Proposals to link Ireland to an ultra-rapid European train network have been put forward by an EU think tank.
The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies says the project would help Europe recover from the covid-19 crisis.
The proposals would see all EU capital cities connected via four major railway lines and would be separate from the existing Trans-European Transport Network.
Here's what it would look like:
Trains would be able to travel at average speeds of between 250 to 350 km/h.
This would allow people to travel from Paris to Berlin in about four hours.
Dublin would be connected to Paris with a ferry-based sea link between Cork and Brest.
The other lines would see:
› Lisbon-Helsinki including a loop around the Baltic Sea meeting in the Ruhr area (red)
› Brussels-Valletta, (blue)
› Berlin-Nicosia, with a ferry-based sea link between Piraeus and Paphos and a loop between Vienna
and Sofia (brown)
The estimated cost of the project would be €1,100 billion.
