and admits it would have major economic benefits, the chapter on financial assessment opens with the extraordinary statement that: ‘This chapter does not consider any of the wider economic benefits which might also arise should the WRC be reactivated, meaning that it does not consider the full benefits associated with the Western Rail Corridor.’ “This, despite the specific requirements of the terms of reference and the assurances provided by Iarnród Eireann to the Joint Oireachtas Committee that it would not be a narrow financial appraisal.
“The fact of the matter is that this report is a blatant example of how cost benefit analysis can be manipulated at public expense. The capital costs are more than doubled and the benefits are understated by 60%. The accompanying JASPERS review reflects how unaware that EU institution is of the fact that the West of Ireland is in economic decline due to lack of transport connectivity.”
The rail group said that the “arguments for reopening the WRC are as valid now as they have ever been”. “Balanced regional development based on connectivity and sustainability is the only justification needed for reopening this rail line and no consultant’s report, however expensive, can be allowed to alter that fact.” MEP Chris MacManus, pictured below, described the report’s finding that the WRC should not be reopened as “hugely disappointing, but not surprising given the narrow focus of the report”.
“For any appraisal of the Western Rail Corridor to be accurate, it must be looked at in a wider, regional context and properly consider rail freight capability. Unfortunately, this report does not do that. “The report is extremely limited and seems to focus solely on the prospect of reopening the passenger route from Athenry to
Claremorris, disregarding how the rail corridor could fit into a national strategy for rail development.
“This is a major oversight, given that road freight is becoming more and more expensive as we try to fight climate change and will continue to do so in the future as the EU intends to rigidly apply the polluter pays principle. “Road freight will be effectively taxed off the roads and onto rail, giving communities located alongside rail routes an edge in attracting investment and employment.”
The Midlands Northwest MEP said the report failed to “recognise the enormous commercial benefit of the rail corridor in a post-Brexit world”. However, in a statement on Friday, Brendan Quinn of the Western Rail Trail Greenway campaign, stated that “neither report has found a case for investing in a railway line along the route, but both have cleared up issues that had been the subject of often heated debate over the last decade or more”.
Mr Quinn said that in terms of value for money the EY Consulting report says “the report finds that there is not a value for money argument for reactivating the Western rail corridor”.
“It goes on to say that ‘the line will not generate a financial return and will have an overall negative impact on the exchequer finances throughout its lifetime’.” He said that JASPERS “has been particularly scathing of the WRC proposal, saying that ‘the proposed project is unlikely to lead to any significant changes in strategic connectivity’”.
“It gives the proposal a benefit to cost ratio (BCR) of 0.21, which implies that for every €1 invested, society would only gain 21 cent.
“It goes on to say that ‘we consider that that gaining support for project financing of the proposal in its current form would be a challenge’ and that ‘the weak forecast demand and the limited role for freight would limit the ability of the project to attract grant funding’.
“Given that the EIB would be the likely funding partner if government wished to build a railway on the route, this effectively suggests that funding would not be available.
Mr Quinn said that the Western Rail Trail Greenway Alliance, a community-based grouping of greenway lobby groups along the route, was now calling on the county councils involved “to accept the inevitable with regards to the WRC”.
“It is now clear that no railway is coming to the WRC any time in the next 30 or 40 years, if ever.
“Mayo and Galway County Councils should follow the lead of Sligo and apply for the available funding and put a greenway on the line, to remove dereliction, to preserve the route in case a railway is ever possible, and to create jobs and amenities now.”
Cllr Marie Casserly said that two recent meetings with Minister Ryan in recent weeks indicated that funding could be made available for a long route greenway from Enniskillen through Sligo and on to Athenry to connect with the Dublin-Galway Greenway.
She said: “The release of the long awaited rail review confirmed what we have known for a long time. There is no financial, environmental, commuting or freight transport gain to be had from opening the railway line between Claremorris and Athenry.
“It is time to move on with the construction of greenways. Greenways will result in an economic boost locally, creating jobs in the areas during construction as well as many full time jobs after this.
“Feasibility studies, which I have been instrumental in securing funding for, will show the hugh benefits a project like this will bring to a region, not just for now but for decades to come,” Casserly added.