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The Minister for Transport, Eamonn Ryan T.D., today announced Government approval for additional funding of €94.5million for the heavy rail network. Most of the funding (91.5m) will be spent on line improvements on the Dublin Cork railway line which will cut journey times by 8-10 minutes. It will also futureproof the line to accommodate 200km/h speeds at a later stage.

This substantially increased funding is proposed for Iarnród Éireann and will be assigned to the existing Infrastructure Manager Multi Annual Contract which provides the funding and governance oversight framework for the rail network and its infrastructure.

This funding will

• - support line speed improvements on the Dublin – Cork line;
• - enhance the climate resilience of the rail network; and
• - minor upgrades to Limerick Junction/Waterford line.

Minister Ryan stated: “ We made a clear commitment to public transport in the Programme for Government and the National Development Plan. Yesterday we made a big commitment to the DART+ Fleet, and today we are demonstrating our commitment to mainline rail services, both of which will help us achieve our climate goals. Today’s funding will also provide an enhanced passenger service on the Dublin Cork line, and encourage more people to switch from car to rail.”

The IMMAC sets out a five-year contractual arrangement between the Minister and Iarnród Éireann which inter alia sets out the Exchequer funding profile for the rail network and, for the contract period 2020-2024, amounts to an investment of €1.027.7billion. 

Funding provided under the IMMAC investment programme is separate to funding provided for other rail related projects such as the recently approved DART+ Programme.

Jim Meade, Chief Executive of Iarnród Éireann said: “The funding for the IMMAC is the foundation of the delivery of a railway infrastructure which is safe, and which develops to meet the needs of our customers. We welcome the continuing funding under the IMMAC, and additional funding which will equip us for improved journey times, and climate resilience and sustainability. Furthermore, it will create 150 additional jobs during 2022.”

ENDS

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Note for Editors

The Infrastructure Manager Multi Annual Contract (IMMAC) provides the funding and governance oversight framework for the maintenance, renewal and improvement of the rail network and its infrastructure.

It sets out a five-year contractual arrangement between the Minister and Iarnród Éireann which inter alia sets out the Exchequer funding profile for the rail network and, for the contract period 2020-2024, amounts to an investment of €1.027.7billion. 

The IMMAC does not include funding for the provision of railway services on railway infrastructure; these are funded through the separate Public Service Obligation programme administered through the National Transport Authority.

IMMAC 2020 – 2024 builds upon a significant level of investment in the railway infrastructure that has been delivered through three five year railway safety programmes dating back to 1999 and followed by IMMAC 2014 - 2018/9.

IMMAC 2020 – 2024 was formulated following a review of IMMAC 2014 – 2018/9. The value for money review was led by the Department of Transport with input from Iarnród Éireann’s Infrastructure Manager Division and oversight from the NTA and the CRR.

IMMAC 2020 - 2024 is largely funded through a combination of Exchequer funding and track access charges paid by the Railway Undertaking for access to the network in accordance with EU regulations. The scale of Exchequer funding available to support the IMMAC is summarised in the table below with a distinction drawn between the original exchequer funding allocation and the recently announced additional funding.

IMMAC 2020 to 2024: Cost to The Exchequer

The IMMAC finances:-

• the maintenance and renewal of the railway’s civil engineering, signalling, electrical and telecommunications infrastructure.
• the Infrastructure Manager’s (IM) operations including the management, control, supervision, delivery and recovery of train control operations activities and for interface between the Railway Undertakings (RUs) and the IÉ Network
• the IM’s safety and asset management systems.
• The planning phase of a new train protection system based on the standardised EU ETCS.

The wide range of railway infrastructure to be maintained and renewed under IMMAC 2020 – 2024 includes:-

• Track and signalling / control and communications systems across c2,400 track kms including sidings
• 145 stations
• Over 4,400 bridges including culverts, nearly 1,000 level crossings (various types), over 1,000 point ends and nearly 300 buffers
• 3,700 individual man made cuttings and embankments.
• 99 kms of electrified track including OHLE and associate power supply / sub-stations.

The additional Exchequer funding will be used to:-

• Support ‘improved line speeds’ on the Cork route with additional funds allocated to the Cork Line Rehabilitation Project (CLRP). While this route is a key piece of national infrastructure and is the highest earning revenue Intercity route for Iarnród Éireann, it has some of the oldest track infrastructure in the network and is nearing its end of life cycle. The project will bring the line speed up to 100mph and will involve over the three year period 2022- 2024 track renewal (50.5 kms), ballast cleaning (44kms) and drainage (25.6kms). Works undertaken in recent years has delivered 160kph (100mph) running from outside Heuston to Portlaoise and through Ballybrophy.  As track work is being renewed, the geometry and materials of the replacement track is being put in place to accommodate future speeds of up to 200kph (125mph) subject to fleet and signalling capabilities).
• Support a ‘Sustainable Railway’ by targeting spend on the Limerick - Waterford line. Works will include elimination of 1-2 level crossings per annum and minor geometry improvements and upgrades at 2-3 locations per annum.
• Support a ‘Climate Resilient Railway’ including feasibility studies to assist with the identification and scoping of climate resilience projects.

It is estimated that an average of 150 jobs per period for 2022 – 2023 and 55 jobs per period for 2024 will be generated as a direct consequence of the additional IMMAC spend on the CLRP project.