THE DUBLIN metro project was given a significant boost yesterday when the European Investment Bank announced it had approved a €500 million loan in principle.
The bank’s vice president with responsibility for Ireland, Plutarchos Sakellaris, said yesterday that the project represented a significant contribution to sustainable urban transport for Dublin.
It will be a public-private partnership (PPP) project with a provisional completion date of 2016.
“It will be the backbone for a future integrated public transport network in the Irish capital,” said Mr Sakellaris.
Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey welcomed the decision and said it was an important signal of confidence in a priority public transport project for Dublin.
“Metro North is now well on track for delivery in 2016,” he said.
An oral hearing before An Bord Pleanála on the railway order application for Metro North, concluded in March this year. Its decision is expected during the summer. Separately, the Railway Procurement Agency has shortlisted two PPP consortiums under the procurement process.
Metro North was one of the key projects announced as part of Transport 21. The Government has consistently refused to state what budget will be allotted to the metro system on grounds of commercial sensitivity. The announcement was also welcomed by Fine Gael’s spokesman on transport Fergus O’Dowd.
“It needs to be built as soon as possible and on time,” he said. “Now is the cheapest time to get a loan. It is essential to the city of Dublin in terms of infrastructure.”
The EIB’s loans to the 19km Dublin Metro, which will run from Dublin city centre to Fingal via Dublin airport, will amount to 8 per cent of the project’s estimated €6 billion cost.
The project involves the design and construction of a light metro system serving the northern corridor. Seventeen stations will be built and 21 trains will service the line. The project is designed to be the backbone of a future integrated public transport network in the Dublin region. It will interchange with Luas lines, the Dart and suburban rail services.
However, an underground interconnector linking Heuston and Connolly stations with the city centre and St Stephen’s Green will be necessary to make all those connections possible.
Mr Dempsey said the interconnector would be his main priority when appointed as Minister. However, the completion date for the interconnector looks likely to be 2018, a few years behind schedule.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Showing posts with label metro planning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label metro planning. Show all posts
Sunday, 16 May 2010
Friday, 24 April 2009
Metro key part of Dublin's economic future - Ryan
MINISTER FOR Communications Eamon Ryan has strongly defended plans to build Metro North, describing the proposed €5 billion project as a key element of Dublin’s economic future.
Mr Ryan told the annual conference of the Irish Planning Institute (IPI) it would be “blind stupidity” not to recognise that the development of a metro and the proposed Dart underground link between Heuston and Docklands were essential for Dublin to compete in the world economy.
“Failing to make that investment, losing our bottle, will leave us with a car-based transport system. So it has to go ahead, even in these difficult times.”
Equally, failing to build an electricity grid to cater for a huge increase in wind energy along the western seaboard would render Ireland insecure. He said it wasn’t technically feasible to put this underground, so “by and large, it will be overhead power lines”.
IPI president Andrew Hind said reform of the “almost crazily fragmented and confused” local government system in Ireland was needed to make the country more competitive.
“We need a planning system that itself is efficient, effective and sustainable and, in turn, will deliver an economy that is more competitive and more sustainable in the future.”
He told the depleted ranks of planners attending the conference – down by 50 per cent since the peak of the boom – that Ireland needed a planning system that stopped bad development but also placed fewer impediments in the way of good development.
Many people saw the current system as “nothing but unnecessary red tape” because it sometimes put at least as many obstacles in the way of development that should be encouraged as it placed in the path of the development that should be refused.
“There will be significant benefits both to users of the planning system and to the rebuilding of our economy if we can remove impediments to sustainable development without compromising our ability to resist development that is inappropriate or unsustainable,” he said.
Referring to the fact that 88 of the 114 local authorities exercise planning functions, Mr Hind said this was “too many” for a population of just over four million. As a result, users of the system found it “almost crazily fragmented and confused”.
“What signal is this giving to those who want to invest in the development of our country,” he asked, saying this needed to be tackled “if we are to present a coherent front” to investors creating sustainable employment and economic growth.
He suggested that the process of making local area plans should be improved.
If this was done, “then it might be possible to allow planning applications that were consistent with them to be approved without the risk of appeal by a third party”.
In order to achieve this, there would need to be an independent assessment by An Bord Pleanála of objections made by the public as well as elements of any plan changed by elected members against official advice, on land rezoning, for example.
Referring to the fact that processing of even an average planning application is subsidised by €1,500, Mr Hind said the cost should be met by the charges paid by applicants, “thereby releasing taxpayers’ money for purposes that are more urgent”.
Dealing with transport, Mr Hind said “we seem to think we get better value for money from lavish road schemes directed almost exclusively at the private car” than by investing in low-cost projects to improve accessibility for those walking or cycling to work.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Mr Ryan told the annual conference of the Irish Planning Institute (IPI) it would be “blind stupidity” not to recognise that the development of a metro and the proposed Dart underground link between Heuston and Docklands were essential for Dublin to compete in the world economy.
“Failing to make that investment, losing our bottle, will leave us with a car-based transport system. So it has to go ahead, even in these difficult times.”
Equally, failing to build an electricity grid to cater for a huge increase in wind energy along the western seaboard would render Ireland insecure. He said it wasn’t technically feasible to put this underground, so “by and large, it will be overhead power lines”.
IPI president Andrew Hind said reform of the “almost crazily fragmented and confused” local government system in Ireland was needed to make the country more competitive.
“We need a planning system that itself is efficient, effective and sustainable and, in turn, will deliver an economy that is more competitive and more sustainable in the future.”
He told the depleted ranks of planners attending the conference – down by 50 per cent since the peak of the boom – that Ireland needed a planning system that stopped bad development but also placed fewer impediments in the way of good development.
Many people saw the current system as “nothing but unnecessary red tape” because it sometimes put at least as many obstacles in the way of development that should be encouraged as it placed in the path of the development that should be refused.
“There will be significant benefits both to users of the planning system and to the rebuilding of our economy if we can remove impediments to sustainable development without compromising our ability to resist development that is inappropriate or unsustainable,” he said.
Referring to the fact that 88 of the 114 local authorities exercise planning functions, Mr Hind said this was “too many” for a population of just over four million. As a result, users of the system found it “almost crazily fragmented and confused”.
“What signal is this giving to those who want to invest in the development of our country,” he asked, saying this needed to be tackled “if we are to present a coherent front” to investors creating sustainable employment and economic growth.
He suggested that the process of making local area plans should be improved.
If this was done, “then it might be possible to allow planning applications that were consistent with them to be approved without the risk of appeal by a third party”.
In order to achieve this, there would need to be an independent assessment by An Bord Pleanála of objections made by the public as well as elements of any plan changed by elected members against official advice, on land rezoning, for example.
Referring to the fact that processing of even an average planning application is subsidised by €1,500, Mr Hind said the cost should be met by the charges paid by applicants, “thereby releasing taxpayers’ money for purposes that are more urgent”.
Dealing with transport, Mr Hind said “we seem to think we get better value for money from lavish road schemes directed almost exclusively at the private car” than by investing in low-cost projects to improve accessibility for those walking or cycling to work.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Tuesday, 14 April 2009
State must back metro financing, says bidder
THE GOVERNMENT would have to underwrite the financing risks associated with the public-private partnership (PPP) project for Metro North if it is to be built, according to one of the consortiums bidding for the contract.
Stephane Kofman, who heads the specialist investment division of HSBC, told a lunch meeting in Dublin organised by the Ireland-France Chamber of Commerce that equity had become “very scarce” as a result of the recession.
The British government had set up a co-financing agency to underwrite private finance initiatives (PFIs) for public infrastructure projects in order to ensure that it had “solid partners” at a time when the volume of PFIs is in decline.
Mr Kofman said HSBC had invested €10 billion in PPP projects since 2001 and it was now a partner with Alstom, the French tramway builder, and SIAC in bidding for the Metro North contract, for which competition was “very fierce”.
Didier Traube, concessions director of Alstom, said the recession had meant there were now fewer lenders in the market – just seven to 10, compared to between 30 and 40 offering loans just two years ago. Lenders had also become “more risk averse”.
Consequently, project debt was now more expensive – “by a factor of two or three”. This meant that there would have to be “guarantees from the public side” to underwrite the financing or refinancing risks, according to Mr Traube.
Mr Kofman conceded that there was an “ideological reluctance” to accept PPPs because they were seen as more expensive, as privatisation in disguise, offering reduced levels of service and with the State awarding “secret” tenders.
“The PPP model faces intense scrutiny, but continues to spread,” he said. The main advantage was that it “spread costs over life of the asset”, although it was “unlikely to offer a rapid remedy” as an economic stimulus because of long lead times.
Without referring to the secrecy surrounding Metro North, for which the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) has refused to divulge any estimated cost, he said PPP projects should be “implemented in a very transparent procurement process”.
One of the PPP projects in which HSBC is involved is the new high-speed rail link between Belgium and the Netherlands. Alstom, which built the Luas trams for Dublin, is currently delivering a single-line tramway in the northern French city of Reims.
This was also a PPP contract for design, construction, operation and maintenance of the new tramway, as well as all bus services in the Reims metropolitan area for a 35-year period – 10 years longer than the term quoted for Metro North by the RPA.
The €413 million project, due for completion in 2011, is receiving a 40 per cent public subsidy, with 50 per cent provided by bank debt and the rest by the project’s shareholders, including Alstom, French construction giant Bouygues and a number of banks.
Mr Traube said Reims Metropole, the public client, is covering part of the risk, including interest rate changes. The main advantage of controlling the buses is that it “provides revenue during construction as well as better control of tramline patronage”.
In Dublin, Luas and bus services operate entirely independently and are run by different agencies – Veolia, the French company that won the contract to operate Luas, and Dublin Bus, which is planning a 10 per cent cut in services to reduce its growing deficit.
In Reims, as in Bordeaux, bus services are being reorganised to “feed” passengers to the 11km tramway after it opens in two years’ time. Mr Traube said this will lead to a 40 per cent increase in public transport patronage in the metropolitan area.
Bidding for metro: four consortiums in the mix
DUBLIN EXPRESS Link, one of the four consortiums bidding for the Metro North contract, claims it is “uniquely placed” to deliver the 18km line linking Swords with St Stephen’s Green because of its “combination of experience, cohesion and scale”.
A brochure accompanying its detailed bid, which was among those submitted to the Railway Procurement Agency, notes that Alstom supplied and still maintains the Luas trams.
The Dublin Express Link consortium is led by Bouygues, working in a joint venture with Spanish contractor Acciona. Their experience includes the Sydney, Barcelona and Cairo metros and the Meteor line in Paris.
Also involved is Siac, one of Ireland’s largest civil engineering contractors. “Totally familiar with Dublin’s road and rail infrastructure, Siac will ensure that our approach is comprehensively planned and delivered at a local level, using local resources”, it says.
Alstom would build the “light metro vehicles” for the line, more than half of which would be installed underground. It would also provide the power and distribution, signalling, control and communications, as well as maintaining the system for the 25-year contract period.
Dublin Express Link’s principal architects are London-based Grimshaws, who would “focus on aesthetics, accessibility, ease of movement and the creation of signature designs” for the Metro North stations in association with Dublin-based architects RKD.
The line would be operated by Keolis, which manages integrated transport systems in the French cities of Lyon and Lille, while the financial investors in Dublin Express Link are HSBC and Meridiam, who are also involved in funding the Limerick Tunnel PPP project.
FRANK McDONALD
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Stephane Kofman, who heads the specialist investment division of HSBC, told a lunch meeting in Dublin organised by the Ireland-France Chamber of Commerce that equity had become “very scarce” as a result of the recession.
The British government had set up a co-financing agency to underwrite private finance initiatives (PFIs) for public infrastructure projects in order to ensure that it had “solid partners” at a time when the volume of PFIs is in decline.
Mr Kofman said HSBC had invested €10 billion in PPP projects since 2001 and it was now a partner with Alstom, the French tramway builder, and SIAC in bidding for the Metro North contract, for which competition was “very fierce”.
Didier Traube, concessions director of Alstom, said the recession had meant there were now fewer lenders in the market – just seven to 10, compared to between 30 and 40 offering loans just two years ago. Lenders had also become “more risk averse”.
Consequently, project debt was now more expensive – “by a factor of two or three”. This meant that there would have to be “guarantees from the public side” to underwrite the financing or refinancing risks, according to Mr Traube.
Mr Kofman conceded that there was an “ideological reluctance” to accept PPPs because they were seen as more expensive, as privatisation in disguise, offering reduced levels of service and with the State awarding “secret” tenders.
“The PPP model faces intense scrutiny, but continues to spread,” he said. The main advantage was that it “spread costs over life of the asset”, although it was “unlikely to offer a rapid remedy” as an economic stimulus because of long lead times.
Without referring to the secrecy surrounding Metro North, for which the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) has refused to divulge any estimated cost, he said PPP projects should be “implemented in a very transparent procurement process”.
One of the PPP projects in which HSBC is involved is the new high-speed rail link between Belgium and the Netherlands. Alstom, which built the Luas trams for Dublin, is currently delivering a single-line tramway in the northern French city of Reims.
This was also a PPP contract for design, construction, operation and maintenance of the new tramway, as well as all bus services in the Reims metropolitan area for a 35-year period – 10 years longer than the term quoted for Metro North by the RPA.
The €413 million project, due for completion in 2011, is receiving a 40 per cent public subsidy, with 50 per cent provided by bank debt and the rest by the project’s shareholders, including Alstom, French construction giant Bouygues and a number of banks.
Mr Traube said Reims Metropole, the public client, is covering part of the risk, including interest rate changes. The main advantage of controlling the buses is that it “provides revenue during construction as well as better control of tramline patronage”.
In Dublin, Luas and bus services operate entirely independently and are run by different agencies – Veolia, the French company that won the contract to operate Luas, and Dublin Bus, which is planning a 10 per cent cut in services to reduce its growing deficit.
In Reims, as in Bordeaux, bus services are being reorganised to “feed” passengers to the 11km tramway after it opens in two years’ time. Mr Traube said this will lead to a 40 per cent increase in public transport patronage in the metropolitan area.
Bidding for metro: four consortiums in the mix
DUBLIN EXPRESS Link, one of the four consortiums bidding for the Metro North contract, claims it is “uniquely placed” to deliver the 18km line linking Swords with St Stephen’s Green because of its “combination of experience, cohesion and scale”.
A brochure accompanying its detailed bid, which was among those submitted to the Railway Procurement Agency, notes that Alstom supplied and still maintains the Luas trams.
The Dublin Express Link consortium is led by Bouygues, working in a joint venture with Spanish contractor Acciona. Their experience includes the Sydney, Barcelona and Cairo metros and the Meteor line in Paris.
Also involved is Siac, one of Ireland’s largest civil engineering contractors. “Totally familiar with Dublin’s road and rail infrastructure, Siac will ensure that our approach is comprehensively planned and delivered at a local level, using local resources”, it says.
Alstom would build the “light metro vehicles” for the line, more than half of which would be installed underground. It would also provide the power and distribution, signalling, control and communications, as well as maintaining the system for the 25-year contract period.
Dublin Express Link’s principal architects are London-based Grimshaws, who would “focus on aesthetics, accessibility, ease of movement and the creation of signature designs” for the Metro North stations in association with Dublin-based architects RKD.
The line would be operated by Keolis, which manages integrated transport systems in the French cities of Lyon and Lille, while the financial investors in Dublin Express Link are HSBC and Meridiam, who are also involved in funding the Limerick Tunnel PPP project.
FRANK McDONALD
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
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