The reopening of the Sligo-Limerick rail line is set to become an election issue after Fine Gael pledged that it would reopen the route. Party leader, Mr Michael Noonan, gave a firm commitment to develop the disused line while on a visit to the Sligo-Leitrim constituency this week.
He said the rail corridor from Shannon to the north-west should be developed to facilitate regional development all along the west coast. Mr Noonan said the Government needed to reverse its priorities "so that this critical element of the infrastructure jigsaw can be put in place".
A Western Inter-County Railway Committee, with representatives from counties Sligo, Mayo and Galway, has been campaigning for the rail line to be reopened for more than 20 years. The line is still intact and is in public ownership.
An Taisce has also proposed the reopening of the western rail corridor as part of its submission on the national spatial strategy, arguing that the move would reduce car dependency and benefit the environment. The line runs through Collooney, Charlestown, Claremorris and Tuam.
It has been argued that the population densities in counties Mayo and Sligo are insufficient to make it economically viable to reopen this stretch of line.
Fine Gael's spokesman on public enterprise, Mayo TD Mr Jim Higgins, rejected this argument, saying that while it may have been the case more than five years ago, this did not apply now.
"Anybody who travels the road into Galway regularly, as I do, knows that instead of one-mile tailbacks there are now tailbacks of three or four miles," Mr Higgins said.
He said the reopening of the rail line would greatly reduce congestion on the roads because of the large numbers commuting to both Galway and Sligo. It would also be used by students who couldn't afford to pay for accommodation in Galway, he said.
The Minister for Public Enterprise, Ms O'Rourke, has stated in the Dβil that the reopening of rail line from Collooney to Limerick would cost £100 million. She said her Department would examine the possibility of reopening it as part of a study to develop a long-term approach to railway services.
Mr Higgins said Fine Gael would not take such a long-term approach. "When you consider that the Knock-Claremorris bypass is costing £48 million, I am sure it makes economic sense to spend £100 million reopening this rail line," he said.
"This is a very firm commitment and we will be making it an election issue. We are not talking about doing feasibility studies - it will be delivered on," Mr Higgins said. The party's TD in Sligo, Mr John Perry, has also been campaigning on the issue.
Fine Gael is arguing that EU funding would be available for the project as it is EU policy to encourage the development of rail services. It would also attract funding because it is located within the Objective One BMW area.
Mr Higgins said he had received a letter from Iarnr≤d ╔ireann in the past week saying its priority was the maintenance and upgrading of existing lines rather than developing new ones.