PRESS RELEASE - 26 March 2019
Dublin Commuter Coalition welcomes the release of the revised Metrolink plans, as the updates shed light on the direction of planning as a result of the Public Consultation. We recognise that Dublin needs a Metro to avoid the growing congestion in our city.
However, the plans released could not be clearer.
The Green Line Upgrade is an absolute necessity for the future of mobility in South Dublin, but with these plans it has been expensively and needlessly deferred.
Dublin Commuter Coalition recognise the sound business, transport planning and engineering sense that upgrading the Green Line to Metro makes despite of disruption during construction and so we are happy to hear that what we have been saying for the past few months has been confirmed by the National Transport Authority and Transport Infrastructure Ireland, that the Green Line Upgrade is undeniably required to meet future demand. We therefore cannot support the proposal to defer the Green Line Upgrade to a later date.
With this project, we have an opportunity to upgrade the Green Line now and create a continuous route connecting North and South Dublin. It should not be squandered just to delay a short period of disruption by 20 years. This is a case of kicking a problem down the road for future generations to deal with, and is exactly the mistake made during the planning and intial construction of the Green and Red Luas lines, resulting in a disjointed, disconnected transportation system.
We will be submitting a rejection of the proposal to upgrade the line on a phased basis and further encourage that the Green Line Upgrade go ahead as originally planned.
As we have seen with the original Green and Red Luas lines, half building projects due to the objections of a vocal minority and connecting them at a later date is a waste of money, resources and effort.
It is imperative that Ireland learn from the mistakes of the past and ensure that all plans taken are future facing and robust in the face of both environmental and spatial challenges.