20/05/2026
The Irish Government and Iarnród Éireann have unveiled plans to reconnect Navan to Dublin by rail, including a new station at Kilmessan, a village with fewer than 1,000 people.
That matters here in Tyrone and Fermanagh.
Too often, people argue that towns and villages across the west are “too small” for proper public transport investment. But railways and transport links are not rewards for places that have already grown. They are how places grow.
Good infrastructure shapes future development, supports local economies, helps people access work, education, healthcare and services, and reduces long-term car dependency before isolation and congestion become worse.
It also matters hugely for disabled people.
Across Tyrone and Fermanagh, many disabled people are effectively trapped by poor transport links, inaccessible or unreliable public transport, the shortage of accessible taxis, and the assumption that everyone can simply drive everywhere.
Not everybody can drive.
Not everybody can afford a car.
Not everybody is physically able to use one.
For many disabled people, better rail and public transport links are not about convenience. They are about independence, freedom, employment, education, healthcare and basic participation in society.
The same thinking should apply across the west of Ireland.
If a village of under 1,000 people can be considered for a railway station in the south, then communities across Tyrone and Fermanagh should not be written off when discussing improved transport connectivity, rail expansion, rural mobility or future infrastructure investment.
Transport planning should be about building inclusive communities for the future, not managing decline and isolation.
