GREEN Party TD Brian Leddin has called on Limerick City and County Council (LCCC) to work with Irish Rail to prioritise zoning of land around Limerick’s railway network for residential development.
With Project Ireland 2040 predicting that Limerick’s population will grow by 50 per cent in the next 15 to 20 years, Deputy Leddin says he firmly believes that strategic planning and development around existing rail network is the best approach to delivering affordable and sustainable housing for a growing population.
“Limerick’s existing railways provide a golden opportunity to deliver sustainable and affordable housing development,” Deputy Leddin said.
“We’re lucky in Limerick that we have a network of old railway lines already in place with the potential to create a high quality urban rapid transit system and connect it with Shannon Airport. This network can serve existing population centres in the city and suburbs, such as Corbally, Parkway, Lisnagry, Annacotty, Mungret, Raheen, Dooradoyle, Patrickswell, Adare, Askeaton, and Foynes.
“However, the bigger opportunity is to facilitate the fast development of areas like Ballysimon, Lisnagry, Patrickswell, and Moyross.”
One of the major benefits of focusing on housing development along a railway network, Leddin says, is that it can allow people to avoid the cost of owning a car.
“When most people think of affordable housing, they naturally think of the up-front cost of ownership. However, if a housing development isn’t well served by public transport, people feel they have no choice but to incur the sizeable expense of owning a car.
“The AA put this at over €10,000 every year when you factor in all costs, including depreciation. If you can take the train to and from work each day, there is a huge and very real saving to be made, leaving people more money in their pockets.”
Deputy Leddin says that “what we need in Limerick is a big vision for what Limerick can become in the next five, 10, 20 years. This will require the Council and Irish rail to work together to identify and prioritise locations for new train stations. That way the Council can have confidence that the city can grow in a sustainable direction, and Irish Rail can invest in a Limerick commuter rail service that will be supported by a density of housing set out by the Council.”
In response, Limerick City and County Council said that the development of rail infrastructure in Limerick is detailed in Mayor John Moran’s mayoral programme, which runs up to 2029.
“The plan positions rail development as a cornerstone of Limerick’s growth strategy, aiming for a more connected, prosperous, and eco-friendly future,” a Council spokesman said.
