Irish Rail has rejected claims that its decision to remove a link between lines to Galway and Mayo will end all prospect of reopening the western rail corridor.
The rail company will begin work today on lifting the crossover at Athenry, which links the Claremorris line with the Athenry-Limerick line.
The company says the removal will save on maintenance and signalling costs, but could easily be reversed if there was demand for the facility.
However, Fine Gael's transport spokesman Mr Denis Naughten yesterday said the work would end the prospect of inter-city services between Sligo, Limerick, Cork and Waterford, as well as the possibility of a resumption of freight services on the line.
He said this was happening despite Government assurances that it would not pre-empt the decision of the Strategic Rail Review, whose report is due shortly.
"Irish Rail has blatantly disregarded the Taoiseach's commitment in the Dáil last week that no action would be taken in relation to the closing of lines prior to the publication of the strategic rail review," he said.
An Irish Rail spokesman said yesterday the removal of the crossover had nothing to do with current cost reviews at the company.
"It is being removed as it is currently not being used. To keep it would involve unnecessary maintenance costs as well as extra spending to include it in the mini-CTC signalling project currently being installed on the Dublin to Galway line.
"To include it in the new mini- CTC signalling system now would cost between €500,000 and €750,000," he said. "To add it in later if there is demand would cost no more, and we would be saved the maintenance costs in the meantime."
While Mr Naughten claimed the removal of the line and the non-inclusion of it the new signalling system would make it very difficult to reverse the move, Irish Rail said the change could easily be reversed.
"We could very simply and at a modest cost reopen it," he said. "It would cost some hundreds of thousands of euro, which is quite modest in railway infrastructure terms."
However, Galway Fianna Fáil councillor, Mr Michael Connolly, said the move "prejudges the findings of the Government's feasibility study into railways."
He also claimed Irish Rail did not engage in any consultation on the matter.
Mr Frank Dawson, director of services with Galway County Council, said that by removing the link the company was effectively saying there was no future for the line.
He accused the company of "engaging in a cynical exercise. This is a gesture by Irish Rail that they have no faith in the line."
The reopening of the western rail corridor has been a priority of the Western Development Commission, Western Regional Authority, West Region Chambers of Commerce, county development boards from Donegal to Clare, western county councils and the Western Inter-County Railway Committee.