It's been claimed that the Chairman of the Board of Irish Rail has reiterated that the preservation of the Western Rail Corridor as a railway is an absolute priority.

Speaking this week, Steve Murphy is understood to have indicated that if greenways are put on existing rail alignments they will never be got back for rail use.

Responding to a query about a possible greenway on the rail line from Claremorris to Collooney, Mr. Murphy stated that the extension of the Western Rail Corridor as a railway as an absolute priority.

But Independent Cllr Marie Casserly thinks that a greenway should still be put on the line in the short term:

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