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Derry’s rail link may be getting back on track

Tuesday 1st November 2005

Derry’s rail link may be getting back on track, according to the lobby group Into the West.

The group delivered the upbeat assessment yesterday, following a two-hour meeting in Belfast with the general manager of the North’s rail services, Mal McGreevy.

Into the West said on its return to Derry that "some of our immediate fears were eased” by the discussion, but emphasised "the key necessity of staying alert and staying mobilised.”

Into the West said it expects that from next month the Derry service will be 100 percent operated by the new C3k trains.

The group also expects work to begin next spring or early summer on improvements to the track between Derry and Ballymena.

And, it says, passengers should notice significant improvements at the Waterside Station in Derry by the end of next year.

"We will be issuing a more detailed assessment in the near future,” said a spokesperson. "But in the meantime, we are able to strike a more positive note than was possible in the recent past.We came out more optimistic than we went in.

"At the same time, we want to emphasise that there are no guarantees and no room for complacency. The type of long-term future we have in mind for our rail service will still have to be fought for. But we are reasonably confident for now that there’ll be a line available to be improved and extended."

The Into the West delegation included activists Billy Mooney, Mary Casey, Jim McBride and Eamonn McCann.

"Our meeting with Mal McGreevy lasted for much longer than had been scheduled,” the spokesperson continued. "Over a period of two hours, we were able to discuss the build-up of grievance in the north west generally, to discuss how Northern Ireland Rail saw the future and to compare this with our own aspirations.

"Over recent months, some of the new Spanish-manufactured trains have been used on the Derry line---but most journeys were being made with old stock. Many saw this as typical---the Derry line being treated as a poor relation. We hope that, by the same token, next month’s switch-over to C3ks can be taken as a sign of a more positive approach.

"The construction of new track between Dunloy and Ballymoney in 2006 should mean an end to a 40 mph restriction, giving a 70 mph speed and a shorter journey time. And re-railing other stretches where there have been problems---laying new tracks over existing sleepers and ballast---will also help towards a faster and smoother journey.

"A new loop will likely be put in place near Limavady to allow trains to pass. This should be a major help in achieving more rational time-tabling to meet the needs of passengers and potential passengers.

"This is far from the complete renewal of the line which we want and will continue to fight for. But at least the steady deterioration should be halted.

"The funding will come from the £23.6 million allocated in the spending review last December. We have been given to understand that, contrary to the fears of many rail workers and users, the lion's share of this money will be spent, as it should be, on the Derry-Ballymena stretch.

"We again raised the complete inadequacy of the Waterside station and learnt that the station will be re-roofed and redecorated next year and, very importantly, brought into compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act. This last point, particularly with regard to toilet facilities, has been a bone of contention for some time.

"We repeat that while all this is positive, we see it not as something to rest on but as a basis to build on. We want to see a modern track and modern trains, well funded and confidently marketed, running from Belfast through Derry and on to Letterkenny and down the west coast.

"We want the line to Dublin restored. A comfortable two-and-a-half hour train journey to Dublin is well within reach of existing technology. This would remove hundreds of cars from the roads at a stroke. We want a light rail system to end the choking congestion on all main roads into Derry. We want a rail freight service brought back.

"All this makes social, environmental, political and economic sense But it's till a long way off.

"The positive indications we gained from Mal McGrevy yesterday were a start.

"And we gather that the much-missed tea trolly may make a come-back."





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