The National Roads Authority is confident it has adequate funding and support mechanisms to meet the Government deadline of having a £4.7 billion network of motorways, dual carriageways and roads completed by 2006.
With the investment, it is estimated the journey time between Dublin and Cork in 2006 could be cut by 45 minutes, between Dublin and Limerick by 35 minutes, and between Dublin and Galway by 30 minutes.
The NRA, in its review of 1999, yesterday outlined how it intended to tackle the massive road-building project.
Work will begin this year on six stretches of motorway, including the £205 million Dublin Port tunnel, the £300 million M50 South Eastern motorway in Dublin, the £87.5 million Drogheda bypass, and the £70 million Kildare bypass.
The budget for the next six years is almost three times greater than spending for the previous six years. Under the previous transport programme, the NRA set itself a target of completing or starting 44 projects and cutting 204 minutes off travelling times on the State's four strategic corridors. It completed or began work on 39 projects and achieved 93 per cent of the targeted time-savings (189.4 minutes).
The National Development Programme is to identify the improvements needed for substantial stretches of roadways, the NRA chief executive, Mr Michael Tobin, said. As part of the plan, projects worth £1 billion worth would be built using Public Private Partnerships (PPP).
The NRA has agreed a partnership deal for the second bridge at the West-Link on the M50/Dublin C Ring, and it is advancing proposals for further PPP involvement in the construction of the N25 Waterford bypass and phase two of the N7 Limerick southern ring road. It is also examining the suitability of the M4 Kilcock/ Kinnegad motorway for a PPP.
In each, tolling would be used to the maximum extent, NRA Public Private Partnerships manager, Mr Gerry Murphy, said. The NRA is confident that, despite the scale of the road-building planned for the next six years, the Government's 2006 deadline will be met. The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, is to chair a Cabinet subcommittee which will monitor progress and address problems.
The NRA, in conjunction with local authorities, is streamlining its approach to the planning and design of projects. Ten regional design offices, with a staff of 200, have been established. Greater use is being made of outside consultants. This year £44 million is available for advanced project planning and design, compared to £14.5 million in 1999.
The NRA Head of Corporate Affairs, Mr Michael Egan, believes proposals in the Planning Development Bill published last year will speed up the planning process. He said these measures should reduce the planning period from more than five years to less than 3.5 years.