National Development Plan: Encyclopedia II - National Development Plan - Progress

National Development Plan - Progress

National Development Plan - Road network

As of 2005 some progress has been made on the motorway network, though it is likely the network will not be complete until near the end of the decade. The M1 motorway from Dublin towards Belfast has been completed almost as far as the border with Northern Ireland as the Dundalk bypass was officially opened on 26th of September 2005 (it did open for a few hours the previous day on order of the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, to assist in traffic flow as supporters of Tyrone were to travel to Croke Park for a Gaelic football final). Following statutory processes in Northern Ireland, a link onwards to Newry will be constructed later.

The M7 motorway from Dublin to Limerick is complete to south of Portlaoise, with a bypass of Monasterevan having completed that section in late 2004. Construction should begin in 2005 on a link M7/M8 south of Portlaoise connecting to both the N7 road and N8 road to Cork. A section from Limerick to Nenagh towards Dublin is in planning, but has not yet been given a go-ahead.

The M4 motorway from Dublin towards Galway and the West of Ireland will shortly reach as far as the Midlands. The N11 road/M11 motorway south of Dublin to Wicklow and Wexford is also progressing. The M9 motorway project from Dublin to Waterford is currently in final planning stages and construction has been confirmed to start in the spring of 2007.

Completion of the M50 motorway Dublin inner ringroad is part of the NDP also – this had been held up by legal proceedings over Carrickmines Castle, the foundations of which lie at the planned site of a motorway junction but the motorway is completed, with just this junction not accessible until completed in October/November 2005. The upgrade of parts of the M50 is due to be appended to the NDP. The M1 motorway Dublin port tunnel project is a major scheme involving tunnelling from the M1 north of the city centre, through to the Docklands to the east of the city centre.

National Development Plan - Rail network

Almost all the operational rail network in the Republic has now been upgraded to continuous welded rail – however, much of this work commenced prior to the NDP as part of the Ontrack rail network upgrade program.

Dublin suburban routes have benefitted from large amounts of new rolling stock, in the form of suburban railcars. These operate north to Drogheda, northwest to Maynooth, southwest to Kildare and south to Arklow. The electrified section of the north-south route through Dublin has had extra EMUs brought into service. Dublin has also seen the opening of a new tram system, Luas.

Major projects undertaken were the upgrade of Heuston Station in Dublin to nine platforms and the new railcar servicing depot in Drogheda. Many other stations, particularly the Dublin suburban stations, have been upgraded and modernised, with elevators for example on new footbridges. Other measures to improve disabled access have been implemented, and park and ride facilities have been developed.

Intercity travel has benefitted from new suburban railcars freeing up intercity rolling stock previously in use. 67 new carriages have also been ordered. Services have been increased on routes such as that from Limerick to Ennis.

Planned developments include enhancing suburban rail in Cork, with a section of rail due to be reopened to Midleton, east of the city. Other projects under discussion, some or all of which are likely to be undertaken at some stage, include:

• A railway line from Dublin to Navan.
• Developing a rail link to Dublin Airport (possibly as an underground Metro link).
• Opening a new city centre railway terminus for Sligo and western commuter services at Spencer Dock.
• Creating an underground "Interconnector" south from Spencer Dock to Pearse Station and west to Heuston Station.
• Reopening a Western Railway Corridor from Limerick to Sligo. Although in the medium term a partial reopening from Ennis to Athenry or Tuam is more likely as population levels north towards Sliog may not justify the costs.

National Development Plan - Other developments

The national bus operator Bus Éireann's fleet has been significantly invested in, with most of the fleet now five years old or less. The company is now pursuing a policy similar to that of some car owners, retiring buses at a much younger age while still holding some value, and keeping front-end services modern.

This is a particularly visible aspect of the NDP, many buses were up to 20 years old previously.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Progress", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki