Liam Quaide: Reinstating the Youghal-Midleton rail link is a necessity, not a luxury

It was a colossal error and a serious injustice to the population living east of Midleton not to extend the rail connection between Cork and Midleton to Youghal

Despite being firmly in favour of cycleways, it struck me as gravely short-sighted to tarmac over this rail corridor for a recreational amenity when East Cork’s transport system was increasingly seized up with traffic. Picture Dan Linehan

My entry into politics was shot through with irony. In May 2018, I organised a public meeting in the Walter Raleigh Hotel on the need to reinstate the Youghal-Midleton rail link. I was, unusually, a Green Party election candidate arguing against a proposed greenway along the rail corridor between those towns — the only local representative to take that position.

Despite being firmly in favour of cycleways, it struck me as gravely short-sighted to tarmac over this rail corridor for a recreational amenity when East Cork’s transport system was increasingly seized up with traffic. The greenway risked scuppering any hope of restoring a key infrastructural link that would transform mobility and enhance economic opportunity in Youghal and its surrounding areas.