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Public Transport

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 April 2022

Tuesday, 26 April 2022

Ceisteanna (96)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh

Ceist:

96. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Transport if consideration has been given to continuing the proposed Metro from St. Stephen’s Green to Rathfarnham or Firhouse in the Dublin south-west area; if his attention has been drawn to the case that has been made by communities along that route that the proposed metro should not finish at Charlemont; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21040/22]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Freagraí scríofa

I think it important to set out what are two different processes currently underway, both of which relate to the potential future development of metro in Dublin.

Firstly we have the MetroLink project, which is likely the largest ever public investment project in the history of the State. It faces two imminent and important milestones in the coming months - Government approval of the Preliminary Business Case in line with the requirements of the Public Spending Code and, following this, the submission of a Railway Order application to An Bord Pleanála. The MetroLink project has been subject to extensive non-statutory public consultation and comprises the 19km route from north of Swords to the southern edge of the city centre, as outlined in the Preferred Route published by Transport Infrastructure Ireland.

Secondly we have the statutory review of the Transport Strategy for the Greater Dublin Area. The Dublin Transport Authority Act 2008 (as amended) stipulates that the Strategy must be reviewed every six years and this review provides an opportunity to re-examine and re-consider proposals for inclusion in the revised Strategy.

The National Transport Authority (NTA), as part of its review, considered the appropriate transport provision to serve the transport demand throughout the Greater Dublin Area (GDA) including the south and south west corridors into Dublin, and whether additional metro routes, above and beyond MetroLink, should be included in any revised Strategy.

The NTA published the draft Greater Dublin Area Transport Strategy 2022 - 2042 in November 2021, along with a suite of background reports (including the Metro to Knocklyon Feasibility Study), to facilitate an informed public consultation process which concluded on 10 January this year.

The NTA appraised a number of options for underground Metro in several locations in the GDA and found that forecast demand for travel during the period covered by the Strategy currently only justifies an underground metro system in the Swords-Dublin Airport-City Centre/Charlemont corridor. The Strategy also confirms that the Charlemont stop is the best location for the MetroLink terminus and will facilitate future extensions of the metro service to the south should the forecast demands increase over time.

Questions Nos. 97 and 98 answered orally.
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