asked the Minister for the Environment if the Government have considered the possibility of reopening all or part of the old Harcourt Street/Bray railway line as a busway and including such a project in the National Development Plan 1989-1993, especially in view of the population growth in its catchment area; if he has considered the implications of the Shankill by-pass on the possible reuse of the line; if he will take steps to ensure that the land on the line is retained to the greatest extent possible to allow for its possible reuse; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Harcourt Street/Bray Railway Line.
15.
The operational programme for roads which was formerly submitted to the EC Commission on 30 March last includes a proposal for the construction of a busway along the old Harcourt Street railway line to Dundrum. This proposal will be the subject of a detailed evaluation by the agencies concerned, particularly Bus Átha Cliath and the local authorities. The development plans of both Dublin Corporation and Dublin County Council include provisions for the preservation free from development of the line of the old Harcourt Street railway. The Shankill/Bray by-pass road does not appear to have any direct impact on the proposed busway to Dundrum.
I certainly hope the busway to Dundrum would not impact on the Shankill by-pass, but the question I was asking was would the Shankill by-pass have any impact on the rest of the route that runs by Shankill on its way to Bray? Has he considered that end of the line?
I think the Deputy is referring to the Shankill-Bray Road for which tenders were received recently.
That is right.
It crosses the old railway line near Shankill.
That is right, the Minister still has the right county.
That would seem to rule out a busway all the way to Bray. It has not been seen as a problem because it is only proposed at this stage to consider the provision of a busway into Dundrum and even longer term proposals have not seen the busway extending beyond Loughlinstown. Bray and Shankill are already served by DART and the existing road network in the area will certainly be adequate to deal with the matter. I see no reason to provide a busway service between Shankill and Bray.
Do I take it then on the first basis that the Minister's preference is for a busway? Secondly, because he sees no prospect for the route beyond Dundrum, does he not consider the ultimate concept, as opposed to the ultimate event, of an electrified DART line running from Harcourt Street to Bray as a realistic proposition? Can he advise the House that that is not on the stocks or likely to occur?
The question of the extension or otherwise of the DART line in any direction should be addressed to another Minister. As far as the busway to Dundrum is concerned, of course that has to be evaluated as well. There is the question about the viability of the busway and the exact scheme that has to be undertaken. There are a number of technical issues regarding access and so on. I suggest the Deputy is talking ahead of his time. However, it has been included and the evaluation will go on now as far as the busway to Dundrum is concerned. I hope that comes to pass.
Could the Minister at least consider through consultation with the local authorities the concept of opening up a cycle-and walk-way along the route as far as Dundrum, if nothing more——
The Deputy is expanding the subject matter of the question out of all proportion.
He is.
——as a first step in developing the site which is at the moment derelict and has been a source of huge problems for residents living along it? In view of the fact that there are currently representations for inclusion in the draft development plan of the privatisation and development of the line for private purposes, would he consider that as an interim useful development?
Before the final decision to proceed with the busway is taken, a number of things have to be evaluated. I suppose that could be evaluated, but if we are to do the thing right we should not become involved in interim things like cycle-ways. That would not seem appropriate to me, maybe I have the wrong end of it. I would think the evaluation should deal with the busway as a viable entity from Harcourt Street as far as Dundrum. We are taking it seriously and I hope it comes to pass. A great deal is involved but it is still at the initial stages of consideration.
It is a long time coming.