Tunnel finally gets go ahead
by John Carroll
THE £204 million Dublin Port tunnel was finally approved yesterday after a five year delay. But commuters will have to pay a toll, designed to discourage them from using the tunnel.
The scheme was approved after changes designed to avoid environmental and construction problems. It is expected to alleviate the city’s traffic congestion when it opens in 2003.
Environment Minister Noel Dempsey gave the go ahead for the toll which private motorists will have to pay entering the tunnel from the port only. It will cost £3 at peak times and £1 at off peak periods.
Announcing the approval yesterday, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said: “This really is a great day for Dublin. This scheme represents a further important advance in the Dublin Transportation Initiative (DTI) to address Dublin’s transportation needs.”
The new motorway will have a dual carriageway of 5.6 kilometres, of which some 4.5 kilometres will run through the tunnel.
Extending from the existing M1 Dublin Belfast motorway at Coolock Lane, Santry, to link with East Wall Road at its junction with Tolka Road, it will link with Dublin Port at the junction of Promenade Road and Bond Road.
The new construction, expected to take three and half years to complete, aims to remove heavy goods vehicles from the city centre and residential areas and improve delivery times for businesses and industries. Some two million trucks pass through Dublin every year.
The National Development Plan aims at improve transport in Dublin as an ever expanding population, growth in car ownership and tourist levels increase traffic congestion.
According to Mr Ahern, managing urban transport will be a government priority over the coming six years. “The National Development Plan will support an integrated transport strategy involving significant investment in the Greater Dublin area during its period. The Dublin Port Tunnel is an important part of this strategy,” he said.
The proposed tunnel is part of the DTI, which five years ago made a long term transportation strategy for the Greater Dublin area.
© The Examiner, 1999