Tourism bodies note silence of the politicians in the west

Silent politicians, social misery and much anger and frustration - that's how tourism interests in Westport, Co Mayo, described the mood yesterday as the rail strike rumbled on with no sign of resolution.

"We must be the hardest-hit town in Ireland, apart from Killarney, and I can't understand why even Opposition politicians are keeping quiet about it," Mr Dick Harnedy, chairman of Westport Tourism Organisation, told The Irish Times.

A specially convened meeting of the organisation on Thursday night called for an immediate resolution and expressed anger at the apparent lack of interest shown by elected representatives in the impact on the region's economy.

"The most vulnerable in our society have also been affected by this continuing strike," Mr Harnedy said. "Senior citizens, the sick and their relatives and young travellers have all been seriously discommoded. The Westport Tourism Organisation has always supported the maintenance and upgrading of the Dublin-Westport line. Sadly, this rail link is non-existent this tourist season, and this has detrimental consequences for us all in Cos Mayo and Roscommon."

There are no estimates on the effect so far, but bednights are down. What worries the commercial sector is that the dispute may be used as an excuse to downgrade the Westport-Dublin link, as part of a Department of Public Enterprise master plan to privatise certain State transport services. The line is currently being upgraded, after years of pressure.

Iarnrod Eireann confirmed yesterday that services on the Westport-Dublin route were running at less than 50 per cent of normal this week, with no trains at all between Athlone and Cos Mayo and Roscommon. Buses have been provided to and from Athlone. Four train-drivers based at Westport are split evenly between SIPTU and the ILDA, but one affiliated to each union has been out on sick leave.

By contrast, the Galway-Dublin line is on full service. Some 20 per cent of services had been affected on that route during the third week of the dispute, but schedules were running as normal throughout the past week.

Westport, along with Ballina, feels it is being "victimised".

"If this was anywhere in the Dublin area, there would be Ministers intervening immediately to resolve it," Mr Peter Shanley, chairman of the Chambers of Commerce of Ireland West Region, said last week.