Following the annual chaos Dublin commuters face every year in the run up to Christmas, there is some good news after it has been confirmed that there will be a raft of new initiatives aimed at easing the capital's year-long traffic problems.
In a move aimed at tempting more commuters out of their cars, the Department of Transport has confirmed that plans are well under way to allow bus operators to use the hard shoulder of dual carriageway corridors that link satellite towns with the capital.
If the scheme proves successful in Dublin's commuter belt, then satellite towns serving other cities could also see hard shoulders on their dual carriageways being used to ferry commuters into and out of city centres.
The drastic move, which has long been mooted but never brought to fruition, is designed, said the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Ivor Callely, to speed up bus times into the capital.
"We are looking at the greater Dublin area at present, and, if it is doable, then we will look at other cities," confirmed a department spokesman.
However, allowing buses to use hard shoulders, which are designed to allow emergency services to get to and from the scene of accidents quickly as well as providing safety run-offs for other vehicles, is a contentious move.
The AA's Conor Faughnan explained that in theory using hard shoulders would work, but in practice it could prove too dangerous.
"We would be very worried about a hard shoulder being blocked in an emergency," he said. "Therefore, we would be against the use of hard shoulders on motorways."
Non-motorway dual carriageways would need to be assessed on a case-by-case basis, he said.
Because of a need to amend legislation to allow buses to use hard shoulders, a timescale for the new measure has not yet been finalised.
"We are looking into the legislative issues and are just waiting to ensure that this is possible from a road safety point of view," explained a Department spokesperson.
Ivor Callely, who has been given special responsibility for traffic management in the capital, has also indicated that he is looking at giving Dublin super quality bus corridors (SQBC).
These corridors would have unique traffic signals, operated by GPS signals from buses that are running behind schedule, that would hold back the flow of cars to allow buses to overtake the cars and get back on schedule.
Although a Department spokesperson said the arrival of SQBCs is some time away, the concept is one that has caught the Minister of State's eye.
These SQBC, he said, would be introduced in addition to the building of a further five QBC in Dublin, which will bring the number of QBC in the capital to 14 by the end of next year.