Rail routes hold key to opening up west
According to Rural Development Minister Eamon Ó Cuív, the rail network, along with further government decentralisation, are essential to stop the continuing flight of people from the countryside.
Mr Ó Cuív, who was attending a major EU conference in Salzburg to help draw up guidelines for the next rural development programme, said the government was already committed to moving up to 10,000 civil servants from Dublin and he believed he had support to reopen old rail links throughout the west.
People should be encouraged to live in the smaller towns and villages and travel to work in the major urban areas. Reopening railways was the answer, he said.
“People are happy to travel quite long distances to work in Dublin from as far away as Tullamore and Longford when they can do so by rail because it is comfortable and reliable. We must repeat the same experience but this time in the country,” he said.
Mr O Cuiv believes the plan would be supported by Finance Minister Charlie McCreevy.
