Historic meeting at iconic railway station
Some of those who attended the meeting of the Western Inter-County Railway Committee at Ballyglunin. Pictures: J. Canney
The beautifully renovated heritage railway station of Ballyglunin in Co Galway welcomed councillors from across the West of Ireland on Thursday last for a meeting of the Western Inter-County Railway Committee. The committee comprises elected representatives from the seven county councils of Mayo, Galway, Sligo, Leitrim, Roscommon, Donegal and Clare as well as Galway City Council.
Members and guests were welcomed by Joyce Laffey, chair of the Ballyglunin Development Company, who described the combination of the remarkable community spirit that exists in the area and the support of Galway County Council and other development agencies as being pivotal to the success of the renovation project.
An audio-visual presentation by board member Mark Gibson outlined the history of the famous station and how it has been painstakingly restored in recent years. The station was made famous in the iconic movie . Mr Gibson also spoke of the ambitious plans for further development at the facility and the exciting prospect of the reopening of the railway in the short term.
Cathaoirleach Cllr Michael Connolly thanked the committee for their warm welcome and described their visit as historic, particularly as the area is currently eagerly awaiting confirmation that the restoration of the adjacent rail line is shortly to commence.
“As part of that restoration we look forward to seeing the development of a Park and Ride facility close to the station which will serve all the people of the area while also bringing visitors to this internationally popular tourist attraction.”
The special guest speaker on the day was local TD, Deputy Sean Canney, who commended both the local volunteers and the rail committee for their unstinting commitment to improving their area and region.
“I am absolutely confident that trains will again be running through Ballyglunin Station, sooner rather than later,” he told members. “The Minister, the Government and the Opposition are all behind this development, and once the All-Island Rail Review is published, I believe the project will be given the go-ahead without delay. The early restoration of the bridge here at Ballyglunin will be an important signal that the project is finally underway,” he added.
