The National Roads Authority welcomes the opportunity to provide an update on the national roads programme and to deal with some related issues that I understand are of special interest to committee members. The authority, in conjunction with local authorities, continues to make substantial progress towards delivering on the ambitious programme for the development of national roads as set out by the Government in the NDP. Since the plan commenced, the authority has overseen a capital investment of €4.77 billion in national roads, 47 major projects have been completed, and 350 km of road have been brought into use. Regarding the five major interurban routes on which the thrust of the development strategy for national routes is focused during the NDP period, the authority is actively managing the development and implementation of a range of major projects to provide motorway or dual carriageway standard on the entire length of each of those routes, in accordance with its requirements. It is worth mentioning that, when the M50 and M1 motorways are taken into account, it is now possible to travel on continuous motorway or dual carriageway standard road from south of Portlaoise to south of Dundalk, a distance of about 170 km.
As a result of the Government's adoption of multi-annual funding envelopes for a range of programmes, including the national roads programme, the authority is now able to plan tendering and construction starts with greater confidence. Together with the substantial Exchequer resources allocated to the programme, supplemented by private investment in the PPP schemes, that leaves the authority well placed to complete all five major interurban routes to motorway or dual carriageway standard by the end of 2010. Details of the progress and state of play on those have been circulated to members.
Overall, this year has been an exceptionally good one for the authority in progressing the national roads programme. To date, 12 major schemes throughout the country have commenced construction, with further possible starts before year's end. Details of those starts, including the potential ones, are circulated in appendix 2. The total number of major projects currently under construction is 19. The schemes have a combined length of 195 km, and details have been circulated to members. Nine major projects with a combined length of 72 km, of which 60 km is motorway or dual carriageway, have been completed so far this year, including the N7 Monasterevin bypass, the N11 Ashford and Rathnew bypasses, and the Limerick south ring road phase 1 projects. We anticipate that the 5 km N26 Ballina to Bohola phase 1 scheme will be open to traffic by the middle of next month. Details of those projects are in appendix 4.
There has been increased construction this year under the authority's public private partnership programme, with the commencement of work on the M1 Dundalk western bypass and the M8 Fermoy bypass schemes. PPP contracts awarded to date represent private investment of more than £480 million in the national roads programme. The tender process is actively under way for the M3 Clonee to Kells motorway, while bidders have been short listed for the N7 Limerick south ring, phase 2, and the M50 PPP schemes. I am confident the tender process can be reactivated shortly for the Waterford City bypass in the light of anticipated decisions relating to archaeology on the Woodstown site.
The authority is making extensive use of the design and build form of contract we developed and piloted successfully some time ago. This form of contract is achieving greater certainty of scheme outturn costs vis-à-vis tender award prices. The situation should improve further under arrangements whereby price adjustments are not permitted where annual construction inflation does not exceed 5%. In addition, the authority is exploring the potential benefits from early contractor involvement and target price arrangements. This target price form of contract is being piloted on the Dundalk-Newry scheme in conjunction with the Northern Ireland Roads Service and on the N8 Cashel-Mitchelstown scheme, which is now at the tender award stage. We will monitor developments to determine the merits of possible wider adoption of this approach, taking account of value for money considerations.
The NRA has been proactive in its efforts to advance projects in the BMW region, and €307 million has been allocated to local authorities there this year. Seven of the 16 major projects programmed to commence in 2004 are located in the BMW region. Three major projects have been completed and opened to traffic there this year — the N4 Hughestown-Meera, N5 Strokestown-Longford and the M7 Monasterevin bypass schemes while the N26 Ballina-Bohola, phase 1 project is expected to open to traffic by mid-December. In addition, An Bord Pleanála has recently given approval to the N5 Charlestown bypass proposal.
This year has seen increased activity on national secondary road schemes, complementing the success of the pavement restoration programme introduced some years ago. Work is under way on the N52 Mullingar bypass and the N55 Cavan bypass, while the N77 Kilkenny ring road extension is currently at tender stage.
I now turn to a number of items, which we understood the committee to have a special interest in, and in particular, the West Link toll bridge agreement. This was concluded between the then Dublin County Council and West Link Toll Bridge Limited in 1987, and was subject to the approval of the then Department of the Environment in accordance with the legislation applicable at the time. Under section 66 of the Roads Act 1993, the National Roads Authority took over all the functions, rights and liabilities of the former Dublin County Council as regards the toll agreement, as part of revised statutory arrangements relating to toll roads.
The West Link toll bridge agreement provided for the construction, maintenance and operation of 3.2 km. of motorway on the M50 between the N3, Navan Road, and the N4, Lucan Road, interchanges as well as the West Link Bridge spanning 340 m. over the Liffey valley. The project, which was one of the first sections of the M50 Dublin C-ring to be completed, opened to traffic in 1990.
The agreement provides that the company, NTR plc, has, until the expiry of the agreement in the year 2020, the exclusive right to toll traffic travelling on the M50 between the N4, Galway Road interchange, and the N3, Navan Road interchange. After 2020 the operation and maintenance of the West Link toll facility will revert to the State. The bridge structures were constructed with a design life of 120 years and in the circumstances the State will derive a long term benefit from NTR's investment after the expiry of the concession agreement. It should be remembered that the toll agreement was concluded at a time when the economic outlook for the country was uncertain. Traffic volumes and growth forecasts were substantially different to what has transpired over the intervening years and when Exchequer funding for investment in national roads was limited. It is worth remembering that the allocation to national roads totalled €147 million in 1987. Today it is in the order of €1.25 billion. Real risks and uncertainties attached to the toll agreement when it was concluded and to NTR's commitment to finance the construction and maintenance of the West Link and a section of the M50 motorway. These should be kept in mind in any evaluation of the agreement undertaken with the benefit of hindsight.
The toll bridge opened to traffic in March 1990. Traffic growth has increased substantially on the West Link since then. General economic growth and the development of the land bank along the M50 corridor, have been key factors in underpinning traffic growth on the West Link, which has increased from an average daily volume of 11,500 vehicles in 1991 to approximately 86,500 vehicles per day, currently.
The amount of the State share from the proceeds of the West Link increases as traffic volumes exceed pre-determined thresholds. By the end of 2004 the gross toll revenue that will have been paid there by road users will be approximately €310 million, excluding VAT on tolls which came into effect following a European Court of Justice ruling in September 2001. Over the same period, the value of Exchequer share payments arising from the agreement will have reached €65 million, which includes an estimate of €15 million payable in April 2005 in respect of 2004 toll revenues. In accordance with the terms of the agreement, the Exchequer share is payable to the Minister for Transport for the benefit of the Exchequer.
Looking generally at the West Link toll plaza and operational issues, there is no doubt that, despite the construction of the second bridge and additional lanes, and the introduction of electronic toll collection, the facility is sub-optimal having regard to the daily traffic throughput to be catered for. The toll plaza is currently processing traffic volumes approaching 90,000 vehicles each day. This is the average daily flow throughout the year. There are occasions when daily flows of 100,000 vehicles are recorded at West Link plaza. These traffic volumes are significantly in excess of those that had been expected to use the M50 West Link and reflect the growth in the economy and the extent of development in the Dublin area over recent years. In contrast, the Drogheda bypass toll plaza, which was designed by the NRA and which came into operation in June 2003, is a ten-lane plaza, five in each direction, and processes approximately 24,000 vehicles per day or approximately a quarter of the volume going though the West Link plaza. In addition, the Drogheda bypass and other recent PPP contracts concluded by the authority contain detailed and measurable toll facility performance criteria aimed at ensuring high customer service standards and minimum delay at toll plazas. Failure to observe these requirements will entail penalties on the PPP companies. In addition, these new PPP contracts provide for the operation of electronic toll collection, and so on, as part of the NRA strategy to achieve operational efficiency significantly better than that currently being experienced by users of the West Link facility.
While the authority considers that the toll operator is managing the individual lane throughputs at the plaza efficiently, nonetheless the toll facility at the West Link plaza is not satisfactory for the current traffic volumes. It is view of both the NRA and NTR that the solution at the West Link is to convert the plaza to a fully free-flow electronic toll collection system over time. To this end the Department of Transport is currently preparing legislation that will support the introduction of barrier-free tolling.
The authority is actively working to address capacity constraints on the M50 generally, including the major interchanges along the motorway. A motorway scheme and environmental impact statement for the planned major upgrade of the motorway have recently been published. The Minister for Transport has approved the use, for the purposes of the M50 upgrade, of the revenue share paid annually to his Department in respect of the West Link toll bridge.
A further point, on which I understand the committee wanted information was the link between the planned motorways south of Portlaoise, leading to Cork and Limerick. The M7 and M8 motorways involve the construction of new sections on the Dublin-Limerick and Dublin-Cork routes. Both routes are part of the major inter-urban network which is to be developed to motorway-dual carriageway standard in accordance with the policy objectives of the National Development Plan 2000-2006. The scheme commences from the western end of the M7 Portlaoise bypass, approximately 2 km beyond the Togher roundabout where the current N8 leaves the bypass at a grade-separated junction. The new road continues in a south-westerly direction as far as Ballycuddy where it divides. The M7 section continues to beyond Borris-in-Ossary on the existing N7, while the M8 section extends to beyond Cullahill on the existing N8.
Approximately 40 kilometres of new motorway will be constructed as part of the project, together with 2.2 kilometres of single carriageway link road and 15 kilometres of realigned link roads. The new motorway will bypass Mountrath and Borris-in-Ossory on the existing Limerick road and Abbeyleix and Durrow on the Cork road.
An Bord Pleanála approved the proposed scheme with some minor modifications, on 29 October 2004. In its decision, the board highlighted the aims of the national spatial strategy 2002-20 and, in particular, the need to improve transport connections between the major towns and cities that were identified as principal gateways in the strategy. The board stated that, having regard to the strategy's objectives, "there is a strategic need to provide for all vehicle movements between the M7 and M8, within the motorway system". This, the board continued, would better facilitate north-south connection of the Border, midlands and west region with the south and east region, and would facilitate reasonable access to the motorway system for settlement centres in County Laois, while minimising the environmental impact on the local road network and villages. The board has accordingly written to Laois County Council recommending that urgent priority be given to providing for all vehicle movements between the M7 and M8 within the motorway system.
It might be noted that there was an assessment of the level of demand for such traffic movements as part of the planning process for the motorway scheme. This assessment indicated a low demand and, on this basis, it was concluded that the incorporation of interchange arrangements catering for all traffic movements between the M7 and M8 motorways would not be warranted at present. Full consideration will be given to An Bord Pleanala's recommendation to cater for such traffic movements in the future. The authority will accordingly liaise with Laois County Council in this regard.
Committee members have expressed a wish to visit the Kilcock-Enfield-Kinnegad project for the purpose of being briefed on its progress and to see that progress for themselves. The authority will be delighted to facilitate such a visit. While I am not in any sense dictating the dates on which the committee might visit the project, Thursday, 2 December and Thursday, 16 December are suitable from an NRA perspective. If the secretariat wishes to contact me, we can finalise the necessary arrangements.