The first in a series of articles about Ireland’s intercity network, its future, and how it can work for everyone in Ireland
Ireland’s intercity network is, simply put, not that great. Both the extent of the network, and consequently, the service provided, are not at the standard of a modern European nation. Indeed, the Irish rail network is not even at the standard of a hundred years ago, when the network stretched from Mizen Head to Malin Head, and even Bantry was only a two hour rail trip away. In the 1950s and 60s, over 4,000km of rail was slashed forever, and what little infrastructure remained non-extensive, and hopelessly Dublin-centric. While there have been a few kernels of gold over the years – recent signalling upgrades being one of them – by and large the network, and the quality of service to rural Ireland has remained incredibly stagnant.
The rail network in 1920 vs the rail network in the early 2010s… how the mighty have fallen
It is currently the case that massive swathes of the country have no rail service whatsoever. There are major gaps in the network – there is no rail in West Cork, or the entire counties of Donegal, Monaghan, and Cavan – and what rail does exist in some counties is also rather barebones. There are towns that lie on rail lines, such as Buttevant and Annacotty, which trains simply bypass, as they possess no station. It’s no stretch to say that there’s hundreds of towns around the nation who’d give their right arm for a train station with regular service.
There is also significant disconnect with the aims of successive Irish governments in attempting to reinvigorate rural life. For instance, many ‘gateway hubs’ identified in Ireland’s previous National Planning Framework spatial strategy scheme – such as Letterkenny, Cavan and Monaghan Towns, did not possess any rail link, nor any plans to deliver one. Naturally, this lack of connection makes it more difficult to live and work in the country. This effectively serves as one more form of disinvestment in Ireland’s rural areas, and factors into a far greater debate about the prioritization of urban Ireland over rural Ireland, especially the West. In effect, a major public service is denied to many of those living in these regions. Those living in rural areas are forced into car-dependency, and have far fewer options for transport as a result – indeed the cost of owning and maintaining a car is also an issue for those who live in one area and work in another. This also has problems for Ireland’s climate targets, as many in rural Ireland who wish to undertake journeys sustainably are simply unable to.
Even towns and cities that are connected by rail have this Dublin-orientation that inevitably affects their performance. Cork and Wexford are both *technically* connected by rail, yet there is no direct route. What could be a nice, 80 minute coastal jaunt of 140km becomes a far less attractive, five-hour pilgrimmage of Cork-Dublin-Wexford. There is no direct rail service between Cork and Galway, Ireland’s second and third biggest cities.
The overall lack of connectivity impacts the effectiveness of the intercity rail, and is used for circular reasoning of lack of investment – what is believed to be lack of interest in rail usage is used as justification for not rolling out large railbuilding schemes; whereas in the rare occasion that new services are unveiled, they routinely surpass service expectations, as has been the case for the first phase of the Western Rail Corridor.
The Benefits of Rail Faoin Tuath
This self-immolative policy is all the stranger when taking into account the benefits that rail can bring to rural towns and regions. Rail can be a cornerstone of a strong strategy – coupled with other infrastructure and placemaking investments – to properly support rural Ireland. Towns and regions that have a rail service become more attractive for investment from businesses, attract more tourism, and become better places to live in. The addition of a regular, reliable rail service is often key to the reinvigoration of declining towns, with the growth and success of towns is often tied to the travel distance between nearby centers. Of course, there is the obvious benefit of simply providing improved transportation links to the resident population.
Rail helps small towns to grow, both economically and population-wise – a major boon when the trend for so many has been the outward movement of young people. Towns and villages with railroad access act as a stronger draw to business. There is also major opportunity to use new station developments as an opportunity to relook at land use as a whole, and couple rail investments with new plazas and cycle paths, to really move away from a car-centric model and move towards one with a lot more consumer choice. Stronger towns also provide benefits for Ireland’s spatial planning – namely getting more jobs and people out of the Dublin Region and into areas that need them most, which can help contribute to a positive feedback loop of regeneration for smaller towns.
The benefits of rail in a post-Covid future are also immense. The rise of working from home, combined with a planned rollout of rural co-working hubs spells massive opportunities for rural and regional towns. Combined with the ability of railway stations to generate development around themselves, known as transit-oriented development – could mean a massive investment in the futures of so many rural towns and villages. Those who were previously city dwellers could instead have the option of living in the countryside, with an easy commuting option for if office meetings become necessary.
Of course, there are also significant benefits for tourism too, which already makes up a large part of the local economy of many smaller towns. One can only imagine what a draw that a ‘Wild Atlantic Way by rail’ would be, especially with the prospects for promotion and funding that the EU’s Interrail scheme would bring.
If you didn’t know any better, this could be Letterkenny Railway Station
The All-Island Rail Strategy
Last week, the Irish and Northern Irish governments launched a combined effort at reviewing the island’s railways. There is a massive opportunity in this, to rectify the past Dublin-centricity of the network itself. So naturally, there’s some major projects which we believe would benefit the network – what we view as less of a wish list, and more of a ‘to-do list’.
First of all, a South-West rail corridor would allow trains to go between Cork, Waterford, Wexford, and Rosslare Europort, a route with renewed importance given the massive post-Brexit uptick in trade at both Rosslare and Cork ports. The group South East on Track has provided excellent analysis of the Wexford-Waterford segment of this route.
One potential alignment of a resurrected Cork-Waterford-Rosslare route
The full reopening of the Western Rail Corridor would be a major boon to the network too, not just for the service it would provide to those living on it, but also by being a key piece of infrastructure for longer intercity journeys. Of course, other notable gaps also need correcting, such as a north-south rail corridor connecting the county of Donegal to both Sligo and Derry, who have been deprived of rail for too long. Other notable areas which lack rail, such as Shannon (and its airport) and Navan are also no-brainers. Other direct train services along existing routes are also needed, such as Cork to Limerick/Galway direct trains, which would certainly up connectivity between the counterbalance to Dublin. There is also massive potential in bringing railways back to West Cork – so much so that there’ll be another article detailing here in the coming weeks (stay tuned!).
The expectations of usage for railways in Ireland have consistently defied expectations – the Ennis-Galway rail link has passenger numbers above expectations, as have other links on the network. History has proven that if rail service is provided in a reliable, integrated fashion, it will be used. The point of this article isn’t to aimlessly harangue Iarnród Éireann either – when the system works, it works, and Cork to Dublin passenger numbers increase year on year for good reason – and this type of good, effectual service should be accessible to the vast majority of people in Ireland, no matter where they live.
Cork Commuter Coalition 