THE National Development Plan for 2021-2030 was published today(5th) with a wide range of commitments for each region an county to expand and improve the infrastructure of the country. In Limerick’s slice of the plan the proposed N20 motorway from Limerick to Cork, is shelved. Upgrades to Limerick Ports surrounding roads.
But a major development for Limerick was that of the Rail infrastructure plans. Expanding it not just in the City, but the surrounding area and most notably to Shannon Airport
Green Party TD Brian Leddin gave a warm welcome to the news that four rail lines out of Limerick will be developed under the National Development Plan.
“This is a real game changer for the development of Limerick and the Mid-West region. Since my election as TD I have been determined to see suburban rail developed in Limerick. It is vitally important, not just from a transport perspective, but to allow Limerick to grow sustainably. Our job now in Limerick is to make sure that the land around the proposed stations is earmarked for high quality residential and commercial development”.
The plan involves the development of five suburban rail lines out of Colbert station: the Adare/Foynes line with stations in Dooradoyle, Ballycummin and Patrickswell; the Mungret line with an additional station at Ballykeeffe; the Nenagh line with stations at Birdhill, Castleconnell, and potential for a new station at Lisnagry; the Limerick Junction line with a new Park and Ride station near Northern Trust; and the Galway line with stations at Parkway, Corbally, Moyross, Cratloe, where a new line will branch off to serve Smithstown, Shannon Town, Shannon Industrial Estate and Shannon Airport.
“This plan represents fantastic value for money, and most importantly it can be delivered relatively quickly. Although the Mungret and Foynes rail lines are currently not in use, they were never formally abandoned, and so the planning process should be a lot more straightforward than for new rail or road projects”, the Limerick City TD continued.
John Moran, former Chair of the LDA, and chairman of Liveable Limerick which has campaigned for better rail services in the city, has welcomed the commitments in the revised NDP to sustainable travel and in particular the further development of rail travel, and a rail link to Shannon airport.
“This is the first time I have seen a document of national policy that says we are going to do proper development in the cities around sustainable travel which is effectively active mobility and railways,” he said. “It’s really important that there is a rail skeleton around which cities are developed.”
“There are a lot of unused rail lines in Limerick… building train stations is easy once you have the rail lines. The commitments in the NDP allows us to build up rail in the suburbs of Corbally, the Parkway, Ballykeefe and Dooradoyle and allows people to move around by rail and connect all the way to Shannon. So we stop having to think about people having to use their cars to go to Shannon, they can now connect by train which is really important for our airports.”
