Rail campaign group presents survey results to the National Transport Authority

TIMETABLING remains the main barrier to more people using the Ballybrophy-Limerick railway line. This is just one of the findings in a survey carried out by the North Tipperary Community Rail Partnership to facilitate the voices of people living along the line to be heard. 259 people responded to the survey in May and June 2022.

The campaign group presented the survey results to Marian Wilson of the National Transport Authority recently, and will continue to engage with the NTA and other authorities on a regular basis to ensure that the voices of people living along the line are heard.

The most important reasons that people don’t use this train line more often are the frequency or timing of trains not being suitable (important to 95%), lack of convenient linkages of this train line with other public transport services (e.g. buses, taxis, other train lines) (important to 69%), and the low speed of the train (important to 71%).

Many respondents took time to describe in detail how the timetable doesn’t suit them for commuting for work or college to Limerick or Dublin in particular, for example “I've a son going to college in Limerick soon, and it will be hard to get him there using public transport. We can't afford a car for him. And he can't afford to live there.” “There needs to be a timetable that suits students, commuters and other passengers. The current one just doesn't work for most users.”

Overall, respondents reported that they would take 3.3 times as many journeys on the line if there were additional services in the timetable, compared to the train journeys they take now.

The key recommendations of this survey are:

Timetabling and speeds are very clearly the most significant constraint to people using this train line. Respondents called for:

Morning and evening services which facilitate commuters who work 9am-5pm hours in Dublin or Limerick.
At least two services in each direction in the middle of the day to facilitate passengers who wish to stay only a few hours at their destination.
A late evening/night service out of Limerick on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays to facilitate sport and night-life.
Linkages with bus services, including shuttle buses, and park and ride facilities for cars and bicycles.
Additional station closer to the University of Limerick area.
Reliable services which are not cancelled on bank holidays or frequently replaced with buses.
Analysis shows that with these improvements, there would be large increases in usage of this railway line, mostly displacing use of private cars (82% frequently drive a car at present) as well as improving access to workplaces, education, services, commercial and leisure activities.

Releasing the full survey report, which is available online, Elaine Baker, a member of the North Tipperary Community Rail Partnership, said she “calls on the authorities including Iarnrod Eireann and the National Transport Authority to listen to the voices of people living along this railway line and put in place a better and more frequent timetable”.

Link to full survey report: https://bit.ly/railsurveyreport