Sir, - Garret FitzGerald's views on Dublin traffic lack perspective (The Irish Times, November 29th). He advocates road-pricing as a cure. But he does not mention that the Dublin Transportation Initiative (DTI) studied road-pricing in the early 1990s (Interim Report, June 1993). This found that roadpricing alone would have a major negative impact on the Dublin region's development.
Official transportation strategy for the Dublin region is to change existing traffic patterns by giving a much higher priority to those peak-hour commuters who occupy least street space (i.e. cyclists, pedestrians, public transport users). This is based on DTI, which did not reject road-pricing, e.g. tolling the Port Tunnel as a traffic management measure. DTI also left open the possibility of road-pricing on a wider scale, once other measures are in place. These include improved public transport, cycleways, completion of the CRing, parking curbs, etc. This fits with experience in Singapore, which has priced roads for years.
European experience suggests that the capital cost per kilometre for underground urban rail would be at least five times greater than that for on-street light rail. There would be as much disruption in putting Luas underground in the city centre as for street-level Luas. Current costs (e.g. ventilation, access, security) are also higher. Underground is not user-friendly. Access would be more difficult, particularly for people with impaired mobility, as there would be fewer stops in the city centre.
Mary O'Rourke's study on putting Luas underground in the city centre meets a Fianna Fail election promise. The manifesto also promised to re-energise Luas and build all three lines that form the core LRT system. This was not qualified by any mention of EU funding. We would not be surprised if the O'Rourke study finds that Dr FitzGerald's assessment of capacity is wrong and that the DTI recommendation for onstreet Luas is right for Dublin.
However, the consultants may also find it necessary to suggest bringing forward other measures to cope with cross-city traffic. Among these might be a "central underground network of roads", as put forward in these columns (August 13th, 1996).
We have had decades of go-stop inaction on a transportation system for Dublin. Writing about his time as economic advisor to Dr FitzGerald when Taoiseach (1982-87), Prof Patrick Honohan noted that "timidity or inaction are not politically rewarded ... If this lesson is learnt and applied to the systematic implementation of considered reform, there can be hope." We should now get on with existing reforms adopted by Government in 1994-5 and the specific measures agreed on since. While DTI did not consider its strategy to be written in stone, the first investment phase has a lot going for it, not least the EU funding which makes specific projects very cost-effective for Irish taxpayers. - Yours, etc.,