An €800 million upgrade of the M50 in Dublin has been given the go ahead by An Bord Pleanála.
The upgrade will see a third lane added to the notorious road in both directions for 31 kilometres between the M1 and Sandyford in an effort to ease severe congestion.
Green Party TD, Eamon Ryan
The work is expected to be carried out in separate stages over the next five years, and is expected to start later this year.
In its decision, An Bord Pleanála said the upgrade "would not give rise to significant adverse effects on the environment or be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area". It therefore granted permission for the work subject to a number of conditions.
Minister for Transport Martin Cullen said the M50 upgrade was a "vital part" of the Government's roads programme.
"Whilst the upgrade won't solve all traffic problems on the M50, it will bring benefits to road users," Mr Cullen said.
Minister Cullen said that the Government had asked the NRA to carry out a feasibility study for an outer ring road of Dublin but warned such a road would "not happen overnight".
But Green Party transport spokesman Eamon Ryan said the planned upgrade would not work and there would be "constant traffic jams on the M50 from the day it opens."
"The traffic forecasts indicate that the road will be carrying over 200,000 vehicles as soon as it opens even though its congestion reference flow (the point at which the road starts to jam) will be only 187,500 vehicles," he said.
"The Bord is again acting as a rubber stamp for a national roads programme ... which was decided without any public debate, research or analysis but which is going to come to a gridlocked dead end at the M50."
