Vol. 540 No. 3
81 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Public Enterprise if she will list all the major rail projects being considered for capital funding by her Department; the total estimated cost of each; and if a rail link from Clonsilla to Navan is included among the projects under consideration. [20608/01]
The Government is committed under the national development plan to invest in excess of £1 billion in the railway system during the life of the plan. The major projects in hand are redesign of the station approaches and signalling at Connolly Station to allow more train paths at peak hours; quadrupling of the track from Heuston Station to Kildare and upgrading services along the Kildare line; upgrading DART services; provision of a depot to maintain diesel railcars at Drogheda; mainline railway carriages; and the rail safety programme. The estimated costs of these projects are the subject of ongoing discussions between my Department and Iarnród Éireann and CIE.
The Dublin Transportation Office Strategy, 2000 – 2016, entitled A Platform for Change, published in September 2000, recommends that a new rail line be constructed off the Maynooth line near Clonsilla via Dunboyne to Navan. The report envisages the rail link being completed in two phases: the construction of a spur from Clonsilla to Dunboyne, to be completed by 2006; and the extension of the line to Navan to be completed by 2010. The DTO strategy proposals represent a major investment programme which expands the scope of the proposals originally envisaged in the national development plan.
In addition to the above, metro and light rail projects are recommended in the DTO strategy proposals. These projects are to be developed as public private partnerships. The level of Exchequer funding for these projects, if any, will be determined as part of the negotiation process during procurement. The most recent DTO estimate in 2001 prices of the cost of the proposals is approximately £5.7 billion for the metro and £1.2 billion for additional light rail lines.
