15 January 2002
ASSEMBLY MUST DECIDE RAILWAYS INVESTMENT - DRD MINISTER
Regional Development Minister, Peter Robinson, MP MLA, today stressed that the level of future investment in transportation, and railways in particular, in Northern Ireland will ultimately be determined in the Assembly’s budgetary process.
The Minister was responding to comments from lobby groups following the publication of the Strategic Rail Authority’s 10-year strategy for the development of rail travel in GB, which envisages a commitment of £33.5 billion by Government over the next 10 years.
Mr Robinson said: "The proposal outlined yesterday was only for Great Britain and does not involve Northern Ireland.
"However, I would point out that the needs of Northern Ireland in transportation terms are as great, if not greater, than GB and I will continue to make the case for more funding."
The Minister said that the railway network in Northern Ireland has suffered four decades of under-investment. Furthermore, the level of subsidies for running railways in Northern Ireland has been significantly less than in GB.
"Within my Department we began to tackle this within the work of the Railways Task Force which reported in the autumn of 2000. This led to the Assembly voting a £105m investment in the consolidation of the core railway network in Northern Ireland.
"In addition to improvements in the railway infrastructure in certain parts of the network, this funding has enabled the procurement of 23 new train sets, which are due for delivery within the next two years.
"The £105m investment arising from the Railways Task Force has enabled us to address the most pressing safety and infrastructural problems. However huge challenges lie ahead if we are to develop a railway system in Northern Ireland that we can be proud of, and one which makes a significant contribution to meeting our transportation needs.
"Issues of further investment in railways in Northern Ireland will be addressed within the context of the 10-year Regional Transportation Strategy, which is at an advanced stage of preparation within my Department."
For further information contact Eamon Deeny at the DRD Information Office on 028 9054 0004/9054 0007.
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