With the permission of the House I would like to share my time with Senator Roche.
Adjournment Matters. - Extension of DART to Greystones, County Wicklow.
Acting Chairman
Is that agreed? Agreed.
This Adjournment matter is possibly the oldest chestnut in the Seanad. I have been raising it here since 1991 and Senator Roche has also raised it in the past. To be honest, I am a little bit fed up with getting, from various Ministers, the same reply which puts off the day we hope to benefit and provides no answer. As the Minister will no doubt know, Greystones is still one of the fastest expanding areas of population south of Dublin. It is a neglected town in north Wicklow, a fact partly due to its geography but more to the neglect of the town by successive Governments.
The principal problem of neglect in this area is transport. It was originally intended, in the 1970s, that the DART would run from Howth to Greystones but, for reasons now obscured by the passage of time, it only went as far as Bray. That recognition was obviously an acknowledgement that there was a need for a commuter train, or transport of some sort, from Greystones to Dublin on a regular and frequent basis. Unfortunately, despite the DART having been in operation for many years, that final objective has not been achieved.
I acknowledge that there are two schools of thought in Greystones about the DART. There are those who want the DART per se and nothing less. There are also those who do not want the DART, but would like either a restoration of the shuttle between Bray and Greystones or a great improvement in the roads from Greystones to Dublin. Many people in Greystones worry that the DART would bring with it the criminal elements from Dublin which, to some extent, it has brought to Bray. Because of this it is thought that it might be better to facilitate people in Greystones with another form of transport, possibly a shuttle.
However, there is absolutely no division about the fact that the transport service between Greystones and Dublin is inadequate. I do not mind if, as an interim measure, the Minister wishes to say that the roads will be improved or the shuttle provided as and from tomorrow. That would be an adequate, if only an interim, response. However, in the present situation, in which there is so much doubt and in which we are waiting to see the final shape of the National Development Plan, the protests from the people of Greystones should at long last be responded to. It is two years since the people of Greystones marched on Leinster House. Senator Roche and I were present but, unfortunately, it failed to provoke a response from the Government of the day.
We acknowledge that the DART is heavily subsidised, to the extent of £15 million per annum but if the Government insists on continuing to subsidise public transport, and if that is its policy, I do not see — within the parameters of that policy — why the people of Greystones should be victimised. They have an undeniable case, in a non-commercial public transport environment, for being given this form of transport. I have seen figures which indicate this is not a negative factor but would pay for itself. I ask the Minister to reply with some good, positive and final news for a change.
I thank my colleague, Senator Ross, for so generously sharing his time with me. I also welcome the Minister although it is a pity that the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications is not present. Like Senator Ross, I am beginning to suffer from battle fatigue in this issue. I first took up the cudgels for better public transport for Greystones as far back as 1978. The extraordinary thing is that public transport into that town is now worse than it was then. We are actually served with a shuttle using rolling stock which is older than most Members of this House and undoubtedly dangerous.
The road system into the town of Greystones is woefully inadequate and will cost endless millions to upgrade. An adequate and proper public transport system into the town would be the best long term solution, environmentally and economically. The other reality, which Senator Ross touched on, is that for some reason which has never really been explained CIE, between the time of originating and implementing the plans for a DART service, decided to cut Greystones off.
There is a lot of talk about quality bus routes, interchanges, and light rail systems in Dublin city but unless you can service the periphery you will still have traffic congestion all the way into the city. The public transport case is well made and accepted by everybody. However, the situation in Greystones worries me greatly because, as I understand it, of the £220 million earmarked in the national plan for public transport improvements, about £20 million has been earmarked for peripheral improvements other than those on the light rail and quality bus services. Many causes are looking for that £20 million. I was very disturbed when the final report of the DTI came out to see that an interchange in Dublin city and an integrated ticketing system were now being given a higher priority than the DART to Greystones. Either of those projects would soak up the bulk of the money and would leave Greystones without any improvement in public transport.
I led a deputation to meet the Minister recently and I pointed out that the people in Greystones are not hung up on the DART per se but, as Senator Ross pointed out, want an adequate public transport system.
The train service in Greystones is now operating at one tenth of what it was in 1971 when I moved to the town. It is also extraordinary that when the Dublin and South Eastern Railway Company was extended to Greystones it was faster, in those days, for commuters to travel to Dublin. One hundred years later we have moved backwards instead of forwards.
There was great mirth in the nation yesterday at the inconvenience of a high-tech Iarnród Éireann train which ran out of steam, or puff, on the Cork-Dublin line, yet that is a daily event in Greystones. We have actually had a three hour delay on a 40 minute service. The days of "Are you right there. Michael, are you right?" could be transferred from west Clare to Greystones.
Senator Ross and other public representatives have asked for an end to this farce and injustice in terms of public transport for the people of Greystones. There is no indigenous industry, inadequate second level education and no third level education facilities there. People from Greystones must travel to Dublin to work or for education. It would make sense and be a very prudent investment if the extension of the DART to Greystones was agreed or if, alternatively, Greystones was to get the kind of services which have been put into Maynooth.
Of all the public transport projects put forward by the DTI, only one will have a positive return on investment which, unbelievably, is the DART extension to Greystones. After 11 years of debate and lobbying, the only one which is back in question is that extension of the DART. We will fund the inefficiency of our transport operator by installing a new integrated ticketing system and creating a new monolith in the Temple Bar area with a bus and train interchange. I suggest to the Minister that it is time we had a final and positive decision on this matter.
I am positive by nature and I always like to be as positive as possible. However, there are parameters within which we must all operate.
Arising from the work of the Dublin Transportation Initiative, the National Development Plan included a strong commitment to an improved public transport system for the greater Dublin area with a view to giving existing public transport users a new deal and making public transport attractive to motorists.
It is worth recalling that the purpose of the DTI was to develop a long term transportation strategy which would gain the support of the various agencies involved in delivering transport services and the general public and which would be environmentally sensitive, user friendly and financially realistic. The final DTI report, which has been referred to already, is the product of more than four years' detailed work and contains proposals for an integrated strategy involving a programme of investment in roads, public transport and traffic management complemented by improved enforcement.
In the case of public transport, the DTI recommended a number of major investment projects, including the development of a light rail system for the city; the introduction of a quality bus network; improved interchange facilities for buses and other public transport and off street bus parking facilities in the city centre; the extension of the DART to Greystones and possibly to Malahide; provision of secure park and ride facilities on the public transport network and an integrated ticketing system for all public transport services.
The National Development Plan includes provision for an EU assisted investment programme of £220 million to enable substantial progress to be made on the implementation of the public transport elements of the Dublin Transportation Initiative. This funding includes provision for expenditure of up to £200 million in respect of the first phase of the light rail network for Dublin. The remaining £20 million has been included in the national plan for the other important public transport projects to which I referred earlier, including the possible extension of the DART to Greystones.
In general terms, the overall cost of these projects would exceed the level of funding available. Accordingly, it is essential that the available expenditure is carefully allocated to the most effective projects in overall public transport terms. In this context, my colleague, the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications, asked CIE to undertake a detailed cost-benefit analysis of a number of future public transport options for the north Wicklow area, including a DART extension to Greystones. Pending the outcome of this work and further detailed analysis in relation to the other projects recommended by the DTI it is not possible to be more specific about the prospects for the implementation of an extension of the DART to Greystones.
I reassure Senators, however, that we are fully aware of the concerns of the residents in Greystones regarding the extension of the DART to their town. I listened with great interest to what they said. I note that I have been here on a number of occasions at the request of both to answer this matter. I will carry the information and the representations which they have made once again in this House on behalf of their people to my colleague and my Department.
I thank the Minister for his reassurance but I do not find it particularly reassuring. Apart from that, the Minister might as well have come in here and said nothing or just have said no. Perhaps he could answer a specific question and tell us when this cost-benefit analysis from CIE is liable to report and why it was not done before.
From the information available to me, it seems that CIE will report to us next spring.
I will do it for the Department long before that.
I would be disappointed if my visit here to respond to these questions was of no benefit to the House. I was impressed with both Senator's contributions. If one positive element of the proposals which they put forward can be fully appraised in the report, that there would be a positive response from people justifying the investment involved in the extension of the DART, then I hope that our collective contribution this evening will assist in producing a positive conclusion to this matter.
The Seanad adjourned at 4.35 p.m. until 2.30 p.m. on Wednesday, 26 October 1994.