An "unprecedented" level of investment in public transport in the greater Dublin area will take place from 2000 to 2006 in a strategy aimed at shifting the emphasis from private to public transport.
Some £1,585 million (€2,012 million) is provided for, with additional, substantial resources for road investment. The main investment will be in light rail, suburban rail and the bus service.
The plan stipulates that the implementation of the public transport initiatives for Dublin is a national priority. "The Government is determined that the large level of investment in public transport planned for the Greater Dublin area will be implemented on time.
"The Government will also ensure that this greatly enhanced level of investment is reflected in real and tangible improvements for public transport customers."
A capital provision of £430 million is being made for the construction of the surface element of the proposed LUAS light rail network, with the timetable providing for the completion of the Tallaght to Connolly line by the end of 2002, and the Sandyford to St Stephen's Green line by the summer of 2003.
An estimate for the underground section will not be available until the end of this year, but a contingency provision of £500 million has been made for it and a longer-term rail development programme. A Public Private Partnership (PPP) approach to the implementation of these projects is to be examined and, within the overall contingency of £500 million, £300 million has been identified as potential PPP.
The longer-term rail programme includes an examination of the feasibility of a new rail link to Navan and the quadrupling of existing double lines.
For Dublin suburban rail, a provision of £185 million is being made for a short-term development programme which includes: the phased purchase of 46 additional DART cars and 58 diesel rail cars; the upgrading of the Greystones to Arklow line; the linking of Heuston and Connolly stations to allow the Kildare Arrow service to run to Connolly; the quadrupling of track between Hazelhatch and Sallins to separate long-distance and suburban services; the provision of new stations at Intel, Lucan North and South, Ashington Station improvements and new depot facilities; and the re-signalling of the Howth to Barrow Street and crossover works, to provide three additional peak-hour services.
Intel yesterday welcomed the announcement, which it said would be of great value to its workers. There are 4,300 people employed by Intel at Lucan, with another 500 to 600 working on projects on the Intel site.
The combination of infrastructural improvements and the additional rolling stock will increase DART capacity by 39 per cent and suburban rail capacity by 26 per cent.
A bus service of increased capacity and greater quality is to be provided with the provision of £120 million. New routes, both orbital and local, are to complement the existing, largely radial network. The phased introduction of 275 new buses will allow for increased capacity and the requirements of the developed network and will increase the size of the fleet by 28 per cent.
A further £100 million will be spent on fleet replacement and equipment renewal, which will see the reduction of the average age of the Dublin bus fleet from seven to six years. The Quality Bus Corridors (QBCs) will be extended and enhanced and five new ones will be provided.
A £50 million "integration" programme will include 3,700 park-and-ride spaces at eight sites, adding to the 2,700 spaces already being provided; the introduction of integrated ticketing; and the development of "public transport nodes" and interchange facilities.
A further programme, involving spending of £200 million, is to "create an appropriate traffic environment to facilitate public transport, improve cycling facilities and improve traffic flow".
The plan states that by end of 2000, under programmes already being implemented, 12 QBCs will be in place; peak-hour bus capacity will have increased by 40 per cent; DART extensions to Greystones and Malahide, and the upgrading of the Maynooth line will be completed; the peak-hour capacity of the DART and suburban rail systems will have been increased by 60 per cent; and 2,700 park-and-ride spaces will be in use.
Despite this expenditure, the Dublin Chamber of Commerce yesterday said that Dublin's traffic problems will only be "partially alleviated".
Chamber president Mr Hugh Governey said a further £1 billion was needed to cover transport infrastructure projects such as the Airport Rail Link, a Central Rail Station, an integrated Docklands transport network, park-and-ride facilities to support the Quality Bus Corridor network, and a circular underground line.