Whether or not the government pays the capital cost is purely an accounting issue given that CIE and IE's defecits and captial investments eventually end up on the national balance sheet in any case.
I wouldn't think that a seat on the Sligo line gets used much more that for two one way journeys per day given the loadings on the trains I use. And a significant proportion of that will be freebies on various social service obligations. The only full train I use is the 1805 to Longford and it is at least half full of Maynooth traffic anyway.
The train is fundamentally an expensive way to travel. Luckily, as commuters we don't have to contribute the full cost - otherwise we'd be paying close to 10 grand a year for a Longford - Dublin commute.
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