Belfast-Derry Railway Motion

This Assembly notes -

(1) That the railway between Belfast and Londonderry/Derry is unfit for an era where humanity as a whole has to decrease their dependency on automobiles.

(2) That the railway is still unelectrified, leading to the usage of greenhouse gas emitting diesel trains instead.

(3) That the travel time between Belfast and Londonderry/Derry could be cut significantly if trains could ride at full speed between the two cities, increasing capacity and lowering costs for commuters.

(4) That whilst direct connections are needed, it is vital to not miss out on indirect train travel to and from the cities.

(5) That an expansion of railway stations in both Londonderry/Derry would provide the necessary infrastructure to oversee more broad expansion of the railway connections for both cities.

As such, this Assembly requests that the Executive -

(1) Makes the necessary investments to ensure that the entire length of the railway is double-track.

(2) Makes the necessary investments to ensure that the entire length of the railway is electrified and the necessary railway stock is acquired for usage on the railway.

(3) Make the necessary investments to see that the electrified railway is supplied primarily through green energy sources and that across Northern Ireland a green energy solution is provided to electrified railways.

(4) Ensures that an hourly intercity service is established between Belfast and Londonderry/Derry, with stops in major towns along the way.

(5) Expand alternative railway capacity that runs indirectly to Londonderry/Derry to ensure an ease of access elsewhere and to the cities via alternate routes.

(6) Investigate and make the necessary investments if applicable, to oversee the expansion of both Belfast and Londonderry/Derry major railway stations to ensure smoother connection to and from, as well as to elsewhere.

This Motion was written by the Right Honourable Dame /u/Inadorable DBE MLA and /u/KalvinLokan CMG KP MLA on behalf of the Labour Party of Northern Ireland and the Ulster Workers Party.

Opening Speech

Ceann Comhairle,

Whilst there have been many railway bills and motions in this Assembly before, and we can assume that there are still many to come after this one, I feel like this motion still has something major to add to our ongoing investments into our railway infrastructure, as the railway between Belfast and Derry is the most important one in Northern Ireland.

This motion, if passed, would start a process that would make travel between the two cities faster, cheaper, easier and more environmentally friendly. Faster, because not only can our trains run at full speed along the line, they do not have to make often quite long stops in towns along the railway line. It’s predicted that this would cut travel times by more than 40% on it’s own, making the train a faster method of travel than the car.

Cheaper, because increased speeds on the line and the parallel intercity service lead to increased capacity on the line and thus lower costs for commuters. It’ll be easier, because people can get to where they need to be faster, and because this motion also requests that branch lines be considered in this expansion, with more possible routes and destinations for travellers to take. And finally, it will be more environmentally friendly - instead of using polluting diesel trains or indeed, cars, we will be using electricity to travel between the two cities and thus reduce carbon emissions from travel and ensure cleaner air along the route.

Debate shall end 10PM 18/8/2021