The National Roads Authority (NRA) has appointed consultants to examine flooding problems in South Roscommon which may have been caused by the construction of the M6 Athlone to Ballinasloe motorway.
After the motorway was constructed, Curraghboy councillor Tony Ward started receiving phonecalls from residents in the Drum area who said land which had previously been able to absorb rainwater was now flooding after 10-12 hours of rainfall.
Cllr Ward believes that the size of culverts which were installed beneath the new M6 motorway at Drum was not adequate and that this has contributed to flooding in the nearby townlands of Taduff East and Mihanbee.
Roscommon County Council stated last June that it had requested funding to carry out a flood study in the area, and Cllr Ward asked for an update on the situation at last week's meeting of the local authority's Athlone Area committee.
The council replied: "Issues have arisen in relation to culverts and drainage at Taduff and Ballydangan. Consultants have been appointed to examine the issues and liaise with land owners. The consultants' report will be submitted to the NRA in November 2011.
"Funding will be provided by the NRA for the consultants and also in the event that further works are required as a result of the consultants' recommendation."
Cllr Ward welcomed the fact that the report was being drafted, but he said this was a problem which had arisen because the views of local farmers and landowners hadn't been listened to when the culverts beneath the motorway were being installed in the first place.
He added that a possible solution to the problems involved cleaning the Cross River in South Roscommon and widening some of the culverts in the Drum area.
The Athlone to Ballinasloe motorway was constructed at a cost of €211 million was officially opened in the summer of 2009.
The Westmeath Independent
www.bpsplanningconsultants.ie
Showing posts with label national roads authority. Show all posts
Showing posts with label national roads authority. Show all posts
Monday, 17 October 2011
NRA hires experts to examine Drum flooding concerns
The National Roads Authority (NRA) has appointed consultants to examine flooding problems in South Roscommon which may have been caused by the construction of the M6 Athlone to Ballinasloe motorway.
After the motorway was constructed, Curraghboy councillor Tony Ward started receiving phonecalls from residents in the Drum area who said land which had previously been able to absorb rainwater was now flooding after 10-12 hours of rainfall.
Cllr Ward believes that the size of culverts which were installed beneath the new M6 motorway at Drum was not adequate and that this has contributed to flooding in the nearby townlands of Taduff East and Mihanbee.
Roscommon County Council stated last June that it had requested funding to carry out a flood study in the area, and Cllr Ward asked for an update on the situation at last week's meeting of the local authority's Athlone Area committee.
The council replied: "Issues have arisen in relation to culverts and drainage at Taduff and Ballydangan. Consultants have been appointed to examine the issues and liaise with land owners. The consultants' report will be submitted to the NRA in November 2011.
"Funding will be provided by the NRA for the consultants and also in the event that further works are required as a result of the consultants' recommendation."
Cllr Ward welcomed the fact that the report was being drafted, but he said this was a problem which had arisen because the views of local farmers and landowners hadn't been listened to when the culverts beneath the motorway were being installed in the first place.
He added that a possible solution to the problems involved cleaning the Cross River in South Roscommon and widening some of the culverts in the Drum area.
The Athlone to Ballinasloe motorway was constructed at a cost of €211 million was officially opened in the summer of 2009.
The Westmeath Independent
www.bpsplanningconsultants.ie
After the motorway was constructed, Curraghboy councillor Tony Ward started receiving phonecalls from residents in the Drum area who said land which had previously been able to absorb rainwater was now flooding after 10-12 hours of rainfall.
Cllr Ward believes that the size of culverts which were installed beneath the new M6 motorway at Drum was not adequate and that this has contributed to flooding in the nearby townlands of Taduff East and Mihanbee.
Roscommon County Council stated last June that it had requested funding to carry out a flood study in the area, and Cllr Ward asked for an update on the situation at last week's meeting of the local authority's Athlone Area committee.
The council replied: "Issues have arisen in relation to culverts and drainage at Taduff and Ballydangan. Consultants have been appointed to examine the issues and liaise with land owners. The consultants' report will be submitted to the NRA in November 2011.
"Funding will be provided by the NRA for the consultants and also in the event that further works are required as a result of the consultants' recommendation."
Cllr Ward welcomed the fact that the report was being drafted, but he said this was a problem which had arisen because the views of local farmers and landowners hadn't been listened to when the culverts beneath the motorway were being installed in the first place.
He added that a possible solution to the problems involved cleaning the Cross River in South Roscommon and widening some of the culverts in the Drum area.
The Athlone to Ballinasloe motorway was constructed at a cost of €211 million was officially opened in the summer of 2009.
The Westmeath Independent
www.bpsplanningconsultants.ie
Wednesday, 16 February 2011
Objection to works rejected
AN OBJECTION by the National Roads Authority to the expansion of a nursing home in Co Tipperary has been rejected by An Bord Pleanála.
The authority appealed a decision by the planning office of North Tipperary County Council to grant the owners of Patterson Nursing Home at Lismackin, Roscrea, permission to construct an extension at the rear. A total of 15 conditions were attached to the granting of planning last September to owners Thomas and Betty Patterson, but the authority objected on safety grounds.
Appealing the decision to An Bord Pleanála, the authority highlighted concerns over the development and stated the nursing home was located on the N62 national primary road where the maximum speed limit applies. It pointed out any further development would “endanger the public safety by reason of a traffic hazard”.
The planning appeals board’s inspector recommended refusal of the plan but the board later decided to grant permission. The board took into account the fact there was already a nursing home on the site, the planning history of the site and the proposed acquisition of more land for the additional sites as mitigating factors.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
The authority appealed a decision by the planning office of North Tipperary County Council to grant the owners of Patterson Nursing Home at Lismackin, Roscrea, permission to construct an extension at the rear. A total of 15 conditions were attached to the granting of planning last September to owners Thomas and Betty Patterson, but the authority objected on safety grounds.
Appealing the decision to An Bord Pleanála, the authority highlighted concerns over the development and stated the nursing home was located on the N62 national primary road where the maximum speed limit applies. It pointed out any further development would “endanger the public safety by reason of a traffic hazard”.
The planning appeals board’s inspector recommended refusal of the plan but the board later decided to grant permission. The board took into account the fact there was already a nursing home on the site, the planning history of the site and the proposed acquisition of more land for the additional sites as mitigating factors.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 31 October 2010
Builder fury at 'wasteful' planning objections
A WAR of words has broken out between road bosses and the construction industry over claims that the National Roads Authority (NRA) was wasting taxpayers' money by objecting to new developments.
The Construction Industry Federation (CIF) yesterday said the fact the NRA had a full-time planning officer charged with lodging objections was "extremely wasteful and costly" and should be stopped.
The comments were made in a pre-Budget submission where the CIF said it was "absurd" that the NRA had a unit engaged in "fighting" with local authorities at a time when the construction industry had collapsed and jobs were needed.
"Particularly during a period of one of the worst economic downturns in history, it is absolutely absurd that one arm of the State at national level should have a unit within it engaged full-time in-fighting with other local arms of the State throughout the country," the CIF submission said.
But the NRA hit back, saying that the construction industry was responsible for wasting taxpayers' money during the boom.
"If one industry knows the consequences of inappropriate developments and irrational thinking when it comes to protecting public investment in infrastructure it's construction," a spokesman said.
Sins
"If they want to continue with this, more money will be wasted. It's important that the NRA protects public investment. We should not repeat past sins."
The NRA has an official policy to control development near national roads so that safety is not compromised by large volumes of cars entering the network at inappropriate locations.
Last June planning permission for a supermarket at Ardee in Co Louth was refused permission because it was close to the N33 which was described as a "key link road" between the M1, N2 and N52.
"The appeal site is close to this road and so there is a serious concern that traffic movements generated by the proposed development would lead to the overloading of the same, thereby compromising the performance of the strategically important national road network," the NRA said.
A 30-unit housing development was also refused permission in Donegal town after the NRA said it would join a national road where the maximum speed limit applied.
Last July, An Bord Pleanala refused permission to Kilsaran Concrete to build a showroom at Screggan in Co Offaly following objections from the NRA.
The CIF said a working group made up of senior executives in city and county councils, the NRA and the Department of the Environment should be established so potential problems could be addressed before a formal planning application was lodged.
This would save time and costs and avoid unnecessary delays to projects, it said.
Paul Melia
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
The Construction Industry Federation (CIF) yesterday said the fact the NRA had a full-time planning officer charged with lodging objections was "extremely wasteful and costly" and should be stopped.
The comments were made in a pre-Budget submission where the CIF said it was "absurd" that the NRA had a unit engaged in "fighting" with local authorities at a time when the construction industry had collapsed and jobs were needed.
"Particularly during a period of one of the worst economic downturns in history, it is absolutely absurd that one arm of the State at national level should have a unit within it engaged full-time in-fighting with other local arms of the State throughout the country," the CIF submission said.
But the NRA hit back, saying that the construction industry was responsible for wasting taxpayers' money during the boom.
"If one industry knows the consequences of inappropriate developments and irrational thinking when it comes to protecting public investment in infrastructure it's construction," a spokesman said.
Sins
"If they want to continue with this, more money will be wasted. It's important that the NRA protects public investment. We should not repeat past sins."
The NRA has an official policy to control development near national roads so that safety is not compromised by large volumes of cars entering the network at inappropriate locations.
Last June planning permission for a supermarket at Ardee in Co Louth was refused permission because it was close to the N33 which was described as a "key link road" between the M1, N2 and N52.
"The appeal site is close to this road and so there is a serious concern that traffic movements generated by the proposed development would lead to the overloading of the same, thereby compromising the performance of the strategically important national road network," the NRA said.
A 30-unit housing development was also refused permission in Donegal town after the NRA said it would join a national road where the maximum speed limit applied.
Last July, An Bord Pleanala refused permission to Kilsaran Concrete to build a showroom at Screggan in Co Offaly following objections from the NRA.
The CIF said a working group made up of senior executives in city and county councils, the NRA and the Department of the Environment should be established so potential problems could be addressed before a formal planning application was lodged.
This would save time and costs and avoid unnecessary delays to projects, it said.
Paul Melia
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
Wednesday, 15 September 2010
Services signs planned for motorways lacking facilities
THE NATIONAL Roads Authority is to erect signs on motorways where planned service stations have been put on hold.
The signs will direct traffic off the motorway network to nearby villages and towns for fuel, food and toilets.
An Bord Pleanála had approved the development of seven service areas on Irish motorways, but four will not be built due to a lack of funding.
A spokesman for the NRA said that there was no plan to build services areas on the M6 (Dublin to Galway), M7 (Dublin to Limerick), M8 (Dublin to Cork) and M9 (Kilcullen to Waterford) because “the money wasn’t made available”.
He said the authority was, however, implementing a national signage programme so that when members of the public were driving on a new motorway, they would know exactly where to go for petrol, food etc.
The 130 signs, due to be in place by the end of next month, are being implemented at a cost of some €200,000, according to the authority.
AA Ireland’s director of policy Conor Faughnan said the absence of service stations on four Irish motorways was “not just an inconvenience, but a safety hazard”.
Mr Faughnan said a key cause of collisions on motorways was driver fatigue.
“This can lead not just to people falling asleep but also a loss of concentration among drivers,” he said, adding that “a key countermeasure is the provision of proper service areas”.
Service stations are to open on two of the State’s busiest motorways over the next few weeks at a cost of €79 million to the taxpayer.
The lack of service stations so far has meant that drivers can drive from south of Gorey, Co Wexford, to the Border without finding a place to stop for fuel, food or toilets.
The green light has been given to the Superstop consortium – comprising Tedcastle Oil, which operates the Top brand, Petrogas, which runs the Applegreen chain of petrol stations, and Pierse Contracting – as the preferred bidder for the service stations, two of which will be on the M1 (Dublin to Belfast).
The first service area, to be located at Lusk between junctions 4 and 5, is set to open tomorrow, while the second will be located at Castlebellingham, north of junction 15.
A third is due to open on the M4 (Dublin to Sligo) on October 6th, west of junction 9 at Enfield.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
The signs will direct traffic off the motorway network to nearby villages and towns for fuel, food and toilets.
An Bord Pleanála had approved the development of seven service areas on Irish motorways, but four will not be built due to a lack of funding.
A spokesman for the NRA said that there was no plan to build services areas on the M6 (Dublin to Galway), M7 (Dublin to Limerick), M8 (Dublin to Cork) and M9 (Kilcullen to Waterford) because “the money wasn’t made available”.
He said the authority was, however, implementing a national signage programme so that when members of the public were driving on a new motorway, they would know exactly where to go for petrol, food etc.
The 130 signs, due to be in place by the end of next month, are being implemented at a cost of some €200,000, according to the authority.
AA Ireland’s director of policy Conor Faughnan said the absence of service stations on four Irish motorways was “not just an inconvenience, but a safety hazard”.
Mr Faughnan said a key cause of collisions on motorways was driver fatigue.
“This can lead not just to people falling asleep but also a loss of concentration among drivers,” he said, adding that “a key countermeasure is the provision of proper service areas”.
Service stations are to open on two of the State’s busiest motorways over the next few weeks at a cost of €79 million to the taxpayer.
The lack of service stations so far has meant that drivers can drive from south of Gorey, Co Wexford, to the Border without finding a place to stop for fuel, food or toilets.
The green light has been given to the Superstop consortium – comprising Tedcastle Oil, which operates the Top brand, Petrogas, which runs the Applegreen chain of petrol stations, and Pierse Contracting – as the preferred bidder for the service stations, two of which will be on the M1 (Dublin to Belfast).
The first service area, to be located at Lusk between junctions 4 and 5, is set to open tomorrow, while the second will be located at Castlebellingham, north of junction 15.
A third is due to open on the M4 (Dublin to Sligo) on October 6th, west of junction 9 at Enfield.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Tuesday, 24 August 2010
Roads authority criticises 'ghost' motorway claims
THE National Roads Authority (NRA) has hit out at accusations it is building "ghost" motorways.
Heritage body An Taisce claimed there had been "chronic misspending" on motorways at a time when there were 22,000 fewer drivers on Irish roads.
It said the NRA was using seven-year-old data predicting traffic growth of up to 3pc annually, even though traffic had fallen by 7pc in the past two years.
In a statement, An Taisce claimed the new network of motorways would become "ghost roads" as oil prices rose and traffic fell even further.
"The NRA's proposals for 850km of additional motorway is a charter for gross misspending," it said. "What Ireland needs is a proper national public transport plan, not legacy projects left over from a boom time."
However, NRA director of corporate affairs Michael Egan dismissed the criticism and said the authority was building a roads network for 20 years ahead.
"Take the old Dublin Cork road. If that upgrade had not happened there would have been chaos," he said.
"And the M50 was regarded as the biggest car park in Europe as it had reached saturation point."
Mr Egan dismissed claims the NRA was using out-of-date projections for traffic. He said traffic figures were on the NRA website and there for anyone to see.
"We are completely open about this data," he added.
Treacy Hogan
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
Heritage body An Taisce claimed there had been "chronic misspending" on motorways at a time when there were 22,000 fewer drivers on Irish roads.
It said the NRA was using seven-year-old data predicting traffic growth of up to 3pc annually, even though traffic had fallen by 7pc in the past two years.
In a statement, An Taisce claimed the new network of motorways would become "ghost roads" as oil prices rose and traffic fell even further.
"The NRA's proposals for 850km of additional motorway is a charter for gross misspending," it said. "What Ireland needs is a proper national public transport plan, not legacy projects left over from a boom time."
However, NRA director of corporate affairs Michael Egan dismissed the criticism and said the authority was building a roads network for 20 years ahead.
"Take the old Dublin Cork road. If that upgrade had not happened there would have been chaos," he said.
"And the M50 was regarded as the biggest car park in Europe as it had reached saturation point."
Mr Egan dismissed claims the NRA was using out-of-date projections for traffic. He said traffic figures were on the NRA website and there for anyone to see.
"We are completely open about this data," he added.
Treacy Hogan
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
NRA uses 'false data' to justify new roads, says An Taisce
AN TAISCE has called on the National Roads Authority (NRA) to stop using “false data” showing continual traffic growth to justify its major roads programme when its own figures show that traffic levels are actually falling.
The figures for 90 stretches of motorway and other national roads were abstracted by An Taisce from the authority’s traffic counts, which are publicly available on the authority’s website (www.nra.ie), and cover the period 2007 to 2010.
“The NRA’s own network of automatic roadside counters shows that traffic has fallen 7 per cent over the last two years,” An Taisce said. “This downward trend is accelerating, with a 4.3 per cent drop in the last 12 months compounding a 2.6 per cent fall the previous year.”
Yet the authority was still using a “wildly inaccurate” traffic growth multiplier dating back to August 2003, which assumed that traffic would continue to grow by 2 to 3 per cent annually “year after year” to defend its plans for some 850km of new roads.
An NRA spokesman conceded that traffic “has declined since the recession began”, but said the roads in its programme were “designed for a 20- to 30-year economic benefit . . . with the best available data”.
An Taisce said Bord Pleanála had refused planning permission for an “over-scaled” scheme in Co Mayo for 19km of dual-carriageway between Bohola and Ballina and called for a “more modest” proposal “because the NRA failed to justify the project on traffic grounds”.
It said over the past year 22,000 households had shed at least one car, based on the number of vehicles taxed at the end of 2009.
“As oil becomes a comparatively greater cost burden, more people will be looking to buses, trains and shared cars.
“Not alone is the NRA ignoring the data showing falling traffic, it also seems to have cocked a determined blind eye to reports . . . that the era of cheap oil is over and that unprecedented economic, social, and political costs are likely to accompany future oil price increases.”
The volume of traffic on Irish roads was likely to fall even further, according to An Taisce, which warned that the prospect of building “ghost roads” based on erroneous NRA projections “is very real as time nears to sign contracts on a number of routes”.
These motorway/dual-carriageway schemes include a south Wexford motorway and new routes from Blarney in Cork to Patrickswell, Co Limerick; Gort to Tuam, Co Galway; Clontibret, Co Monaghan, to Aughnacloy, Co Tyrone; and Ashbourne, Co Meath, to Ardee, Co Louth.
“When will the NRA stop using false projections to make it appear more motorways are needed?” An Taisce asked, saying 850km of new roads were “a charter for gross misspending” when what Ireland needed was a national public transport plan, “not legacy projects . . . from a boom time”.
It claimed the NRA was proposing to borrow “close to €9 billion” for its roads programme.
“This would place a further mountain of debt upon already crippled taxpayers, compounding stress already faced by those that continue to have work.”
It said projections from the US “show that total vehicle distance travelled may contract sharply in coming years, up to 41 per cent by 2030 according to one assessment” (by Bomford this year).
“We cannot easily predict whether or to what extent this may be mirrored in Ireland.”
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
The figures for 90 stretches of motorway and other national roads were abstracted by An Taisce from the authority’s traffic counts, which are publicly available on the authority’s website (www.nra.ie), and cover the period 2007 to 2010.
“The NRA’s own network of automatic roadside counters shows that traffic has fallen 7 per cent over the last two years,” An Taisce said. “This downward trend is accelerating, with a 4.3 per cent drop in the last 12 months compounding a 2.6 per cent fall the previous year.”
Yet the authority was still using a “wildly inaccurate” traffic growth multiplier dating back to August 2003, which assumed that traffic would continue to grow by 2 to 3 per cent annually “year after year” to defend its plans for some 850km of new roads.
An NRA spokesman conceded that traffic “has declined since the recession began”, but said the roads in its programme were “designed for a 20- to 30-year economic benefit . . . with the best available data”.
An Taisce said Bord Pleanála had refused planning permission for an “over-scaled” scheme in Co Mayo for 19km of dual-carriageway between Bohola and Ballina and called for a “more modest” proposal “because the NRA failed to justify the project on traffic grounds”.
It said over the past year 22,000 households had shed at least one car, based on the number of vehicles taxed at the end of 2009.
“As oil becomes a comparatively greater cost burden, more people will be looking to buses, trains and shared cars.
“Not alone is the NRA ignoring the data showing falling traffic, it also seems to have cocked a determined blind eye to reports . . . that the era of cheap oil is over and that unprecedented economic, social, and political costs are likely to accompany future oil price increases.”
The volume of traffic on Irish roads was likely to fall even further, according to An Taisce, which warned that the prospect of building “ghost roads” based on erroneous NRA projections “is very real as time nears to sign contracts on a number of routes”.
These motorway/dual-carriageway schemes include a south Wexford motorway and new routes from Blarney in Cork to Patrickswell, Co Limerick; Gort to Tuam, Co Galway; Clontibret, Co Monaghan, to Aughnacloy, Co Tyrone; and Ashbourne, Co Meath, to Ardee, Co Louth.
“When will the NRA stop using false projections to make it appear more motorways are needed?” An Taisce asked, saying 850km of new roads were “a charter for gross misspending” when what Ireland needed was a national public transport plan, “not legacy projects . . . from a boom time”.
It claimed the NRA was proposing to borrow “close to €9 billion” for its roads programme.
“This would place a further mountain of debt upon already crippled taxpayers, compounding stress already faced by those that continue to have work.”
It said projections from the US “show that total vehicle distance travelled may contract sharply in coming years, up to 41 per cent by 2030 according to one assessment” (by Bomford this year).
“We cannot easily predict whether or to what extent this may be mirrored in Ireland.”
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 13 June 2010
NRA puts halt on nine 'truck stops'
The National Roads Authority has shelved controversial plans for a series of 'truck stops' around Ireland that local opposition groups say will lead to an increase in crime and shatter local property values.
The stops were designed to provide service facilities to motorists on Ireland's expanding road network, but plans for the service areas (SAs) have been heavily criticised by communities.
Due to special planning laws, the SAs – which include parking, restaurants, showers, toilets, picnic areas and garages – are not dependent on local authority planning, ruling out the first line of defence afforded to concerned communities.
Residents near a proposed site on the N11 in Co Wexford estimated in 2008 that their property values would drop by as much as 75%, although values would have already dropped by now due to market conditions.
Other concerns harboured by those in areas close to the proposed SAs included increased crime levels and visual and noise pollution. "We oppose this on several fronts," Fran Seale of the Ballyellen Action Group told the Sunday Tribune.
"We are talking in excess of 30 acres [for the developments]. We have not seen anything on this scale in Ireland before."
The NRA said that this type of project would always attract local opposition and that everything was being done to listen to concerns.
However, those living in the vicinity of nine of the proposed SAs have had the 'threat' lifted, at least for the time being.
The NRA has said it does not have the finances in place to deliver on all of the plans, with the exception of three sites due to open later this year. A spokesman said: "The rest of them are on hold until funding is put in place."
The SuperStop consortium, which won the contract to run six of the SAs, are now close to finishing the build on the three given the go-ahead.
These are located at Lusk and Castlebellingham on the M1 and at Enfield on the M4, all of which should be open by November.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
The stops were designed to provide service facilities to motorists on Ireland's expanding road network, but plans for the service areas (SAs) have been heavily criticised by communities.
Due to special planning laws, the SAs – which include parking, restaurants, showers, toilets, picnic areas and garages – are not dependent on local authority planning, ruling out the first line of defence afforded to concerned communities.
Residents near a proposed site on the N11 in Co Wexford estimated in 2008 that their property values would drop by as much as 75%, although values would have already dropped by now due to market conditions.
Other concerns harboured by those in areas close to the proposed SAs included increased crime levels and visual and noise pollution. "We oppose this on several fronts," Fran Seale of the Ballyellen Action Group told the Sunday Tribune.
"We are talking in excess of 30 acres [for the developments]. We have not seen anything on this scale in Ireland before."
The NRA said that this type of project would always attract local opposition and that everything was being done to listen to concerns.
However, those living in the vicinity of nine of the proposed SAs have had the 'threat' lifted, at least for the time being.
The NRA has said it does not have the finances in place to deliver on all of the plans, with the exception of three sites due to open later this year. A spokesman said: "The rest of them are on hold until funding is put in place."
The SuperStop consortium, which won the contract to run six of the SAs, are now close to finishing the build on the three given the go-ahead.
These are located at Lusk and Castlebellingham on the M1 and at Enfield on the M4, all of which should be open by November.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Monday, 1 March 2010
NRA puts motorway service area plans on hold
THE National Roads Authority (NRA) has parked plans to build nine of the 12 service stations that had been earmarked for Ireland’s motorways.
Department of Transport funding for the construction, maintenance and improvement of national roads has been cut by €325 million this year. And proposed service areas are among the projects which have been put on hold.
"There are three service areas under construction and scheduled to open by the end of 2010. The minister for transport has decided that, in view of the current economic difficulties, the authority should refrain from investing further Exchequer funds in service areas until the economic situation improves," said an NRA spokesman.
As a stop-gap measure, the NRA has decided to erect "informational (brown) signs" on dual carriageways where petrol facilities are located within a kilometre of a junction.
"This is being implemented for existing facilities and will be extended to new facilities if and when they are built," the NRA spokesperson stated.
In 2008, Transport Minister Noel Dempsey signed-off the necessary regulations giving effect to provisions in the Road Act 2007 to facilitate service areas along national routes.
It was intended, at that juncture, to provide 12 service stations on five inter-urban motorways by 2011.
The Automobile Association (AA) has been critical of the fact that Irish motorways do not have the frequency of service stops on motorways in comparison to other European countries or the US.
These were essential from a safety point of view, AA policy adviser Conor Faughnan said. "You can drive from Newry to Cork on a continuous motorway network and the only place you will find service areas is at Newlands Cross in Dublin.
"One of the major hazards on motorways is that drivers are prone to fatigue. Doing long miles on high-quality roads means that drivers are vulnerable to a whole new type of road accident."
The motorways were a magnificent addition to this country’s transport infrastructure, but sadly an integral part of the plan, service areas, were yet to be realised, Mr Faughnan said.
According to a spokesperson for the Department of Transport, the NRA’s proposals for a number of other service areas across the network are progressing through the planning process. "Their delivery, however, will be heavily dependent on the availability of funds and the prioritisation of road projects within a reduced capital budget.
"The NRA will assign a high priority to the delivery of these service areas and are particularly anxious to deliver one each to the Dublin/Limerick, Dublin/Cork and Dublin/Waterford routes.
"In the light of this, the minister recently asked the NRA to consider other options for providing the service areas that do not require Exchequer funding." the spokesperson said.
The NRA has provided a number of rest areas on national routes, such as the N6, M8 and N11. "While these rest areas are basic, they do allow off-road parking along the major inter-urban routes where drivers can take breaks without endangering road safety," said the spokesperson.
Irish Examiner
www.buckplanning.ie
Department of Transport funding for the construction, maintenance and improvement of national roads has been cut by €325 million this year. And proposed service areas are among the projects which have been put on hold.
"There are three service areas under construction and scheduled to open by the end of 2010. The minister for transport has decided that, in view of the current economic difficulties, the authority should refrain from investing further Exchequer funds in service areas until the economic situation improves," said an NRA spokesman.
As a stop-gap measure, the NRA has decided to erect "informational (brown) signs" on dual carriageways where petrol facilities are located within a kilometre of a junction.
"This is being implemented for existing facilities and will be extended to new facilities if and when they are built," the NRA spokesperson stated.
In 2008, Transport Minister Noel Dempsey signed-off the necessary regulations giving effect to provisions in the Road Act 2007 to facilitate service areas along national routes.
It was intended, at that juncture, to provide 12 service stations on five inter-urban motorways by 2011.
The Automobile Association (AA) has been critical of the fact that Irish motorways do not have the frequency of service stops on motorways in comparison to other European countries or the US.
These were essential from a safety point of view, AA policy adviser Conor Faughnan said. "You can drive from Newry to Cork on a continuous motorway network and the only place you will find service areas is at Newlands Cross in Dublin.
"One of the major hazards on motorways is that drivers are prone to fatigue. Doing long miles on high-quality roads means that drivers are vulnerable to a whole new type of road accident."
The motorways were a magnificent addition to this country’s transport infrastructure, but sadly an integral part of the plan, service areas, were yet to be realised, Mr Faughnan said.
According to a spokesperson for the Department of Transport, the NRA’s proposals for a number of other service areas across the network are progressing through the planning process. "Their delivery, however, will be heavily dependent on the availability of funds and the prioritisation of road projects within a reduced capital budget.
"The NRA will assign a high priority to the delivery of these service areas and are particularly anxious to deliver one each to the Dublin/Limerick, Dublin/Cork and Dublin/Waterford routes.
"In the light of this, the minister recently asked the NRA to consider other options for providing the service areas that do not require Exchequer funding." the spokesperson said.
The NRA has provided a number of rest areas on national routes, such as the N6, M8 and N11. "While these rest areas are basic, they do allow off-road parking along the major inter-urban routes where drivers can take breaks without endangering road safety," said the spokesperson.
Irish Examiner
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 21 February 2010
There is a way around planned Slane bypass
The National Roads Authority is bent on pursuing a plan that would visually compromise the setting of Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth
THIRTEEN YEARS ago, when I went to Japan for the first time to cover the Kyoto climate change summit, someone who knows the country well told me that it was largely run for the benefit of its concrete industry. “After building all the motorways and high-speed rail lines, they got into concreting river banks and even beaches,” he said.
For the past decade or more, it seems that Ireland has been run for the benefit of CRH plc, Siac, Seán Quinn, the asphalt men and quarry owners and a legion of consultant engineers, archaeologists and greedy farmers. They’ve all done very well from the roll-out of motorways across the length and breadth of the country.
Nobody can say for sure how much all of this has cost, but it is certain that well over €20 billion has been spent so far. Although Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey recently announced that the allocation for national roads this year was being cut by €325 million, the National Roads Authority will still have more than €1 billion to spend.
The authority’s programme is so overblown that when the controversial M3 is finally completed this year, Meath alone (coincidentally, Dempsey’s own constituency) will end up being traversed by four motorways – the M1, the M2, the M3 and the M4. Three of these routes pass remarkably close to each other – only 20km apart in some places.
Any Martian could see that we lost the run of ourselves in building all of these roads fanning out from Dublin.
Instead of “shadowing” the existing routes we inherited, a bit of lateral thinking would surely have led us to build an entirely different motorway network, with (for example) Waterford or Limerick being served on the way to Cork.
If the roads authority carries on unchecked, we will end up with nearly 1,000km of motorways by 2015. And that doesn’t even include an eastern bypass for Dublin – to enclose the city in a “motorway box” – and an outer ring road from Drogheda right around to Naas, which would function in effect as a bypass for the now engorged M50.
The latest bypass proposal is for the village of Slane, Co Meath. Everyone who has attended rock concerts over the years at Slane Castle will be familiar with the old bridge over the river Boyne; it is set at right-angles to the N2, and this hazard is aggravated by the fact that southbound traffic approaches it on a steep incline from the village.
As noted by an environmental impact statement (EIS) prepared for the authority and Meath County Council, “there have been numerous traffic accidents, some fatal, over the years – typically when heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) descend on the steep hill and collide with other traffic or crash through the bridge parapet”. In short, it’s dangerous.
The proposed 3.5km bypass would run east of Slane; opting for a westerly route would have brought it through the estate of the Marquis of Mountcharles. As a result, the EIS concedes, the planned dual-carriageway, with a new bridge over the Boyne, would pass just over 500 metres from the Unesco World Heritage Site of Brú na Bóinne.
This is at the root of growing opposition to the scheme. Having given a right royal slap in the face to Tara with the M3, despite widespread protests, the authority is now bent on pursuing a plan that would visually compromise the setting of Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth, the three main prehistoric sites of the Brú na Bóinne archaeological complex.
The EIS identifies five archaeological sites along the route that “will be impacted directly”, as well as a further three “areas of undetermined archaeological potential” and two other sites that “will be impacted indirectly”. In cold technical language, we are told that the predicted impacts range from “slight” or “moderate” to “potentially significant”.
On the other hand, the EIS says, “it should be noted that the N2 Slane bypass would have a positive impact in re-routing heavy traffic from Slane Bridge and Slane Village”. This would bring relief to its residents, who currently endure some 1,600 HGVs trundling through the village on the N2 each day, according to Meath County Council.
That’s why the council adopted a resolution to ban HGVs travelling north-south through Slane on April 6th, 2009.
The ban has not been implemented, ostensibly because of fears that it “could have serious consequences [for the council] in terms of possible legal exposure, delivery delays and business frustration”, an official said.
Could it be that the adoption of such a straightforward solution, forcing truck drivers to use the M1 instead, might have got in the way of a much more expensive and potentially destructive bypass plan? Certainly, many of the objectors will be arguing for the minimalist approach at an oral hearing by An Bord Pleanála – if there is one.
The appeals board has a history of rubber-stamping major road schemes. Only one, the proposed 1km “inner relief route” for Athy, Co Kildare, was flatly turned down; it “would fail both as a street and as a relief road because it would continue to bring traffic, including heavy commercial vehicles, through the town centre”, the board said.
The abortive proposal to ban HGVs using the N2 in Slane is surely a valid alternative to the new dual-carriageway planned by the roads authority and its engineering consultants, Roughan O’Donovan.
By refusing permission for this scheme, An Bord Pleanála would be laying down a useful marker against numerous others even now being hatched.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
THIRTEEN YEARS ago, when I went to Japan for the first time to cover the Kyoto climate change summit, someone who knows the country well told me that it was largely run for the benefit of its concrete industry. “After building all the motorways and high-speed rail lines, they got into concreting river banks and even beaches,” he said.
For the past decade or more, it seems that Ireland has been run for the benefit of CRH plc, Siac, Seán Quinn, the asphalt men and quarry owners and a legion of consultant engineers, archaeologists and greedy farmers. They’ve all done very well from the roll-out of motorways across the length and breadth of the country.
Nobody can say for sure how much all of this has cost, but it is certain that well over €20 billion has been spent so far. Although Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey recently announced that the allocation for national roads this year was being cut by €325 million, the National Roads Authority will still have more than €1 billion to spend.
The authority’s programme is so overblown that when the controversial M3 is finally completed this year, Meath alone (coincidentally, Dempsey’s own constituency) will end up being traversed by four motorways – the M1, the M2, the M3 and the M4. Three of these routes pass remarkably close to each other – only 20km apart in some places.
Any Martian could see that we lost the run of ourselves in building all of these roads fanning out from Dublin.
Instead of “shadowing” the existing routes we inherited, a bit of lateral thinking would surely have led us to build an entirely different motorway network, with (for example) Waterford or Limerick being served on the way to Cork.
If the roads authority carries on unchecked, we will end up with nearly 1,000km of motorways by 2015. And that doesn’t even include an eastern bypass for Dublin – to enclose the city in a “motorway box” – and an outer ring road from Drogheda right around to Naas, which would function in effect as a bypass for the now engorged M50.
The latest bypass proposal is for the village of Slane, Co Meath. Everyone who has attended rock concerts over the years at Slane Castle will be familiar with the old bridge over the river Boyne; it is set at right-angles to the N2, and this hazard is aggravated by the fact that southbound traffic approaches it on a steep incline from the village.
As noted by an environmental impact statement (EIS) prepared for the authority and Meath County Council, “there have been numerous traffic accidents, some fatal, over the years – typically when heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) descend on the steep hill and collide with other traffic or crash through the bridge parapet”. In short, it’s dangerous.
The proposed 3.5km bypass would run east of Slane; opting for a westerly route would have brought it through the estate of the Marquis of Mountcharles. As a result, the EIS concedes, the planned dual-carriageway, with a new bridge over the Boyne, would pass just over 500 metres from the Unesco World Heritage Site of Brú na Bóinne.
This is at the root of growing opposition to the scheme. Having given a right royal slap in the face to Tara with the M3, despite widespread protests, the authority is now bent on pursuing a plan that would visually compromise the setting of Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth, the three main prehistoric sites of the Brú na Bóinne archaeological complex.
The EIS identifies five archaeological sites along the route that “will be impacted directly”, as well as a further three “areas of undetermined archaeological potential” and two other sites that “will be impacted indirectly”. In cold technical language, we are told that the predicted impacts range from “slight” or “moderate” to “potentially significant”.
On the other hand, the EIS says, “it should be noted that the N2 Slane bypass would have a positive impact in re-routing heavy traffic from Slane Bridge and Slane Village”. This would bring relief to its residents, who currently endure some 1,600 HGVs trundling through the village on the N2 each day, according to Meath County Council.
That’s why the council adopted a resolution to ban HGVs travelling north-south through Slane on April 6th, 2009.
The ban has not been implemented, ostensibly because of fears that it “could have serious consequences [for the council] in terms of possible legal exposure, delivery delays and business frustration”, an official said.
Could it be that the adoption of such a straightforward solution, forcing truck drivers to use the M1 instead, might have got in the way of a much more expensive and potentially destructive bypass plan? Certainly, many of the objectors will be arguing for the minimalist approach at an oral hearing by An Bord Pleanála – if there is one.
The appeals board has a history of rubber-stamping major road schemes. Only one, the proposed 1km “inner relief route” for Athy, Co Kildare, was flatly turned down; it “would fail both as a street and as a relief road because it would continue to bring traffic, including heavy commercial vehicles, through the town centre”, the board said.
The abortive proposal to ban HGVs using the N2 in Slane is surely a valid alternative to the new dual-carriageway planned by the roads authority and its engineering consultants, Roughan O’Donovan.
By refusing permission for this scheme, An Bord Pleanála would be laying down a useful marker against numerous others even now being hatched.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 28 June 2009
Gorey man hit with €40k bill after fighting CPO bid
A FATHER of five who fought a compulsory purchase order on his land has been left with a €40,000 bill which he claims the National Roads Authority had said it would pay.
Tadhg O'Scannail (50) from Gorey, Co Wexford, decided to fight the NRA's bid to secure part of his land under a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) for a controversial motorway truck stop in the area. He claims he was told his costs for an engineer and a solicitor would be covered by the NRA in the event of any effort to block the CPO.
But the NRA says it never made any such promise and that in the end his land wasn't even wanted. "I am a self-employed plumber," O'Scannail said. "My wife is a nurse who has been hit by all these levies. I don't have a penny and I have three kids in school, one doing the Junior Cert and one starting first year next year.
"It's taken me 10 years to get the house the way it is and it's still not finished. My property is devalued by the economic climate anyway and who is going to buy a house beside a service area?
"This was supposed to be my pension and security for my children but now we are stuck behind a truck stop."
According to O'Scannail, the NRA told him his costs would be covered, or partly covered, in the event that his land became the subject of a CPO.
He incurred various costs including €25,000 for an engineer, €11,000 for a sound engineer, and €5,000 for a barrister to represent him at an oral hearing.
However, the NRA later notified him that a CPO would not be required on his land following a reassessment of the project. "I have been told nothing. We had to make a passionate plea to the inspector in An Bord Pleanála to ask if he would make a recommendation to cover the costs. They are under no legal requirement to do so," said O'Scannail.
"My whole problem is the unfair manner in which we have been dealt with. [The NRA] have misrepresented themselves on a number of occasions. But the NRA says any decision to incur costs before the official CPO process was initiated was "his responsibility". Its spokesman said that a 'notice to treat', which makes the CPO process official, was never furnished and that the decision not to take the land was communicated as soon as they knew.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Tadhg O'Scannail (50) from Gorey, Co Wexford, decided to fight the NRA's bid to secure part of his land under a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) for a controversial motorway truck stop in the area. He claims he was told his costs for an engineer and a solicitor would be covered by the NRA in the event of any effort to block the CPO.
But the NRA says it never made any such promise and that in the end his land wasn't even wanted. "I am a self-employed plumber," O'Scannail said. "My wife is a nurse who has been hit by all these levies. I don't have a penny and I have three kids in school, one doing the Junior Cert and one starting first year next year.
"It's taken me 10 years to get the house the way it is and it's still not finished. My property is devalued by the economic climate anyway and who is going to buy a house beside a service area?
"This was supposed to be my pension and security for my children but now we are stuck behind a truck stop."
According to O'Scannail, the NRA told him his costs would be covered, or partly covered, in the event that his land became the subject of a CPO.
He incurred various costs including €25,000 for an engineer, €11,000 for a sound engineer, and €5,000 for a barrister to represent him at an oral hearing.
However, the NRA later notified him that a CPO would not be required on his land following a reassessment of the project. "I have been told nothing. We had to make a passionate plea to the inspector in An Bord Pleanála to ask if he would make a recommendation to cover the costs. They are under no legal requirement to do so," said O'Scannail.
"My whole problem is the unfair manner in which we have been dealt with. [The NRA] have misrepresented themselves on a number of occasions. But the NRA says any decision to incur costs before the official CPO process was initiated was "his responsibility". Its spokesman said that a 'notice to treat', which makes the CPO process official, was never furnished and that the decision not to take the land was communicated as soon as they knew.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 17 May 2009
Safety fears as pitstops shelved
Long-awaited plans to build fully-equipped service stations on the country's motorways have fallen victim to government cuts, despite one in seven drivers saying they have fallen asleep at the wheel due to driver fatigue.
A spokesman for the National Roads Authority (NRA) has confirmed that nine of the 12 'truck stops' which it had hoped to build are now being reviewed due to the current economic climate.
The revelation has prompted the AA to raise concerns about the potential impact on road safety due to driver fatigue, with motorists unable to make a 'pitstop' when this proves necessary.
The nine projects which are being reviewed are the M6 east of Athlone; the M6/M17 at Rathmorrissey, Co Galway; the M7 at Mountrath; the N7 east of the N8 at Cashel; the N8 at Kilworth; the N9 at Kilcullen; the N9 north of Kilkenny; and the N11 north of Gorey. The NRA spokesman said the projects are now in a "holding pattern" and are "to be rescheduled for completion". However, he could not say when this will happen.
"We are committed to the projects. We absolutely see them as vital," he told the Sunday Tribune. "As soon as the funding is there, we will go forward with this. Our expectations are that we are going forward with this, we just don't know when."
The spokesman confirmed that three other projects, at the M1 South near Lusk, Co Dublin, the M1 North near Domiskin/Castlebellingham and the M4 west of Enfield will be proceeding. It is hoped that these will be completed by next year.
Conor Faughnan, public affairs manager with AA Roadwatch, said it was "deeply disappointed" with the news.
"These should have been provided years ago. They are an important part of the safety infrastructure and are not just a luxury," he said. "We have to have safe areas where people can rest. Currently you could very easily find yourself running dry of petrol or stranded between Portlaoise and Cork, for example.
"You don't have funding issues preventing safety features on aircraft, or fire escapes on buildings. The NRA's line on this is totally unsatisfactory."
However, locals in some of the proposed locations are likely to greet the revelation with some relief, having in the past expressed concerns about the potential impact on their communities.
The NRA originally argued that there was no need for service stations on motorways, but later changed its view.
It remains unclear what will happen to a number of sites which it has purchased should the plans not go ahead.
Just last month, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) launched a year-long campaign aimed at tackling driver fatigue, which it describes as a "silent killer" which may have been responsible for over 350 road deaths during the past five years.
An RSA survey of 800 motorists found that 14% of people said they had nodded off when driving, with men between 35 and 54 years most likely to fall asleep.
Half of all incidents occurred between 9pm and 6am, with one in five cars drifting out of its lane of traffic.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
A spokesman for the National Roads Authority (NRA) has confirmed that nine of the 12 'truck stops' which it had hoped to build are now being reviewed due to the current economic climate.
The revelation has prompted the AA to raise concerns about the potential impact on road safety due to driver fatigue, with motorists unable to make a 'pitstop' when this proves necessary.
The nine projects which are being reviewed are the M6 east of Athlone; the M6/M17 at Rathmorrissey, Co Galway; the M7 at Mountrath; the N7 east of the N8 at Cashel; the N8 at Kilworth; the N9 at Kilcullen; the N9 north of Kilkenny; and the N11 north of Gorey. The NRA spokesman said the projects are now in a "holding pattern" and are "to be rescheduled for completion". However, he could not say when this will happen.
"We are committed to the projects. We absolutely see them as vital," he told the Sunday Tribune. "As soon as the funding is there, we will go forward with this. Our expectations are that we are going forward with this, we just don't know when."
The spokesman confirmed that three other projects, at the M1 South near Lusk, Co Dublin, the M1 North near Domiskin/Castlebellingham and the M4 west of Enfield will be proceeding. It is hoped that these will be completed by next year.
Conor Faughnan, public affairs manager with AA Roadwatch, said it was "deeply disappointed" with the news.
"These should have been provided years ago. They are an important part of the safety infrastructure and are not just a luxury," he said. "We have to have safe areas where people can rest. Currently you could very easily find yourself running dry of petrol or stranded between Portlaoise and Cork, for example.
"You don't have funding issues preventing safety features on aircraft, or fire escapes on buildings. The NRA's line on this is totally unsatisfactory."
However, locals in some of the proposed locations are likely to greet the revelation with some relief, having in the past expressed concerns about the potential impact on their communities.
The NRA originally argued that there was no need for service stations on motorways, but later changed its view.
It remains unclear what will happen to a number of sites which it has purchased should the plans not go ahead.
Just last month, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) launched a year-long campaign aimed at tackling driver fatigue, which it describes as a "silent killer" which may have been responsible for over 350 road deaths during the past five years.
An RSA survey of 800 motorists found that 14% of people said they had nodded off when driving, with men between 35 and 54 years most likely to fall asleep.
Half of all incidents occurred between 9pm and 6am, with one in five cars drifting out of its lane of traffic.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Monday, 26 January 2009
All transport agencies should be merged, says roads
The boards of the state's transport agencies should be abolished to make savings and replaced with a new national transport authority, the chairman of the National Roads Authority has urged.
He said a new agency with overall responsibility for roads, rail, bus, ports and airports should be established to streamline transport planning, and now was the "ideal time" to do it, given the pressure on the public finances.
NRA chief Peter Malone has also urged the Government to continue to invest in roads infrastructure to help Ireland regain competitiveness and attract inward investment.
Speaking to The Irish Independent, he said that continued investment would help secure jobs - adding that businesses would be reluctant to locate here if the roads system was not up to international standards.
While almost 2,000km of road had been upgraded in recent years, another 3,000km needed to be done.
"If I was in Government, I'd find money to finish the infrastructure. Now's the time - when things are difficult - to spend money on the infrastructure. We're going to come out of the recession and we need the roads. We need to think about next year and the year after."
In addition, he said that, while the various state agencies worked together to plan major transport projects, a 'one-stop shop' was needed. "The state of Massachusetts is roughly the same size as Ireland with twice the population, but with one transport authority, which includes the airports" - he said. "Do away with all the companies - all the boards are gone, so there's savings there.
"There would be managers for rail, bus, airports and so on. Now, when things are so bad, is an ideal time to do this."
Department of Transport sources said the Dublin Transportation Authority, when established later this year, could have a national focus. "Our main focus at the moment is getting the structures up and in place" - one source said. "The Minister is not adverse to it."
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
He said a new agency with overall responsibility for roads, rail, bus, ports and airports should be established to streamline transport planning, and now was the "ideal time" to do it, given the pressure on the public finances.
NRA chief Peter Malone has also urged the Government to continue to invest in roads infrastructure to help Ireland regain competitiveness and attract inward investment.
Speaking to The Irish Independent, he said that continued investment would help secure jobs - adding that businesses would be reluctant to locate here if the roads system was not up to international standards.
While almost 2,000km of road had been upgraded in recent years, another 3,000km needed to be done.
"If I was in Government, I'd find money to finish the infrastructure. Now's the time - when things are difficult - to spend money on the infrastructure. We're going to come out of the recession and we need the roads. We need to think about next year and the year after."
In addition, he said that, while the various state agencies worked together to plan major transport projects, a 'one-stop shop' was needed. "The state of Massachusetts is roughly the same size as Ireland with twice the population, but with one transport authority, which includes the airports" - he said. "Do away with all the companies - all the boards are gone, so there's savings there.
"There would be managers for rail, bus, airports and so on. Now, when things are so bad, is an ideal time to do this."
Department of Transport sources said the Dublin Transportation Authority, when established later this year, could have a national focus. "Our main focus at the moment is getting the structures up and in place" - one source said. "The Minister is not adverse to it."
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 18 January 2009
NRA seeks tenders for motorway service stations
The National Roads Authority (NRA) has bought sites for the country’s first motorway service stations, though it will be next year before they are in operation.
The authority is seeking tenders for two service areas on the M1 between Dublin and Belfast - one northbound, between Dundalk and Castlebellingham, and one southbound, between Balbriggan and Lusk. It has also sought tenders for a service area on theM4 between Enfield and Kinnegad. Tenders must be submitted by February 20.
The NRA originally said that there was no need for service stations on motorways, but later changed its view. It has now also identified a need for stations on theM3 motorway, which is under construction between Clonee and Kells in Co Meath, and on the outskirts of Limerick city.
The NRA has also identified nine other locations for motorway services areas. These are on the N6 at Rathmorrisey in Galway, on theM6 east of Athlone, on the M7 at Mountrath and N7 east of Nenagh, on the N8 at Cashel and Kilworth, on the N9 at Kilcullen and north of Kilkenny, and on the N11 north of Gorey.
Detailed site assessment and final site selection have been undertaken for each of the locations. The facilities to be built include 24-hour services, public toilets and showers, food provision from 6am to 10pm, parking facilities for cars and heavy goods vehicles, and indoor and outdoor children’s play areas.
The planning approval process for service areas involves the submission of a service area scheme to An Bord Pleanála. Five schemes have been submitted to the board: for the M1 north and southbound, M4 at Enfield, N6 at Rathmorrissey andN11 at Gorey.
Oral hearings were held by An Bord Pleanála for the M1 and M4 schemes last July. Permission for a service area at Enfield was granted late last year, and decisions in respect of the other two ‘tranche one’ schemes have yet to be made, according to an NRA spokesman.
‘‘It is anticipated that the remaining nine schemes will be submitted before the end of March, with oral hearings before the summer this year,” he said. ‘‘The PPP [public private partnership] tender process for the first tranche of service areas, covering the twoM1 sites and the M4 site, will be complete by mid-2009.
‘‘Assuming approval by An Bord Pleanála, construction will be completed and these service areas open in 2010.I t will be 2011 for the rest.”
Sunday Business Post
www.buckplanning.ie
The authority is seeking tenders for two service areas on the M1 between Dublin and Belfast - one northbound, between Dundalk and Castlebellingham, and one southbound, between Balbriggan and Lusk. It has also sought tenders for a service area on theM4 between Enfield and Kinnegad. Tenders must be submitted by February 20.
The NRA originally said that there was no need for service stations on motorways, but later changed its view. It has now also identified a need for stations on theM3 motorway, which is under construction between Clonee and Kells in Co Meath, and on the outskirts of Limerick city.
The NRA has also identified nine other locations for motorway services areas. These are on the N6 at Rathmorrisey in Galway, on theM6 east of Athlone, on the M7 at Mountrath and N7 east of Nenagh, on the N8 at Cashel and Kilworth, on the N9 at Kilcullen and north of Kilkenny, and on the N11 north of Gorey.
Detailed site assessment and final site selection have been undertaken for each of the locations. The facilities to be built include 24-hour services, public toilets and showers, food provision from 6am to 10pm, parking facilities for cars and heavy goods vehicles, and indoor and outdoor children’s play areas.
The planning approval process for service areas involves the submission of a service area scheme to An Bord Pleanála. Five schemes have been submitted to the board: for the M1 north and southbound, M4 at Enfield, N6 at Rathmorrissey andN11 at Gorey.
Oral hearings were held by An Bord Pleanála for the M1 and M4 schemes last July. Permission for a service area at Enfield was granted late last year, and decisions in respect of the other two ‘tranche one’ schemes have yet to be made, according to an NRA spokesman.
‘‘It is anticipated that the remaining nine schemes will be submitted before the end of March, with oral hearings before the summer this year,” he said. ‘‘The PPP [public private partnership] tender process for the first tranche of service areas, covering the twoM1 sites and the M4 site, will be complete by mid-2009.
‘‘Assuming approval by An Bord Pleanála, construction will be completed and these service areas open in 2010.I t will be 2011 for the rest.”
Sunday Business Post
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 23 November 2008
NRA plans truck stops
Plans by the NRA to build major truck stops around the country have left locals deeply concerned about the effect it will have on homes and communities.
THE National Roads Authority (NRA) has come under fire over plans to introduce a series of major truck stop sites on Ireland's main transport arteries that will bypass general planning laws. The truck stops, or service areas (SAs), will incorporate substantial parking and restaurant facilities, showers, toilets, picnic areas and refuelling services, all on sites of around 30 to 40 acres.
Residents in the immediate vicinity of the sites feel they have been left with little right to reply, outside of submitting observations to the planning appeals authority An Bord Pleanála, which must give its final sanction.
Those residing near a proposed SA north of Gorey, Co Wexford say they fear a rise in criminal and anti-social behaviour and have been told the value of their homes could fall by as much as 75%.
So far, just one of a dozen planned SA projects – on the M4 west of Enfield, Co Meath – has been given the go-ahead.
Because the SAs qualify under Strategic Infrastructure legislation, the plans are being submitted directly to An Bord Pleanála – without having to be given the green light by local authority planning departments.
Proposals have been received by An Bord Pleanála for construction of sites on the M1 at Lusk and south of Dundalk, on the N6 at Rathmorrissey, Galway and on the N11 at Gorey. All these are expected in 2010 or early 2011. Plans are at a less developed stage for sites on the M7 at Mountrath, the N6 at Athlone, the N8 at Kilworth, Co Cork and Cashel, the N9 at Kilcullen and Kilkenny, and the N7 at Nenagh.
However, while there have been calls for such facilities in the past, the NRA is coming under fire from residents near Gorey who believe their quiet, rural community is under considerable threat from the proposals.
Three years ago, Naomi Seale (31) from Arklow began building her dream home with boyfriend Roy Dempsey (30) in the idyllic rural setting of Ballyellen. Then they were told that a truck stop was being built just 37 metres from their back garden.
"We are devastated. We battled to get a mortgage so now we are saddled with that and a house we won't be able to sell in a place we won't be able to live because of this animal of a development," said Seale.
"The valuers we hired told us that we would lose 75% of the value of our house so we are paying a mortgage on something that has the value of a caravan. The NRA told us there will be no impact on my house. How can they say that?"
Of the four SA plans currently before An Bord Pleanála, all have attracted local objections. Both M1 proposals have received approximately 10 objections each while the Rathmorrissey proposal in Galway has attracted around 35.
Objections to the Wexford plan were due to be filed by the deadline last Friday. For its part, the NRA has insisted that such public infrastructure projects always attract a degree of local opposition and that it has surpassed its statutory duties by agreeing to meet with communities to address concerns. But not everyone believes the NRA has done all it can do.
The Ballyellen Acton Group's Fran Seale – father of Naomi – explained that they had a number of concerns surrounding the SAs. "We oppose this on several fronts. We would question the information put forward in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on sound pollution, light spill, noise pollution and waste disposal," he said.
"We would also ask whether Wexford County Council is in a position to supply mains water to this development when we often lose water and water pressure a few times over the summer months. We are talking in excess of 30 acres; we have not seen anything on this scale in Ireland before. We have obviously upset someone among the powers-that-be."
The residents of Ballyellen are now hoping they will be granted an oral hearing to voice their concerns, a decision at the discretion of An Bord Pleanála alone.
The NRA still feels it is doing what it can to appease concerns. "We feel it is important to have these information sessions with the community at large, even though that is not within the Strategic Infrastructure guidelines," said a spokesman.
"We are concerned about the public outcry at having an SA in this location but that is for An Bord Pleanála to decide. At the same time you have to take into account that any time you are doing these developments it is going to affect someone."
The NRA spokesman said that a previous proposal to develop service areas and rest stops separately was dismissed due to concerns over anti-social behaviour and crime thriving in rest areas, which had been the case in other countries.
Not all of the proposed SAs are expected to attract massive objections; the recent decision to grant permission to one in Enfield, Co Meath didn't raise an eyebrow, according to Fine Gael councillor William Carey.
But in other areas – and with two more possible SA sites yet to be identified, which could bring the total to 14 – the storm has not even arrived.
"It's not really public knowledge down here yet and it hasn't really hit people yet," said Tipperary councillor Martin Browne of the proposed SA in Cashel. "But from what I am told, it will be open season on it very soon."
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
THE National Roads Authority (NRA) has come under fire over plans to introduce a series of major truck stop sites on Ireland's main transport arteries that will bypass general planning laws. The truck stops, or service areas (SAs), will incorporate substantial parking and restaurant facilities, showers, toilets, picnic areas and refuelling services, all on sites of around 30 to 40 acres.
Residents in the immediate vicinity of the sites feel they have been left with little right to reply, outside of submitting observations to the planning appeals authority An Bord Pleanála, which must give its final sanction.
Those residing near a proposed SA north of Gorey, Co Wexford say they fear a rise in criminal and anti-social behaviour and have been told the value of their homes could fall by as much as 75%.
So far, just one of a dozen planned SA projects – on the M4 west of Enfield, Co Meath – has been given the go-ahead.
Because the SAs qualify under Strategic Infrastructure legislation, the plans are being submitted directly to An Bord Pleanála – without having to be given the green light by local authority planning departments.
Proposals have been received by An Bord Pleanála for construction of sites on the M1 at Lusk and south of Dundalk, on the N6 at Rathmorrissey, Galway and on the N11 at Gorey. All these are expected in 2010 or early 2011. Plans are at a less developed stage for sites on the M7 at Mountrath, the N6 at Athlone, the N8 at Kilworth, Co Cork and Cashel, the N9 at Kilcullen and Kilkenny, and the N7 at Nenagh.
However, while there have been calls for such facilities in the past, the NRA is coming under fire from residents near Gorey who believe their quiet, rural community is under considerable threat from the proposals.
Three years ago, Naomi Seale (31) from Arklow began building her dream home with boyfriend Roy Dempsey (30) in the idyllic rural setting of Ballyellen. Then they were told that a truck stop was being built just 37 metres from their back garden.
"We are devastated. We battled to get a mortgage so now we are saddled with that and a house we won't be able to sell in a place we won't be able to live because of this animal of a development," said Seale.
"The valuers we hired told us that we would lose 75% of the value of our house so we are paying a mortgage on something that has the value of a caravan. The NRA told us there will be no impact on my house. How can they say that?"
Of the four SA plans currently before An Bord Pleanála, all have attracted local objections. Both M1 proposals have received approximately 10 objections each while the Rathmorrissey proposal in Galway has attracted around 35.
Objections to the Wexford plan were due to be filed by the deadline last Friday. For its part, the NRA has insisted that such public infrastructure projects always attract a degree of local opposition and that it has surpassed its statutory duties by agreeing to meet with communities to address concerns. But not everyone believes the NRA has done all it can do.
The Ballyellen Acton Group's Fran Seale – father of Naomi – explained that they had a number of concerns surrounding the SAs. "We oppose this on several fronts. We would question the information put forward in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on sound pollution, light spill, noise pollution and waste disposal," he said.
"We would also ask whether Wexford County Council is in a position to supply mains water to this development when we often lose water and water pressure a few times over the summer months. We are talking in excess of 30 acres; we have not seen anything on this scale in Ireland before. We have obviously upset someone among the powers-that-be."
The residents of Ballyellen are now hoping they will be granted an oral hearing to voice their concerns, a decision at the discretion of An Bord Pleanála alone.
The NRA still feels it is doing what it can to appease concerns. "We feel it is important to have these information sessions with the community at large, even though that is not within the Strategic Infrastructure guidelines," said a spokesman.
"We are concerned about the public outcry at having an SA in this location but that is for An Bord Pleanála to decide. At the same time you have to take into account that any time you are doing these developments it is going to affect someone."
The NRA spokesman said that a previous proposal to develop service areas and rest stops separately was dismissed due to concerns over anti-social behaviour and crime thriving in rest areas, which had been the case in other countries.
Not all of the proposed SAs are expected to attract massive objections; the recent decision to grant permission to one in Enfield, Co Meath didn't raise an eyebrow, according to Fine Gael councillor William Carey.
But in other areas – and with two more possible SA sites yet to be identified, which could bring the total to 14 – the storm has not even arrived.
"It's not really public knowledge down here yet and it hasn't really hit people yet," said Tipperary councillor Martin Browne of the proposed SA in Cashel. "But from what I am told, it will be open season on it very soon."
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 19 October 2008
NRA may freeze all new road projects for four years
The National Roads Authority (NRA) may not start any new road projects until 2011 or 2012 because of financial constraints.
The Sunday Business Post understands that more than 90 per cent of the authority’s €1.4 billion budget for next year will be spent on the five inter-urban motorways connecting Dublin with Belfast, Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford. All projects in the planning stage will be postponed.
The NRA’s budget has been cut by €157 million next year, and six major road projects will be postponed as a result. It is now likely that these projects will be shelved for two to three years, and that other projects will face lengthy delays.
The NRA is working on more than 140 projects, which are at various stages from planning to completion.
NRA chief executive Fred Barry recently informed the relevant bodies that ongoing projects would be completed, but that no new road projects would begin for the foreseeable future, according to a senior source in the transport sector.
‘‘Anything that has started will basically be finished, but there will be no new starts until things pick up in 2011 or 2012,” the source said.
NRA spokesman Seán O’Neill confirmed that no new projects would go ahead next year, and said the six projects postponed last week were ‘‘either in planning, or the government were not under obligation to fund them as yet.
‘‘They were not part of the inter-urban corridor, which has the highest volumes of traffic and is a central transport network,” he said. ‘‘These are significant for the future of the economy. The bad news is that smaller projects may not go ahead next year due to financial constraints, but the focus will remain on the large - and necessary - road projects.”
There was concern that road grants for regional and local authorities - which amounted to almost €620million last year – would be cut.
Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey will not announce next year’s allocation until early 2009, according to a spokeswoman for the Department of Transport.
Sunday Business Post
www.buckplanning.ie
The Sunday Business Post understands that more than 90 per cent of the authority’s €1.4 billion budget for next year will be spent on the five inter-urban motorways connecting Dublin with Belfast, Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford. All projects in the planning stage will be postponed.
The NRA’s budget has been cut by €157 million next year, and six major road projects will be postponed as a result. It is now likely that these projects will be shelved for two to three years, and that other projects will face lengthy delays.
The NRA is working on more than 140 projects, which are at various stages from planning to completion.
NRA chief executive Fred Barry recently informed the relevant bodies that ongoing projects would be completed, but that no new road projects would begin for the foreseeable future, according to a senior source in the transport sector.
‘‘Anything that has started will basically be finished, but there will be no new starts until things pick up in 2011 or 2012,” the source said.
NRA spokesman Seán O’Neill confirmed that no new projects would go ahead next year, and said the six projects postponed last week were ‘‘either in planning, or the government were not under obligation to fund them as yet.
‘‘They were not part of the inter-urban corridor, which has the highest volumes of traffic and is a central transport network,” he said. ‘‘These are significant for the future of the economy. The bad news is that smaller projects may not go ahead next year due to financial constraints, but the focus will remain on the large - and necessary - road projects.”
There was concern that road grants for regional and local authorities - which amounted to almost €620million last year – would be cut.
Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey will not announce next year’s allocation until early 2009, according to a spokeswoman for the Department of Transport.
Sunday Business Post
www.buckplanning.ie
Monday, 13 October 2008
TaraWatch asks auditor general to probe €16bn NRA overspend
ACTIVISTS will accuse the State’s roads building body today of a staggering €16 billion overspend — more than the spiralling national debt.
TaraWatch, the group fighting the building of the M3 motorway at the Hill of Tara, will also call for a halt on future road projects.
It said it will lodge its complaint against the National Roads Authority (NRA) with the State’s spending watchdog, the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG), accusing it of rampant overspending since 2000.
“The C&AG has primary responsibility for ensuring value for money in public spending,” TaraWatch spokesman Vincent Salafia said.
“It should not allow one penny to be spent until there has been cost-benefit analysis and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) on every single road plan.
“It is illegal and disgraceful for the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) to now negotiate more cost-plus, rather than fixed-price contracts, and a continuation of business as usual.
“The NRA didn’t even have an accountant in their office until 2004. They have gotten away with murder, as have the construction companies that hauled off truckloads of taxpayers’ money.”
He said TaraWatch wants the C&AG to freeze all public spending on NRA projects under the National Development Plan, until a cost-benefit analysis has been carried out.
The C&AG has expressed concerns about the spending controls on roads projects.
In 2002 the NRA was summoned before the Public Accounts Committee to explain a massive €6.6bn overrun. By 2004, the overrun had gone up to €10bn.
TaraWatch said an engineers report it commissioned, and submitted to the Department of Finance on Friday, shows how the M3 motorway will cost the taxpayer an extra €1.8bn, and will be responsible for €320 million in emissions penalties.
Irish Examiner
www.buckplanning.ie
TaraWatch, the group fighting the building of the M3 motorway at the Hill of Tara, will also call for a halt on future road projects.
It said it will lodge its complaint against the National Roads Authority (NRA) with the State’s spending watchdog, the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG), accusing it of rampant overspending since 2000.
“The C&AG has primary responsibility for ensuring value for money in public spending,” TaraWatch spokesman Vincent Salafia said.
“It should not allow one penny to be spent until there has been cost-benefit analysis and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) on every single road plan.
“It is illegal and disgraceful for the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) to now negotiate more cost-plus, rather than fixed-price contracts, and a continuation of business as usual.
“The NRA didn’t even have an accountant in their office until 2004. They have gotten away with murder, as have the construction companies that hauled off truckloads of taxpayers’ money.”
He said TaraWatch wants the C&AG to freeze all public spending on NRA projects under the National Development Plan, until a cost-benefit analysis has been carried out.
The C&AG has expressed concerns about the spending controls on roads projects.
In 2002 the NRA was summoned before the Public Accounts Committee to explain a massive €6.6bn overrun. By 2004, the overrun had gone up to €10bn.
TaraWatch said an engineers report it commissioned, and submitted to the Department of Finance on Friday, shows how the M3 motorway will cost the taxpayer an extra €1.8bn, and will be responsible for €320 million in emissions penalties.
Irish Examiner
www.buckplanning.ie
Tuesday, 30 September 2008
€65m stadium plan hits NRA roadblock
A NEW 10,000-seater soccer stadium plan has been branded "premature" by the National Roads Authority (NRA) because the motorway junction beside it is expected to be the starting point of a huge new ring road.
Earlier this year, Meath County Council agreed to contravene its development plan so permission could be granted for the €65m Drogheda United stadium, leisure centre, retail units and a motorway service station. The 25-hectare site is on the southside of Drogheda within the Co Meath boundary. It is on the Drogheda to Duleek road and beside the Duleek road junction with the M1.
An Bord Pleanala is not expected to make a decision until later this year.
The NRA appeal is the only one against permission and its submission says the proposed €2bn Dublin Outer Orbital Road linking Drogheda to Naas "is likely to begin at the M1/R152 Duleek road junction".
The route is a key objective of the regional planning guidelines for the greater Dublin area and the planning application "is premature pending determination of this route", argues the NRA.
Traffic
The NRA says the junction would have to be upgraded to support the traffic flow described in the application. Because the junction is part of the motorway public private partnership (PPP) contract, it "will be much more difficult complex and expensive" to upgrade.
Meanwhile, Councillor Tommy Byrne (FF) called on Drogheda borough council to "write to the NRA and ask them to withdraw their objection".
Mr Byrne did not get the support of his fellow councillors but they did agree to put their support for planning permission in writing. At Drogheda United's current ground, United Park, planning permission was secured for 110 residential units, but that too is under appeal.
Elaine Keogh
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
Earlier this year, Meath County Council agreed to contravene its development plan so permission could be granted for the €65m Drogheda United stadium, leisure centre, retail units and a motorway service station. The 25-hectare site is on the southside of Drogheda within the Co Meath boundary. It is on the Drogheda to Duleek road and beside the Duleek road junction with the M1.
An Bord Pleanala is not expected to make a decision until later this year.
The NRA appeal is the only one against permission and its submission says the proposed €2bn Dublin Outer Orbital Road linking Drogheda to Naas "is likely to begin at the M1/R152 Duleek road junction".
The route is a key objective of the regional planning guidelines for the greater Dublin area and the planning application "is premature pending determination of this route", argues the NRA.
Traffic
The NRA says the junction would have to be upgraded to support the traffic flow described in the application. Because the junction is part of the motorway public private partnership (PPP) contract, it "will be much more difficult complex and expensive" to upgrade.
Meanwhile, Councillor Tommy Byrne (FF) called on Drogheda borough council to "write to the NRA and ask them to withdraw their objection".
Mr Byrne did not get the support of his fellow councillors but they did agree to put their support for planning permission in writing. At Drogheda United's current ground, United Park, planning permission was secured for 110 residential units, but that too is under appeal.
Elaine Keogh
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
€65m stadium plan hits NRA roadblock
A NEW 10,000-seater soccer stadium plan has been branded "premature" by the National Roads Authority (NRA) because the motorway junction beside it is expected to be the starting point of a huge new ring road.
Earlier this year, Meath County Council agreed to contravene its development plan so permission could be granted for the €65m Drogheda United stadium, leisure centre, retail units and a motorway service station. The 25-hectare site is on the southside of Drogheda within the Co Meath boundary. It is on the Drogheda to Duleek road and beside the Duleek road junction with the M1.
An Bord Pleanala is not expected to make a decision until later this year.
The NRA appeal is the only one against permission and its submission says the proposed €2bn Dublin Outer Orbital Road linking Drogheda to Naas "is likely to begin at the M1/R152 Duleek road junction".
The route is a key objective of the regional planning guidelines for the greater Dublin area and the planning application "is premature pending determination of this route", argues the NRA.
Traffic
The NRA says the junction would have to be upgraded to support the traffic flow described in the application. Because the junction is part of the motorway public private partnership (PPP) contract, it "will be much more difficult complex and expensive" to upgrade.
Meanwhile, Councillor Tommy Byrne (FF) called on Drogheda borough council to "write to the NRA and ask them to withdraw their objection".
Mr Byrne did not get the support of his fellow councillors but they did agree to put their support for planning permission in writing. At Drogheda United's current ground, United Park, planning permission was secured for 110 residential units, but that too is under appeal.
Elaine Keogh
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
Earlier this year, Meath County Council agreed to contravene its development plan so permission could be granted for the €65m Drogheda United stadium, leisure centre, retail units and a motorway service station. The 25-hectare site is on the southside of Drogheda within the Co Meath boundary. It is on the Drogheda to Duleek road and beside the Duleek road junction with the M1.
An Bord Pleanala is not expected to make a decision until later this year.
The NRA appeal is the only one against permission and its submission says the proposed €2bn Dublin Outer Orbital Road linking Drogheda to Naas "is likely to begin at the M1/R152 Duleek road junction".
The route is a key objective of the regional planning guidelines for the greater Dublin area and the planning application "is premature pending determination of this route", argues the NRA.
Traffic
The NRA says the junction would have to be upgraded to support the traffic flow described in the application. Because the junction is part of the motorway public private partnership (PPP) contract, it "will be much more difficult complex and expensive" to upgrade.
Meanwhile, Councillor Tommy Byrne (FF) called on Drogheda borough council to "write to the NRA and ask them to withdraw their objection".
Mr Byrne did not get the support of his fellow councillors but they did agree to put their support for planning permission in writing. At Drogheda United's current ground, United Park, planning permission was secured for 110 residential units, but that too is under appeal.
Elaine Keogh
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
Friday, 16 May 2008
€2bn Navan to Newbridge orbital road 'a top priority'
THE National Roads Authority (NRA) plans to make construction of a motorway outside the M50 and linking Navan to Newbridge a "priority" within the next two years, a conference was told yesterday.
NRA chief executive Fred Barry said once the inter-urban motorways linking Dublin with Cork, Limerick, and Galway were completed in 2010, planning would begin on the Leinster Outer Orbital, which would connect with most of the main routes out of the capital.
And it is understood that the €2bn motorway is at the planning stage after a study compiled by the NRA found it would be a "viable" project.
The authority is also working on plans to build the eastern bypass in Dublin, which would link Sandymount and Portmarnock.
The 80km-long motorway will run outside the M50, linking the M1 near Drogheda, through the N2 at Slane, the N3 at Navan, the N4 at Kilcock, and linking into the M7 motorway at Kilcullen, close to the M7/M9 interchange.
Transport Minister Noel Dempsey has previously said that while there was "merit" in constructing an Outer Orbital Route, there was no funding set aside in the National Development Plan or Transport 21 to fund it.
But in reply to a Dail question last summer, he said the Programme for Government contained a commitment "to prepare for delivery of the route".
Last night, informed sources said the project was at a planning stage.
"It's still going to be a critical part of our plans," one said. "It connects with all the major routes coming out of Dublin and would allow traffic to bypass the city and allow Dublin focus on its own development.
"The second largest economic hub on the island is Belfast, and this would allow goods and freight to be shipped across Ireland without going through Dublin. It's in the formal study stage, so it's not pie in the sky."
The Transport Ireland conference at Croke Park was also told by Northern Ireland Minister for Regional Development Conor Murphy that £3.1bn (€3.8bn) would be invested in roads over the next 10 years.
Stretch
Included in road schemes were the final stretch of the M1 between Belfast and Dublin, while plans to improve the frequency of the rail service between the two cities were under discussion.
"The two rail companies, the NIR and Iarnrod Eireann, work well together," he said.
"They have provided the North South Ministerial Council with a joint presentation setting out an initial consideration of options for improving frequency and journey times on the Belfast to Dublin service.
"Proposals include increasing the frequency from eight to 13 services each way daily and reducing journey times from 125 minutes to 100 minutes."
Paul Melia
Irish Independent
NRA chief executive Fred Barry said once the inter-urban motorways linking Dublin with Cork, Limerick, and Galway were completed in 2010, planning would begin on the Leinster Outer Orbital, which would connect with most of the main routes out of the capital.
And it is understood that the €2bn motorway is at the planning stage after a study compiled by the NRA found it would be a "viable" project.
The authority is also working on plans to build the eastern bypass in Dublin, which would link Sandymount and Portmarnock.
The 80km-long motorway will run outside the M50, linking the M1 near Drogheda, through the N2 at Slane, the N3 at Navan, the N4 at Kilcock, and linking into the M7 motorway at Kilcullen, close to the M7/M9 interchange.
Transport Minister Noel Dempsey has previously said that while there was "merit" in constructing an Outer Orbital Route, there was no funding set aside in the National Development Plan or Transport 21 to fund it.
But in reply to a Dail question last summer, he said the Programme for Government contained a commitment "to prepare for delivery of the route".
Last night, informed sources said the project was at a planning stage.
"It's still going to be a critical part of our plans," one said. "It connects with all the major routes coming out of Dublin and would allow traffic to bypass the city and allow Dublin focus on its own development.
"The second largest economic hub on the island is Belfast, and this would allow goods and freight to be shipped across Ireland without going through Dublin. It's in the formal study stage, so it's not pie in the sky."
The Transport Ireland conference at Croke Park was also told by Northern Ireland Minister for Regional Development Conor Murphy that £3.1bn (€3.8bn) would be invested in roads over the next 10 years.
Stretch
Included in road schemes were the final stretch of the M1 between Belfast and Dublin, while plans to improve the frequency of the rail service between the two cities were under discussion.
"The two rail companies, the NIR and Iarnrod Eireann, work well together," he said.
"They have provided the North South Ministerial Council with a joint presentation setting out an initial consideration of options for improving frequency and journey times on the Belfast to Dublin service.
"Proposals include increasing the frequency from eight to 13 services each way daily and reducing journey times from 125 minutes to 100 minutes."
Paul Melia
Irish Independent
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)