Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)

Last night the Minister of State, Deputy Gallagher, outlined the measures taken since 1997 to improve the transport system in the Dublin area and the measures planned under Transport 21. Some Opposition Deputies claimed, however, that nothing was being done to address transport needs, although they acknowledged Transport 21 as the way forward. Nothing could be further from the truth. Some of the larger rail based Transport 21 projects will take time to implement, but in the meantime many other public transport upgrade projects will be implemented, while progress on the roads programme will be maintained. Tonight, therefore, I propose to set out in more detail the measures being taken which will be funded in 2007 from the record capital provision of €2.2 billion in the Estimates for the transport sector. This will, inter alia, fund a range of major projects in the Dublin area.

Work will be completed around March on the Docklands station. This will improve services on the Maynooth line and enable in due course the provision of services to Dunboyne and Navan. Work will commence on the four-tracking — quadrupling — of the Kildare line to Hazelhatch. This will enable the separation of long distance Intercity trains and commuter trains to substantially increase the capacity of the lines terminating at Heuston Station. The completion of the Kildare route project in 2010 will see peak hour passenger capacity rise from 2,000 in 2005 to 5,300 in 2010 and 9,300 in 2016.

See this speech in context