A new phase of life for railway line?

After more than a century and a half of continuous operation, there is growing optimism that the railway line through the area is on the verge of a new lease of life.

The Limerick-Ballybrophy railway line, through Birdhill, which also serves Castleconnell, Nenagh, Cloughjordan and Roscrea is now being earmarked as one of the potential lines for further enhancement and increased use.

The listing of the railway line by political and infrastructure groups has now come in sharp contrast to the threat of closure for the line in recent years. Eamon Ryan, Green Party Leader and Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications is urging greater emphasis on rail commuting as a measure to ease road congestion, reduce emissions and lower cost of travel.

There has been considerable expenditure by Iarnród Éireann on track renewal, and extensive fibre cable works on the line in recent years.

The Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications, in a submission to the All-Ireland Strategic Rail Review, cited the route as one of many which needs to be made more user friendly.

The submission recommended reviewing the existing timetables and “investing in the necessary upgrades to tracks, speed limits, level crossings and potential new stops in order to make the route attractive to commuters travelling from Tipperary into Limerick City”.

The North Tipperary Community Rail Partnership has called on Irish Rail, the National Transport Authority and the Government to further improve the current journey times on the line.

Almost 1,200 people have now signed a petition, organised by the partnership, to be submitted to the authorities, urging more immediate action to provide faster travel times and an enhanced timetable.

“For too long this section of the national rail network has been left in a state of decline. There has been more than €23 million of taxpayers' money spent upgrading the line in the last year and despite this there has been no improvements to the desperately slow journey times,” they stated.

“There has been significant work carried out on the line to replace the old, jointed track with Continuous Welded Rail (CWR). 80% of the track has now been upgraded to CWR, however the speed limits on all sections remain exactly the same as they were prior to these works being carried out,” they added.

They are seeking further support from the communities in the respective areas, served by the line, for the on-line petition which remains ongoing.

Irish Rail is understood to be engaging with the Department of Transport on possible funding to address level crossings and other improvement works which would allow for the operation of reduced travelling times on the line.

A few years ago, the line was identified as operating at a substantial annual loss and threatened with closure unless there was an increase in the number of fare paying passengers using the service.

The line through Birdhill has been in operation for more than 160 years.

In 1858 the line from Limerick to Castleconnell was opened and shortly afterwards it was decided to extend the line to Killaloe. Birdhill was just an incidental stopping point on the way.

A sum of £37,000 was allocated by an Act of Parliament for that extension. The line eventually reached Birdhill and was opened on July 23, 1860.