Return of railway would be ‘hugely beneficial’

THE Irish Transport Minister, Eamon Ryan, has described a proposal to bring back a railway line through Tyrone as being a “huge benefit to the whole island”.

But the Green Party TD warned that the return of any form of rail travel through the route that was once followed by the Great Northern Railway would be “very expensive”, adding that the UK government would have to be the main funder.

Mr Ryan said he believed a return of a line linking Derry to Portadown – through Omagh and Strabane – would “economically transform the area”.

“I had a series of meetings with ARUP and the UK rail transport expert who was asked by the then Prime Minister Boris Johnson to examine some large projects.

“I thought providing access to Donegal would see the development of the existing line on the north Antrim coast. In those discussions, what started to come into view was the possibility of a spur from Portadown through Dungannon, Omagh and Strabane.”

CONNECTION

“An historical connection involving Monaghan took that route. The line would have to have a spur to Letterkenny in order to ensure a connection to Donegal.

“It would be transformative for the relationship between Letterkenny and Derry, as well as Strabane, Omagh and Dungannon. It would be of huge benefit to the island and would improve island connectivity.

“It would be very expensive because we would need to build a new line even though there is an existing line.”

Mr Ryan added, “In terms of the strategic long-term development of the island, it has huge potential and I look forward to seeing what the final conclusions are.”