Irish Rail may need to invest up to €250 million into railway lines around Dublin and Wicklow due to threats posed by climate change.
Barry Kenny, communications manager for Irish Rail, spoke on RTÉ’s Today with Claire Byrne about the proposed investments. He said that a long term plan is needed to ensure the railway lines remain protected against coastal erosion, which has been occurring at a more rapid rate in the past 20 years.
He said: "It’s about offshore break waters in a lot of locations. You’re talking about taking the power of the sea away from hitting the embankments where the railway line is. Higher rainfall levels are affecting the embankment levels as well."
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Mr Kenny also said Irish Rail would consider investing in double tracking outside of the Dublin area to maximise frequency. Ireland currently operates primarily on single tracks for most of our rail services, outside of some double tracking facilities available in Dublin and Cork.
A recent report issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPC) suggests that coastal erosion in the past 20 years has been higher than that recorded in the past century as a whole. The research also revealed that 100 metres of water could potentially move inland onto the Dublin coast by the end of the 21st century, leaving rail tracks at an obvious risk of collapsing.
Mr Kenny said that the use of double tracking would also enable rail services to operate more frequently. The DART service from Bray to Greystones, for instance, is currently on offer to commuters on a half hourly basis due to the single track system. New fleets that will operate in the Greater Dublin Area may have a positive impact on frequency in the near future.
He said: “We believe there is a latent demand in the commuter belt, particularly from Greystones and further south, for increased frequency. An ideal situation would be increasing frequency to every 15 or 20 minutes for Bray to Greystones in each direction. We would love to be in a position to offer more services on that line.”
An engineering firm will be hired to create initial designs that map out possible changes to the routes before any planning applications are made.
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