"To extend the Kildare train service..."
I thought that was the whole point of the Kildare Route Project ? Or should that read the " Only As Far As Kildare Town Route Project. Monasterevin is in County Kildare. Portarlington and Portlaoise are in County Laois and are I assume by definition excluded from this upgrade.
"To turnback/start/terminate a train at Monasterevin...."
Nobody is asking for the station to be turned into a junction. Thats setting false expectations way beyond what is required. What we want are trains to stop at the station period. The original plan was to bring the 4 new tracks down as far as Newbridge. Yet that plan was changed. I wonder why ? Too far from Inchicore maybe.
"It is fairly well accepted that Monasterevin station is a failure since the demand is not there."
Since when is a new train station meant to pay its way within 4 years ? The IE criteria for sufficient demand seems to equate to a situation of overcrowding, queueing and hassle because thats all I've ever experienced when using Euston, Newbridge, Kildare, Sallins. The two stations I've used most regularly are Monasterevin and Cherry Orchard. No crowds, no hassle, no bull****. The latter is being shut down and the former looks on the basis of what is being said here as if it is going the same way. A train service should not be judged on pure profit/loss lines esp new infrastructure like a train station. There are people moving into the town all the time partly attracted by the possibility of commuting by train to/from Dublin. And maybe even late at night or on A Sunday (wow, theres a concept) Oh what a shock theyll get when they start using the trains !! Does anyone in IE actually bother to do their sums on this ? And please dont quote me Census figures from 2002. Do you realise how many people are immigrating into Ireland at the present time ? 10,000 a month and a lot of them are heading down towards us. Again this is cultural blockage and not a financial issue within IE as far as I can tell. There are two large trains stations beyond Monasterevin - Portarlington and Portlaoise both of whom were served by the Arrow train service. Why the hell was that taken away and replaced by filthy commuter trains ? Neither of these towns are going to suffer from reduced service in future and neither should Monasterevin. How can it cost more to stop at a station that is closer to Dublin than either of these places ?
" it makes no sense to further streech the system"
It makes absolute sense to stretch the system because what is there at present is simply not acceptable in one of the richest countries in the world ! Please dont follow the Eircom lead and consider it acceptable to shaft your customers because the live in the stix
In summary, the response suggests that Monasterevin wasnt considered in anybodys plans - Inter City, Commuter or Arrow - with a view to improving the service because basically there are not enough people in the town. Irish twittery at its best !! This is an absolute disgrace. Sounds to me as if IE are running scared on this matter. They've taken so long to settle down into their new world of investment and renewal, upgrades, bright new futures, they've forgotten the fundamentals of providing a better service - trains that stop at a local station. Maybe I'm missing something here but someone needs to sort this out because by the sounds of what is being said, the service is going to get a lot worse. Are IE planning to shut the station down again by any chance ?
The last sentence says it all - "2009 at the earliest" in other words Manyana.