Minister says €34bn plan to be completed by 2015

Transport timetable: An underground in Dublin city centre, a new orbital metro and seven new light rail schemes were among the investments outlined in the Government's €34 billion transport plan unveiled yesterday.

The 10-year plan which Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said would provide a world-class 21st-century transport system, envisages a spend of €9.4 million every day between 2006 and 2015.

In the largest overhaul and expansion of public transport in the capital to date, the plan provides for four lines on the Kildare to Heuston station route; an underground rail interconnector linking Heuston, Pearse and Connolly stations via an interchange with the proposed metro system at St Stephen's Green.

The metro system involves a northern route from St Stephen's Green via O'Connell Street, Ballymun and Dublin airport to Swords, and an orbital route from Ballymun via Abbotstown, Blanchardstown, Liffey Valley and Clondalkin to Tallaght.

Suburban rail services are to be electrified with the extension of Dart services to Balbriggan, Hazelhatch and Maynooth. A new station in the Docklands will ease congestion in the city centre. There is to be a new rail service to Dunboyne in the short term and ultimately to Navan.

New Luas projects will serve the Docklands, Citywest, Cherrywood, Bray, Lucan and the proposed Dublin Institute of Technology campus at Grangegorman. A cross-city line will link the existing two Luas lines.

The number of bus passengers should increase by 80,000 each day by 2015 while the number of quality bus corridors will at least double. A network of park-and-ride sites will be provided on the main approach roads to the city.

In all, the strategic transport plan envisages the number of public transport users rising from the current level of about 200 million a year to 375 million a year.

The plan will also see the completion of the current National Roads Programme with priority given to the inter-urban motorways between Dublin and the regional cities and the Border.

A western "Atlantic road corridor" linking Co Donegal with Sligo, Galway, Limerick and Waterford is also included.

At a press briefing yesterday, Minister for Transport Martin Cullen said the roads programme would be completed by 2013.

The reopening of the western railway line will happen in phases, the first between Ennis, Co Clare, and Athenry, Co Galway; a second phase between Athenry and Tuam, Co Galway, and a third between Tuam and Claremorris, Co Mayo. The remaining section between Claremorris and Coolooney is to be fenced and protected pending a decision on its reopening at a later date.

Commuter services will also be provided between Athenry and Galway city.

In Cork, additional commuter railway stations are proposed for Blarney, Dunkettle and Kilbarry while the Midleton line is to be reopened.

Passenger rail services are also to be improved with new trains providing an hourly service between Dublin and Cork. There will be hourly peak services between Dublin-Galway and Dublin- Limerick, reducing to one service every two hours at off peak.

There will be trains every two hours from Dublin to Sligo, Dublin to Tralee and Dublin to Waterford. Four trains a day will operate from Dublin to Westport and Ballina, Co Mayo, and Rosslare, Co Wexford.

Mr Cullen laid out an ambitious timetable for the improvements. He said linking the two existing Luas lines in Dublin city centre would be completed by 2008 as would the extensions to the Docklands and Citywest, the latter subject to development contributions.

The Docklands rail station and the spur to Dunboyne are to open by 2009 when Athenry to Galway commuter services will begin. By 2010, phase one of the orbital metro will be open between Tallaght and Clondalkin and the inter-urban motorways will be completed. By 2011 the metro will be completed to Lucan and the western rail corridor will be completed as far as Tuam.

The metro to Swords via the airport is to be completed by 2012 and will be joined by the orbital metro at Ballymun by 2012. The interconnector between Heuston and Connolly stations will be completed by 2015 as will the reopening of the Navan line, the electrification of suburban routes around Dublin and the Luas extension to Bray.