AQW 6738/16-21

Mr Richie McPhillips
Social Democratic and Labour Party
Fermanagh and South Tyrone

Tabled Date: 08/11/2016
Answered On Date: 21/11/2016
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for Infrastructure whether he has plans to establish a Derry to Dublin railway service.

Answer:

Building the strategic connections between Derry, Belfast and Dublin will help unlock the economic potential of the North West. My Programme for Government Delivery Plan includes a feasibility study on the enhancement of the Enterprise Service and a proposal to develop the Derry to Dublin rail service.

Passengers travelling between Derry and Dublin currently connect at Central Station. Connection times vary depending upon the time of day.

The current Enterprise timetable was introduced in April 2016 and provides best fit with existing NI Railways (NIR) and Iarnród Éireann suburban services.

The current Derry timetable is based on a largely clock faced format and links with other NIR local services to and from Belfast.

The ability to run a Derry to Dublin direct service requires the purchase of additional rolling stock commensurate with an intercity service and then increasing the frequency of services between Derry to Belfast and Belfast to Dublin to an hourly frequency. This will require a significant increase in revenue subsidy both for NIR and Iarnród Éireann as well as new Enterprise trains.