Tim O'Brien writes in The Irish Times that Dublin Port Tunnel will come a step nearer to being fully operational at 6am tomorrow when private cars are allowed to use the tunnel for the first time - but it will continue to close at night for the next few weeks at least.
Drivers however will face a further hurdle as "eazy pass" tags which work on the East and West Link bridges will not be accepted at the tunnel toll plaza.
Dublin City Council hopes the tunnel will be fully operation in about three weeks when the ban on HGVs (heavy goods vehicles) comes into effect in the city centre.
The council also hopes that the technology arrangements which have prevented the eazy pass system from being used in the tunnel, as well as on the M4 motorway in the midlands and the new Fermoy bypass in Co Cork, will be sorted out by then.
Currently each of the toll operators on the Republic's new toll motorways have separate electronic tags for motorists for expressways.
Despite a promise from Minister for Transport Martin Cullen that inter-operability issues would be sorted out within months of the M4 motorway opening, this has still not happened.
Jimmy Quinn for the Irish Road Haulage Association said hauliers were exasperated by the problem. "Everybody went ahead with their own tag even though we warned Séamus Brennan [ then minister for transport] five years ago, that this could happen."
However while the hauliers may have to carry a number of tags in the Republic they are not required to pay tolls at all on the Dublin Port Tunnel. Charges apply only to smaller vehicles including private cars.
Dublin City Council says nearly 6,000 heavy goods vehicles are already using Dublin Port Tunnel daily to travel between Dublin Port and the National Roads Network. The council's strategy on February 19th, banning HGVs within the cordon area, will also increase the number of goods vehicles using the Port Tunnel.
A spokesman said tunnel closures between 11pm-5am will continue for the next few weeks to allow for the completion of "final systems calibrations and testing".
Drivers using the Dublin Port Tunnel are advised to switch on dipped headlights.
Showing posts with label Infrastructure. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Infrastructure. Show all posts
Sunday, 28 January 2007
Sunday, 3 December 2006
Incinerator sites should be specified earlier, waste summit told
Irish Times:
Proposed sites for incinerators and other major infrastructure projects should be included in city and county development plans to allow public consultation on their location, the Irish Planning Institute has said.
Speaking at the National Waste Summit in Dublin yesterday, the president of the institute, Henk Van der Kamp, said the "fast-track" approach to planning contained in the recent Strategic Infrastructure Act should only be allowed if a project has been specified in a development plan which has gone through public consultation.
"Major waste projects, such as incinerators and landfills, are included in principle in waste management plans but their locations are not identified. Hence, when the projects are proposed, there is opposition since the local communities in these locations have had no input into the choice of sites."
This could be solved by requiring local authorities not only to make a general statement they intend to develop incineration as part of their waste management policies, but to specify preferred locations for such projects in their development plans.
"Local communities are often taken by surprise when a project is proposed in their local area, notwithstanding the fact that the general principle may have been included in the waste management plan or county development plan for the area."
Specifying locations in development plans would also benefit the local authorities or developers of the projects, as it would reduce planning delays due to appeals or rejection by An Bord Pleanála, said Mr Van der Kamp.
Several objections have been made to the planning board in relation to the proposed incinerator for Poolbeg in Dublin on the basis that the site is not mentioned in the Dublin City Development Plan.
Local authorities or the "delivering agencies" who were seeking to develop a project appeared not to anticipate the impact the waste management plan would have on their planning application.
A review of An Bord Pleanála's files showed that developments were sometimes refused because they conflicted with the provisions of the waste management plan.
Waste management plans could also affect proposed schemes by limiting the duration of planning permission for a facility, limiting the capacity or limiting the catchment area from which waste could be collected.
Proposed sites for incinerators and other major infrastructure projects should be included in city and county development plans to allow public consultation on their location, the Irish Planning Institute has said.
Speaking at the National Waste Summit in Dublin yesterday, the president of the institute, Henk Van der Kamp, said the "fast-track" approach to planning contained in the recent Strategic Infrastructure Act should only be allowed if a project has been specified in a development plan which has gone through public consultation.
"Major waste projects, such as incinerators and landfills, are included in principle in waste management plans but their locations are not identified. Hence, when the projects are proposed, there is opposition since the local communities in these locations have had no input into the choice of sites."
This could be solved by requiring local authorities not only to make a general statement they intend to develop incineration as part of their waste management policies, but to specify preferred locations for such projects in their development plans.
"Local communities are often taken by surprise when a project is proposed in their local area, notwithstanding the fact that the general principle may have been included in the waste management plan or county development plan for the area."
Specifying locations in development plans would also benefit the local authorities or developers of the projects, as it would reduce planning delays due to appeals or rejection by An Bord Pleanála, said Mr Van der Kamp.
Several objections have been made to the planning board in relation to the proposed incinerator for Poolbeg in Dublin on the basis that the site is not mentioned in the Dublin City Development Plan.
Local authorities or the "delivering agencies" who were seeking to develop a project appeared not to anticipate the impact the waste management plan would have on their planning application.
A review of An Bord Pleanála's files showed that developments were sometimes refused because they conflicted with the provisions of the waste management plan.
Waste management plans could also affect proposed schemes by limiting the duration of planning permission for a facility, limiting the capacity or limiting the catchment area from which waste could be collected.
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