A letter will be issued from the council to the minister regarding the proposed Metro study
Metro the best opportunity to revolutionise public transport
“If we’re serious about housing and we’re serious about sustainable living in Dublin, this has to happen.”
A new feasibility study to analyse the success of a potential Metro South West extension to be included in the plans for Dublin’s future public transport infrastructure.
A previous feasibility study that was carried out indicated that the extension of the proposed Metro into areas such as Tallaght was not worthwhile.
Councillor Yvonne Collins noted that the existing infrastructure in the South West of Dublin does not fulfl the needs of the area’s population.
Cllr Collins said: “We have no Luas, we have no Dart, we have no railway stations. What we do have is a gridlocked M50.
“We have a consistently growing population and we have people trying to achieve a work-life balance who really don’t want to spend hours stuck in traffic.
“We have chronic traffic problems, I know it’s affected all of us, particularly in recent years.”
The Rathfarnham-Templeogue Councillor stated that the buses that service the region do not have the capacity to meet the demand from the public.
She feels that the Metro is the best opportunity to revolutionise the public transport in the area.
Councillor Justin Sinnott remembers purchasing a home in 2005 with the expectation that a Metro North stop would service the area.
Cllr Sinnott noted that the new housing targets for the area and the expected population growth over the next 15 years necessitate a better public transport network.
Sinnott said: “If we are to fulfil those housing targets and build those residential units, we’re going to have to have in place mechanisms and a public transport network that’s actually going to be able to serve those people.
“Because the capacity as it is, we are absolutely being crushed in terms of a bus service that just cannot cope with the numbers…the time for excuses is over.
“If we’re serious about housing and we’re serious about sustainable living in Dublin, this has to happen.”
Councillor Jess Spear compared living in Dublin to Seattle. In nine years in Dublin, she feels as if there has not been “a single track laid in that time” but in six years in Seattle, she was told two stops were coming to her local link and were implemented before she emigrated.
A letter from South Dublin County Council is set to be issued to the Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien TD regarding the proposed study.
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.
