Within the framework of the national development plan a wide range of initiatives have been taken to upgrade Dublin's transport infrastructure and services. These include major investment in the upgrading of the national road network. In the Dublin city and county areas alone, major road projects to a total value of approximately €1.4 billion are currently under construction. Major road projects critical to managing Dublin transport include: the Dublin Port tunnel, which will significantly reduce the number of heavy goods vehicles using the city centre; the south-eastern motorway, which forms the final part of the C-ring; the construction of a second bridge at the West Link, designed to alleviate congestion at this pressure point on the motorway, is also under way; and the Cloghran-Balbriggan section of the M1 northern motorway.
Projects under way on the N11 – Glen of the Downs and Rathnew-Ashford bypasses – and N7 – Kildare bypass – will also assist in improving traffic flow in the Dublin area. These major improvements are vital for improved road capacity and they will substantially complete the major road network around the city area.
The national development plan also provides for investment of more than €3 billion in public transport and traffic management in the period to 2006. Of this, approximately €2 billion will be investment in the greater Dublin area. Since 1997, demonstrable improvements in public transport arrangements and services have been implemented: the Dublin Bus fleet has been expanded significantly through the purchase of more than 600 new buses; Bus Éireann has purchased 74 new buses to upgrade long distance commuter services in the greater Dublin area; there are now nine QBCs in place in Dublin and work is continuing on further routes; 160 kilometres of dedicated cycleways have been provided; traffic management and control systems have been upgraded; taxi numbers have increased significantly; major capacity improvements have been made to rail services including platform lengthening, the provision of additional DART and diesel rail cars, extension of the DART service to Greystones and Malahide and the completion of the Maynooth-Clonsilla rail line upgrade, and progress has been made on developing the new Luas system.
Starting next month, Irish Rail will begin accepting delivery of 80 new diesel rail cars to further expand capacity on the outer suburban network around Dublin and Cork. Capacity improvements will flow from the improved signalling and track work on the approaches to Heuston Station, the provision of additional platforms, the allocation of additional rail cars and increasing train lengths during rush hour periods. Further DART capacity improvements are planned through re-signalling work at Connolly Station, the lengthening of platforms on the DART line to accommodate eight-car DARTs, upgrading the overhead power supply to accommodate the longer trains and the purchase of a further 40 DART cars.
Additional informationFunds are also being provided for the development of an integrated ticketing system for Dublin by 2005 as well as a real time passenger information system. In the meantime, I have asked my officials to discuss with CIE more innovative fare structures to facilitate transfer between bus and rail services using existing technologies.
The measures implemented to date and the completion of the major projects in construction and planning will have a major beneficial impact on traffic flows in Dublin. The investment in public transport is providing a viable alternative to the private car for many commuters. The quality and quantity of public transport will continue to improve with the advent of Luas and the further rail and bus investment and service improvements I have outlined.
More remains to be done. The DTO policy document "A Platform for Change", sets out a comprehensive integrated strategy to respond to the transportation needs of the greater Dublin area, GDA, in the period to 2016. It is providing the framework for the future development of Dublin's transport network. The Government has already formally approved the procurement process for a metro in Dublin.
This Government has been pro-active in responding to the challenge of traffic congestion and has demonstrated its commitment to transforming our transport infrastructure by providing unprecedented levels of investment since 1997. The establishment of an integrated Department of Transport will bring a renewed focus to our efforts to upgrade transport infrastructure and services in Dublin and throughout the country.