And a follow up from the Kildare Nationalist.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Fury over rail ‘upgrade’ that’s no help at all
By: Ashling Mackey
THE recent announcement by minister for transport Martin Cullen to allow Iarnród Éireann to proceed with plans to double the number of tracks on the Kildare line between Heuston Station and Hazelhatch, near Celbridge, is not good news for train users in South Kildare.
“The original plan was designed to bring four tracks all the way down to Kildare Town. We are not sure what’s going on and we have heard nothing from Iarnród Éireann,” said Garrett Cummins, spokesperson for the Newbridge Rail Users’ Group.
On completion in 2009, the number of tracks between Heuston and Hazelhatch will have doubled to four and with two dedicated lines for commuter services and two for intercity and regional services. The extra lines will double the service frequency from Hazelhatch to Dublin, serving all stations. It will also double the service frequency between Dublin and Sallins, Newbridge, and Kildare.
“They are building a new station at Adamstown, a town which has yet to be built, and that it will be operational next year,” noted Mr Cummins. “They are giving services in the hope of the 20,000 to 30,000 people that will live there in five years’ time, with no consideration for the people in Newbridge and Kildare Town.
“There are over 30,000 people in Naas and Newbridge and 20,000 in Kildare Town. These towns are growing at a faster rate than anywhere else in Ireland, but yet Iarnród Éireann has made no allowance for increases in passenger numbers from these towns.”
And he continued: “They should be trying to attract us on to their trains but instead they are just putting more passengers on an already crowded service. Over the next four years, we are going to suffer a lot of disruption with little or no benefit. We can only live in hope that when it is finished there will be some improvements, but we are not entirely convinced.
“Iarnród Éireann has told us that each stop adds seven minutes to your journey. There will be two new stops now; that is going to add an extra 14 minutes.”
Garrett started commuting 16 years ago, and at that time the trip took him 16 minutes. Now in 2006, in the socalled age of technology, the same journey takes 40 minutes. And it looks set to become even longer.
Making the announcement, minister Cullen said: “This Transport 21 project represents a •400 million investment to upgrade the railway infrastructure between Kildare and Heuston Station, aimed at significantly enhancing the frequency, capacity, reliability and accessibility of rail services between Heuston Station and commuter destinations in the Greater Dublin area as well as to intercity destinations in the south and west.”
But according to Garrett Cummins, “The service is as good or as bad as ever, depending on how you want to look at it. Iarnród Éireann has told us that by 2010 from Newbridge to St Stephen’s Green is going to take 30 minutes, but we’re not optimistic that this will happen.” It’s not just the Kildare to Dublin route that causes people problems. According to Garrett, it is easier for a Kildare person to fly to Cork than to take the train.
“We don’t understand where they are putting in all these investments. It’s certainly not benefiting the customer,” he said. “It’s much easier to get in your car and drive up the M50 and get a 30-minute flight to Cork. There is no direct train from Newbridge to Cork; the nearest stop is Thurles. It’s more comfortable and a lot quicker to fly.”
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