The programme for Government contains a commitment to develop a metro with a link to Dublin Airport. The proposed metro overtook earlier proposals for a Luas line to Dublin Airport.
The original outline business case for phase one of the metro from the Railway Procurement Agency, RPA, involved a line from the airport to the city centre. This was subsequently revised to take account of the relevant experience in Madrid and contained a number of changes in comparison with the original business case. These changes reduced the capital cost of the proposal significantly and involved a shorter, more direct route and fewer station changes in design. At my request, the RPA is doing further work on this revision. I expect to bring my proposals on the metro to the Government in the coming weeks.
The precise route, and hence costs, will depend on a number of factors, including the Government decision, geo-technical surveys, negotiations with bidders and the railway order process, including the public inquiry. In preparing a submission for the Government on this matter, the merits of all alternative solutions and routes will be considered. In this regard, a spur from the DART to the airport would have only limited capacity, would deal only with airport traffic and, compared with a Dublin metro system, would make little contribution to relieving congestion.
The Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport has recently commissioned a report on the metro. The committee's report will be completed shortly and I look forward to receiving it.