Local People Before Profit representatives have expressed their disappointment with the news that it will now cost €3.8 million to get the unopened Kishogue Train station into use. The station was built 13 years ago but has remained unopened since, despite numerous calls from elected representatives to open the station. Irish Rail have now stated that the station won’t be opened until late 2023.
Gino Kenny TD commented: “It’s extremely disappointing that the train station is not yet opened. Because of this neglect it will now cost a significant amount of public money to open it. I have called on the NTA and Irish Rail to open the station for years and for years we have been promised that it will.
In 2018 the NTA/Irish Rail said that the station would be opened in 2020, and now we’re looking at the end of 2023. I’m very concerned that this date will be pushed even further because of the extra funding needed.
It is incredible that at a time when we need more people to use public transport in order to reduce our CO2 emissions this station is lying empty. I’m calling on the Minister for Transport to ensure that money is provided to open the station as soon as possible.”
Cllr Madeleine Johansson added: “Irish Rail has claimed that it wasn’t viable to open the station before new homes are built in the area. But in my opinion, the fact that there are thousands of people living in walking and cycling distance from the station means that the station could have been opened and would have been used. A park and ride facility could also have offered even more people in the wider Lucan area the possibility of using the train to get to the city centre. The buses in Lucan are currently full to capacity at peak times and the train could offer an alternative public transport option.”
