A MAJOR EXTENSION to the Dart network for West Dublin and Kildare has been delayed for at least four years.
The planned Dart+ South West expansion from Dublin city centre to Hazelhatch and Celbridge in Co Kildare will start construction four years later than previously planned – after other projects were picked ahead of it in the Government’s latest five-year transport plan.
The move has been described as “contrary to best international practice” by one transport expert.
Brian Caulfield, professor in transportation at the school of engineering at Trinity College Dublin, said the route would deliver regular and reliable public transport for the growing number of suburban towns and neighbourhoods in the area.
Dart+ South West secured planning permission last November. At the time Irish Rail said in a press release that subject to funding it was “anticipated that construction will commence in 2026″.
But works on the €1 billion project have now been pushed out to at least 2030 according to this week’s announcement. The timeline for construction to begin was given as “2030+”.
The changes were among the details announced this week by Transport Minister Darragh O’Brien as he set out the National Development Plan for the sector and what projects the government is prioritising over the next five years.
Included are a number of road and rail projects as well as the €9.5 billion MetroLink – the proposed high-capacity, high-frequency rail line running from Swords to the south of Dublin city.
According to Caulfield, the delays to Dart+ South West are an “own goal”.
“There are no judicial reviews facing this and it has planning permission,” Caulfield told The Journal.
The project, he said, is designed to accommodate the booming population across West Dublin and east Kildare, providing 20 kilometres of electrified rail line along the route, and creating a more regular service than currently exists on the line.
The route currently has a peak hourly capacity of 5,000 passengers. Under the electrified system up to 20,000 people could travel along the line during rush hour.
The news of the delay came in the same week that Evara – the country’s largest private homebuilder – received planning permission to accommodate thousands more people in a major new 877-housing and apartment development in Adamstown in West Dublin.
The Dart would stop in the area, under the plan for the electrified system. Commuter rail services currently also serve the town.
“When people move into a new area, their transport habits are created in the first year or so,” said Caulfield.
“There’s a lot of research that’s been done on life stages. When you move to a new place, you think, do I need a car?
“But all of this housing is going to be delivered before public transport, which will be very much contrary to best international practice.”
Delays expected
The delays have been criticised by the Green Party, whose transport spokesperson Feljin Jose told The Journal that the decisions “fly in the face” of government policy.
“The government keeps talking about infrastructure and enabling infrastructure – and they’ve just paused one of the big infrastructure projects,” the Dublin city councillor said.
He praised elements of the this week’s transport plan – including the construction on the Western Rail Corridor between Athenry and Claremorris – but said it made little sense not to prioritise the Dart + South West.
Jose blamed the government’s re-balanced spending on roads, which was set at a 2:1 ratio in favour of public transport during the last government.
“This is the natural result of that decision. When you cut funding for public transport, you have to cut projects.”
The NDP funding will allow Transport Infrastructure Ireland and the local authorities to complete schemes such as the M28 Cork to Ringaskiddy, N21/69 Limerick to Foynes (incl. Adare Bypass), and the N5 Ballaghaderreen to Scramoge projects.
Construction on schemes such as the Donegal TEN-T Project, the N24 Cahir to Limerick Junction, and the Slane Bypass will also begin under the five-year plan.
Department response
A spokesperson at the Department of Transport told The Journal that the logic of the €10 plus billion funding plan was to prioritise investment in the “protection and renewal of existing assets before investing in new ones” – citing economic and environmental grounds.
The department isn’t ruling out the works starting earlier than expected.
The spokesperson said the Department of Transport will “continue to explore opportunities for additional funding” – including through funding streams such as via the EU.
This “may allow some projects to proceed to construction earlier” than currently anticipated.
