[Tadhg17]

From The Nenagh Guardian


Quote:
Green light for Nenagh rail commuter link

Iarnród Éireann has signalled the green light for a new Nenagh-Limerick rail commuter service, which should be up and running within a year.


By Simon O'Duffy

Iarnród Éireann has signalled the green light for a new Nenagh-Limerick rail commuter service, which should be up and running within a year.

Nenagh Rail Partnership has this week welcomed news that a new, faster and more commuter-suited train service to Limerick will be included in the next Iarnród Éireann timetable to be published in December. It is expected that the service will be fully operational by September 2008.

The announcement was made following a recent meeting in Thurles between the partnership and Dick Fearn, chief executive of Iarnród Éireann.

'This is great news for our campaign to have a proper commuter service on the Ballybrophy line,' said Cllr Virginina O'Dowd, chairperson of Nenagh Rail Partnership.

Under the new timetable the present services will remain but there will be an extra morning and evening train every weekday to suit commuters and students. A four-car train will leave Limerick at about 6.40am, arriving in Nenagh approx 7.40, where it will divide. Two cars will then return to Limerick from Nenagh at around 7.45am, getting to Limerick at about 8.35am, while the other two cars go on to Ballybrophy for the Dublin service, as is currently the case.

In the evenings the present return train leaving Limerick at about 4.40 pm will be ideal for many students, said Cllr O'Dowd. There will then be an extra return train, leaving Limerick at about 5.45pm and reaching Nenagh around 6.35pm, which she said will be ideal for commuters.

Cllr O'Dowd pointed out however that while the service will be included in the coming timetable in December, it will not start until September 2008, 11 months from now.

'There are number of reasons for this, among them the welcome fact that it will allow Iarnród Éireann to continue track work which will eventually see line speeds up to 60mph', she said. 'It will also allow for more services when trains become available from other routes, and will give a better lead-in for promotion of the service.'

Nenagh Rail Partnership has also sought a lunchtime/mid-afternoon service to help promote more leisure use on the line.

'Dick Fearn pointed out that Iarnród Éireann were working on a 'next step basis' but that this might be an option in 2009, if the service was well used, and I would urge people to make sure that this service will be a success and we can then look forward to extra trains, perhaps even allowing for people to socialise more by train', Cllr O'Dowd said.

One of the main incentives to take the train is the tax allowance available on tickets, she added, urging people who could use the service to have their employers register with Iarnród Éireann to buy monthly or yearly tickets.

'Not many people realise that you can get tax back for using the rail service', the Nenagh Rail Partnership chairperson explained. 'You can ask your employer to purchase season ticketsÑit can be done online - and they will make the tax credits in your pay packet,' she pointed out.

Among the other issues raised at the meeting, which was also attended by Duncan Martin, Cloughjordan Rail Action Group; Pat Dempsey, Castleconnell Rail Action Group; Ronan Dodd, Nenagh Rail Partnership, and John O'Flaherty and Paul Quinlan of Irish Railway News, as well as Myles McHugh of Iarnród Éireann, was the possibility of reopening the halt at Annacotty Business Park.

Pat Dempsey of Castleconnell Rail Action Group asked that the halt be re-opened given the fact that 1,200 people work in the park and there were forecasts that an extra 2,000 jobs were to be created there. He felt that a stop there would be of benefit to people coming out from Limerick and people travelling down from Nenagh as the halt is directly beside the business park.

However Mr Fearn pointed out that apart from the fact that every stop means a longer journey time, it would cost up to €300,000 to open the halt as they would be required to bring it up to fully operational standard. The short-term priority is the track and new timetable, he said.

Mr Fearn also gave the go-ahead for greater use of the stations, with particular emphasis on groups adopting their local station and entering the company's best train station awards. 'The initiative is with you,' he told the group.

It was felt that Cloughjordan was ideal for such a venture, and the move was welcomed by Duncan Martin.

'Dick Fearn and senior management in Iarnród Éireann have been great to Nenagh Rail Partnership since our first meeting, and I would like to thank them for all their help over the past couple of years,' said Cllr O'Dowd.

Other members of Nenagh Rail Partnership include Cllr Phyll Bugler, Balllina; Cllr Jim Casey, Cloughjordan; Graham Lightfoot, Cloughjordan, and John McNamara, Castleconnell.