A conflict between the National Roads Authority (NRA) and a consortium of mobile phone companies has halted the installation of mobile phone services in the Dublin Port Tunnel.
The problem was outlined by Dublin City Council yesterday to northwest area councillors at a briefing on progress at the tunnel, now in its 57th month.
While the council maintained the tunnel is "on time" for completion by the end of May, it said legal issues relating to the contract for relaying mobile phone signals had resulted in the mobile service being put "on hold".
The council's press office refused to specify the nature of the legal issues which councillors were simply told were "awaiting clarification".
However, The Irish Times has been told the central issue related to "ownership" of the relay system within the tunnel.
The NRA was concerned the telephone consortium (which comprises the main players in the Republic's mobile market) would "own" the relay system.
Such ownership could in theory exclude new entrants to the mobile telephone market who would be seeking to have their signals also relayed in the tunnel.
The NRA is understood to have been influenced by its experience at the West-Link toll bridge where its agreement with a single service provider was criticised as restrictive. The NRA is keen to have free access to all telephony companies within the tunnel.
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