Cross-border review of rail network officially launched

The new report is the old one, plus two more recommendations (inclusion and access; and a recommendation to do another review in 10 years), and a section on public feedback. It also lists the changes made since that draft, as follows:

The following amendments have been included in this final Report to take account of feedback from responses received from the public consultation.
  • A specific new recommendation to continue to invest in improving accessibility on the rail network, including rolling out step-free access more widely. The Review also commits to undertake Equality Impact Assessments when schemes are taken forward for future development.
  • A new recommendation for both jurisdictions to undertake a refresh of this Review once a decade.
  • The report has been amended to clarify that the proposed new railway between Derry~Londonderry and Portadown should be designed to accommodate line speeds up to 200km/h / 125mph, where this is found in further study to be beneficial, as was intended in the Draft Final Report.
  • The Report has been amended to reflect plans to improve connectivity to the South East – as outlined in the latest Greater Dublin Area Transport Strategy – to include the extension of the DART network to Wicklow.
  • The timeline for delivery has been adjusted to bring forward the reinstatement of the North Midlands railway between Portadown and Armagh from a long-term to a medium-term horizon.
  • Maps have been amended to include a proposed new station at Craigavon.
  • Some technical wording has been adjusted to ensure it reflects the “highlevel” nature of the Review (for example, by removing references to in-cab signalling).
  • A reference has been added to the Executive Summary to emphasise the need to safeguard alignments for future railways and stations.

The local papers already covered it as such - most people who use the line are OK with it if it improves services, but rail enthusiasts who like the idea of going down the DSER in one go are horrified.

We don't build our network for enthusiasts. This is why even this report doesn't recommend reopening Claremorris to Colooney!

This is the same report with minor amends to the one that was published last year. It isn't policy and it isn't funded. Just another shiny report to sit on a shelf in government.

Just as a comparison to one of our nearest neighbors, France plans to invest 100 billion euros in rail infrastructure by 2040 , on top of what they have got already.

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/france-plans-invest-100-billion-euros-rail-infrastructure-by-2040-2023-02-24/

I clearly said it had minor amends, very minor by the looks of it. I would expect more changes based on public feedback. Why bother having a public consultation period if nothing is really changing 12 months after that consultation? Just a box ticking exercise.

So then the all Ireland rail strategy is very ambitious in comparison considering France having 10 times the population and all.

Just happened to be listening to a podcast earlier today which touched on this issue. UK government finances are not in a good state and generous funding for NI won't be popular in England, Scotland and Wales where Labour actually contest elections. We've already seen them implement a benefits cut in England and Wales.

Indeed but let's be realistic. We've had 100 years of managed decline of the railway and the state is only wealthy around 20 years, non consecutively. France has ran an empire that extracts resources from the rest of the world since the railway was invented.

I fully expect them to have better trains and spend way more than us.

I wouldn't be getting too worried about actual French spending compared to how much we say this plan will cost though because plenty of this will never happen. It's like a catwalk dress.

Would push the Antrim line and possible airport station well up the agenda for urgent attention though.

This is not a plan as such, that is the difference. This is a big list of possible proposals, none of which are policy.

The amount of investment that actually comes as a result of the AIRR will be significantly smaller than 37B

Connecting Maynooth and Hazelhatch lines.

Only 7km or so.

Not the biggest job in the world, but challenging.

Will allow for Sligo ICs to go to Heuston on Hazelhatch 4 track, maximising Maynooth line for DART services.

Should be seen if station at northern outskirts of Celbridge can be built and maybe some Hazelhatch services start at Maynooth servicing Celbridge North before joint Hazelhatch line (tho they may actually miss Hazelhatch.

Limerick - Foynes will only be freight under current plans. The proposed plan would be for passengers.

Moyross and Ballysimon are already separate active plans as you say.

It’s hardly gonna be maxed out with IC trains tho.

Some commuter trains using it would make it more viable.

There's a list of stuff that failed to make it to the final recommendations list and the overall reasons why - there were inland moves on that (and stuff like rail to West Donegal etc).

Sorry for only skimming, but how on earth would Cork-Waterford be improved???

The existing Limerick Junction to Waterford line is incredibly slow, think connections are crap too.

Faster line speed and scheduled for connections would make end to end a lot quicker than now.

Report rules out a more direct route as too geographically complex.

3h04m with a 19min change is the current best - most of the day the journey planner sends you via Heuston for >5h!

Its hard to imagine from where we are now, to see Ireland's rail network as fast and efficient as this.

that's the beauty of this report, you can read it, sit back and imagine it.

The "Access Charging System" being to expensive keeps coming up in the report.

I had a read of this:
https://www.irishrail.ie/IrishRail/media/Imported/AccessChargingPerformanceRegime1.pdf

It's not 100% clear, can someone explain?

Thanks, I don't think it's reasonable to compare that route with the road at all though. How many Cork-Waterford connections are actually possible per day outside of Heuston? I think it's two.

So I think it's a very disingenuous graphic to say Cork to Waterford would be 1.5 hours when it's two trains a day.

But even if you take that at face value, LJ to Waterford is currently 1 hour 45 and Cork to LJ is currently 1 hour. It's about 100km for each leg of the journey. It would be some achievement to improve both legs by so much that it would achieve 1.5 hours over 200km with a change in the middle (10 mins?). You'd want something like 150kmh average speed. I'm not buying this one at all I'm afraid. It's way too over-optimistic.

Irish Rail (Railway Undertaking) pay Irish Rail (Infrastructure Operator)

EU require them to be separated

The proposed link from Sligo line to Kildare line - would that diverge off Sligo line to the west or east of Maynooth station?

I presume to the east, after trains have passed through Maynooth?