Rail upgrade plan stymied

Irish Rail is being stymied in its plans to upgrade the €106m Western Rail Corridor, it has emerged.

Ironically, the opposition against plans to put in place a new rail station in the north Clare village of Crusheen is coming from a developer and landowner who was part of the original Irish Rail plan to put a station there.

Latest passenger numbers for the Western Rail Corridor show an increase of 6% for the first nine months of this year and the provision of the stop at Crusheen is seen as vital in further increasing passenger numbers.

Last year, Irish Rail secured planning permission for a station at Crusheen on lands owned by developer and landowner John Galvin.

However, Irish Rail and Mr Galvin could not reach a deal on the site, resulting in Irish Rail now lodging plans for a station on an alternative site.

However, Mr Galvin has employed a consultant to lodge an objection against the alternative plan.

In the objection, consultant Brendan McGrath states: “The proposal is not in accordance with the adopted local area plan for Crusheen.

“The proposed station is a scaled-down version of the project granted in 2011 at a time when there is generally a greater policy emphasis on public transport.”

A decision is due on the application next week and Irish Rail said any dates for constructing the station were “subject to planning permission and funding availability”.