A chara, - Senator David Norris in his letter (November 18th) "Plans for O'Connell Street" made the following comment: "The only viable solution for Dublin's traffic is the construction of an underground railway system. I take little pleasure in hearing my former critics on this issue now queuing up to take over this position as if it were their own."
I am not aware of anyone, critics of the Senator or otherwise, queuing up to advocate an underground railway system but I take little pleasure in pointing out to Mr Norris that he cannot claim the underground railway system as his own. The idea, the plan and the design of such a system belongs to the much maligned CIE who launched their plan 35 years ago. They called it the Dublin Area Rapid Transit system - DART for short.
This was a totally integrated transport system based on all of the five rail lines coming into Dublin City, the Belfast line, the Wexford line, the Sligo line, the Galway line and the Cork line. It was designed to service the three new towns of 100,000 people each in the west of Dublin and the existing populations of the north and south east of Dublin and provided for a linking underground system of about five miles.
With this system one could get on the DART in Blanchardstown and go to Howth, Bray, Tallaght or wherever one wished by an underground interchange. I am sure if the Senator asks CIE (while they still exist) they will give him a full copy of the original plan.
As we all know the planned DART was built on the east coast and all the important people in the city, the only ones who really count, were very satisfied and Charlie Haughey in the autumn of 1987 threw the rest of the plan in the bin and it hasn't been mentioned since. The media consensus which is Fianna Fail-controlled all agreed that the DART was finished and the real money was now going to be in the Luas. Billions have been spent on it and we still have nothing.
Senator Norris I wish you the best of luck in pushing for the completion of the original DART system. I am sure you will have the fullest support from the 400,000 people living in the west of Dublin, most of their lives beside a railway. - Is mise,
TOMÁS MacGIOLLA, Chapelizod, Dublin 20.