SDLP takes aim at ‘woefully inadequate’ train services in Newry

Newry & Armagh MLA Justin McNulty and Newry City Councillors Killian Feehan and Doire Finn have spoken of their “deep frustration” at the extraordinary inequality in commuter train services between Newry and Portadown.

At present, commuters departing from Portadown have a choice of eight morning services that arrive in Belfast before 9am. That is compared to just one service from Newry, departing at 6:30am.

The picture is equally bleak for commuters working in Dublin who are unable to board a train in Newry which will get them to Dublin in time for work.

Justin McNulty MLA said the current situation was “completely unacceptable”.

“I have been advocating extensively for enhanced rail services from Newry for years now. It is completely unacceptable that Newry is left a world behind when it comes to train services, particularly those that commuters rely on to get into work on time,” he said.

“Newry sits in the heart of the most vibrant economic and population corridors on this island. The fact that there is no way for a worker in Newry to get to Dublin by train in time for work is an embarrassing failure, and it is one that needs to be addressed immediately.

“I pushed Translink on ensuring that any uplift in Enterprise services coming from the Irish Government’s €12.5million investment include scheduled stops in Newry in both directions. I also identified concerns around the implications of Brexit on the movement of tourists across Ireland, and our TEN-T corridor status. There can be no more excuses for inadequate rail scheduling servicing Newry.”

Newry Councillor Killian Feehan said current services in Newry could be considered an equality issue: “I am totally baffled at the fact that Portadown has eight times the number of morning train services to Belfast when compared with Newry.

“I confronted this issue directly with senior officials at Translink and challenged them on whether the disadvantage faced by people in the Newry area would stand up to both equality and rural-needs scrutiny.

“It is hard to escape the conclusion that people trying to make their way to work from Newry are at an unfair disadvantage when compared with other areas. We have challenged Translink to get these issues addressed urgently, and to begin to close the gap between Newry and other towns and cities across the North.”

Newry Councillor Doire Finn raised the need for better integration between bus and rail services:

“I was pleased to be able to attend a meeting with Translink to discuss the issues that are facing passengers and commuters across the city,” she said.

“I raised the issue of connecting bus services from the train station later in the evening. This was raised with me at the end of 2023 and I will continue to push for this service to help ensure travel from the train station into the city.”