Campaign Group Predicts Crusheen Railway Station Will Reopen "Sooner Rather Than Later"

Clare FM

A campaign group that has long advocated for the reopening of the Western Rail Corridor has expressed hope that Crusheen Railway Station will come back into use sooner rather than later. It comes as the findings of an extensive investigation into the potential for the defunct railway stop to be reinstated have been presented to the public. Once a consistent component of the village's soundtrack, the sound of a train stopping in Crusheen hasn't been heard for several decades. Now however, the prospect of commuters being able to avail of rail transport in the North Clare settlement seems closer than ever. Crusheen Railway Station was first built in 1869 and served the area for over 100 years before being closed to passenger traffic in 1976, and to freight traffic in the 1990s. The line subsequently reopened in 2010, as part of the Western Corridor rail project, but the station remained closed. Hopes were reiginited in 2013 when Irish Rail secured planning permission for the station's reopening, with plans drawn up for a new 90-metre platform, but no progress was made. In March of this year, Clare County Council commissioned Repucon Consulting to undertake an independent socio-economic appraisal of the benefits of reopening the station and rail stop. As part of this effort, the local authority has purchased lands to provide a publicly-owned strategic landbank to be used for a platform, passenger bridge and any other necessary infrastructure. Executive Director of Repucon Consulting, Mark O'Connell, says the station would be a "phenomenal service for County Clare". A local resident survey taken as part of the socio-economic analysis yielded 1,244 responses, 1,029 of which were incorporated into the report, as the remaining 115 were from respondents living outside the immediate catchment area. Of those whose responses were factored into the analysis, 92% were "very strongly" in support of the station's reopening and 53% of commuters said they were "very likely" to use the local rail service. The estimated current commuter market audience for the station is between 1,100 and 1,700. Senior Planner with the Killaloe Municipal District, Brian McCarthy says the level of engagement from the general public shows how important having a railway station would be to Crusheen. The report states that reopening the station would cost roughly €4.5 million. With its 15-year employment income impact estimated at €25.5 million, the return on investment would be €5.65 for every €1 spent on bringing it back into use. Colmán Ó Raghallaigh from community-based campaign group West on Track believes in light of the evidence presented, reopening the station is an inevitability.