Government commitment to western infrastructure capital projects is clear – Fahey

The commitment of the government to key infrastructural projects in the west remains clear despite uninformed comments by members of Fine Gael, according to local Fianna Fáil TD and Chairman of the Oireachtas Transport Committee, Frank Fahey.

Deputy Fahey was referring to the €40 billion stimulus for Growth and Job Creation outlined by the Taoiseach Brian Cowen TD earlier this week.

The stimulus plan is a clear statement of confidence in Ireland’s future and lists areas of focus to support recovery, prioritising productive and employment-supportive sectors, including enterprise and innovation, education, public transport and environmental services.

“Despite scaremongering by local, uninformed members of Fine Gael, the Government’s commitment to the west is clear. The Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey TD has confirmed that the development of Phase 2 of the Western Rail Corridor from Athenry to Tuam remains a key priority under the revised capital programme and will continue as planned.

“I met with the Chairman of the Iarnrod Eireann John Lynch last month and I felt that he was positively disposed towards my request to prioritise the extension of the WRC from Athenry to Tuam.

“The Western Rail Corridor is a state of the art, modern service for the West of Ireland. It is an important step in the Government’s approach to balanced regional development and this Government has already invested significantly in its development, resulting in the reopening of the Limerick to Galway link in March.

“The Gort to Tuam road project is also progressing as planned and this will be a very important link in Galway’s infrastructure. There are three parts to this PPP project – The Tuam Bypass, the Tuam to N6 and the Tuam to Gort road. This road will dramatically improve the network link up in those areas.

“Of course the Galway to Dublin motorway also opened this year, and I think it’s fair to say that we are all enjoying the benefits of being better linked to the capita.

“The Galway City Outer Bypass is in the courts right now, but the Minister for Transport said as recently as three weeks ago that as soon as the legal situation is resolved, he wants to see the road going ahead as quickly as possible.

“So to see local members of Fine Gael trying to knock the west, by saying that its being ‘left behind’ is really very disappointing,” Deputy Fahey said.