Consultants to be appointed to help deliver Cork's €274m commuter rail plan
Under Could And The New At Blackpool Be Blarney, Developed Stations Plan Ballynoe
Consultants are due to be appointed before the end of the month to prepare a high-level study to guide the delivery of a €274m suburban rail system for the Cork metropolitan region.
Their report, which could take at least a year to prepare, is expected to include a feasibility study and various development options to ensure the delivery of what is a key objective of the Cork Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy (CMATS) - the blueprint for the delivery of public transport in the region for the next 20 years.
CMATS included plans for massive investment in cycling and walking infrastructure, for a €1bn light-rail system running from Ballincollig to Mahon, and for massive investment in bus lanes through a Bus Connects programme.
Jacobs Engineering Ireland was appointed last summer to identify route options and develop initial designs for the 17km Luas-style light rail system.
Engineering teams were appointed in January to design a dozen core bus corridors and one orbital bus route around the city as part of one of the most radical overhauls of the city’s public transport system in decades.
Public transport experts Jarrett Walker & Associates are also reviewing the city’s existing bus services — with a focus on how many buses operate where, when and how often — as part of a project to design an improved network.
City councillors have been told that Irish Rail is poised to appoint consultants to deliver a ‘strategic assessment report’ and a concept, feasibility and options study for the Cork area commuter rail programme.
The CMATS plan set out an ambitious strategy to develop a suburban rail network running from the north-west of the city to Kent Station, with new stations to be developed at Blarney/Stoneview, Monard, and at Blackpool/Kilbarry, with trains running every five minutes.
The network would connect at a revamped Kent Station, which is set to become a major transport hub, with services running every 10 minutes along a dual track to Midleton through new stations at Tivoli, Carrigtwohill and Waterock, and south every 10 minutes on the existing line to Cobh, with a new station at Ballynoe.
The news emerged following a question from northside Fianna Fáil councillor Tony Fitzgerald.
He asked for an update on the status of the long-term rail projects, the status of talks on developing a railway station at Blackpool/Kilbarry, and how Irish Rail was advancing the rail developments proposed in CMATS.
Fearghal Reidy, the council’s director of services in the strategic planning and economic development directorate, said discussions are ongoing with Irish Rail and the National Transport Authority in relation to funding of transport infrastructure, including suburban rail, in the Cork Metropolitan Area.
He said Iarnród Éireann are due to appoint a consultant before the end of this month to deliver the strategic study on the commuter rail plan.
“In consultation with NTA and Cork City Council, Iarnrórd Eireann will detail the sequence and extent of works to be delivered in this programme,” he said.
“The requirements for new stations will be defined in the study.
“Recently it completed works to provide for the reorientation and access to Kent Station with the provision of a new entrance on Horgan’s Quay, bringing the station entrance closer to the city centre.”
He also said the company has spent just over €8m on a re-signalling project at Kent Station.
“When completed, it will improve the safety and reliability of operations in the station and enable signalling integration with the National Traffic Control Centre in the future.”
However, he also said the company is in discussions with the NTA to accelerate the projects set out in CMATS.
It has also applied for funding through the EU Recovery and Resilience Fund to advance track and signalling works to provide for capacity enhancement.
While Covid-19 has hit passenger numbers, the company expects to see a resurgence in passenger numbers to pre-pandemic levels and growth returning from 2024.