O’Dowd says ‘Derry Road’ rail link to Portadown will have 200km per hour track speed

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A proposal to re-establish the 'Derry Road' as the Derry to Portadown rail connection was known when it was operated by the Great Northern Railway until the 1960s was included in Arup's draft All-Island Strategic Rail Review published last summer. However, the review stipulated that the new GBP1.8-GBP2.8billion (EUR2.2bn-EUR3.4bn) rail connection would be limited to speeds of 160km/h (100mph) on a completely new electrified double-tracked line between Derry and Portadown. This attracted criticism from rail campaigners Into the West, who pointed out that this would leave Derry as the only core city on the island without 200 km per hour rail services.

The All-Island Rail Review has proposed an investment of between GBP2.1bn and GBP3.3bn in rail projects to Derry and Donegal.

During a debate on the all-island rail network at Stormont this week, SDLP MLA Mark H.

Durkan raised the matter with the Infrastructure Minister. "Bizarrely, the draft report that came forward excluded the Derry to Portadown line from the 200 km per hour rail speeds, condemning the route to the lowest rail speed on the island. "That needs to be addressed in the final strategy.

High-speed rail is the key to durability and success, making it a more attractive mode of transport for everyone. "Why should we settle for less than everywhere else? It is simply not good enough.

The days of us in the west being second-class passengers are over," said the Foyle MLA.

Rail minister John O'Dowd has said the Derry to Portadown rail link will have speeds of 200 km/p/h.

Mr. O'Dowd said: "Some of the key recommendations and interventions in respect of the North include: decarbonisation of the rail network, including electrification of the Belfast to Dublin line; frequency, speed and capacity improvements on the Belfast to Dublin and Belfast to Derry lines; and new lines from Belfast to Newry and Portadown to Derry. On Mr.

Durkan's comment about the speed of the Portadown to Derry connection, to clarify, it is planned for that rail network to have a 200 km per hour speed, so it is a high-speed connection. There will also be cross-border routes from Derry to Letterkenny and Portadown to Mullingar."