Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I welcome the opportunity to raise with the Minister of State, Deputy Conor Lenihan, the issue of road traffic related noise. The M50 runs through my constituency, from Leopardstown through Stepaside, Sandyford, Ballinteer, Rathfarnham, Edmondstown, Ballyboden and Knocklyon. I raise the need for noise abatement measures in that context, although the issue has acquired national relevance as a result of the growth in traffic volumes nationwide. While the Minister of State does not have responsibility for the environment, he will be aware of the problem I raise because he represents an adjoining constituency which is also affected by traffic related noise.

The environmental impact statements prepared for road proposals contain noise predictions. While Ireland does not have national standards, the British standard, under which decibel levels above the value of 74 are regarded as meriting noise abatement measures, are usually accepted. The nub of the problem is that traffic volumes and, consequently, noise levels, on the M50 and its approach roads are infinitely greater than predicted.

Having stood in the front gardens or at the front doors of constituents, it is not an exaggeration to state it is impossible to carry on a conversation in some of them because one cannot hear oneself speak. It is easy to imagine the impact of such continuous noise levels on families' quality of life. This appalling noise occurs night and day, during the week and at weekends. One does not need to be a medical expert to know that living permanently in this type of environment will impact on general health and well-being as well as hearing.

While I accept the need for new motorways and roads, many people in my constituency are being asked to pay too high a price in order that the rest of us can have better roads. The problem is not confined to the M50 motorway. Many of its approach roads are worse because no attempt has been made to provide noise abatement measures on them. None of this would matter if the motorway cut through green pastures but in the greater Dublin area, specifically my constituency of Dublin South, the M50 ploughs through residential suburbia where hundreds and thousands of people are raising families and hoping to live in peace.

The reason I raise this issue at this time is that two opportunities are emerging to address the problem. The first of these is the upgrade of the M50. It would be unthinkable and unforgivable to increase the capacity of the motorway and consequently the noise levels to which families would be subjected, while ignoring the opportunity to increase robust and effective noise amelioration measures. The implementation of European Union directive 2002/49/EC presents a second opportunity to address the issue. The directive requires that all populated areas are mapped to establish noise levels. While this is a welcome development, unfortunately there is no timescale for the implementation of action plans to deal with the problems identified as part of the mapping process. The M50 will produce the most severe noise hot spots. I ask the Minister to ensure these areas are accorded urgent priority for action to ameliorate noise levels in advance of any timescale for action laid down by the European Union.

I cannot overstate the constant, injurious and mind-numbing unpleasantness caused to residents by unprotected proximity to major roads. The Government must act immediately to protect these residents or face court cases which will force it to do so.

Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for the opportunity to deal with this important issue. The Roads Act 1993 firmly places responsibility for the planning and supervision of works for the construction and maintenance of national roads, including the M50, on the National Roads Authority, NRA. Issues relating to noise pollution and other environmental issues are dealt with during the planning approval process.

The M50 motorway and all its approach roads have experienced massive traffic growth in line with the significant economic and employment growth of recent years and the consequent increase in rates of car ownership. The current position is that the M50 is operating beyond its designed capacity. Average annual daily traffic flows on several sections of the motorway are in excess of 85,000 vehicles. As a result, congestion occurs at peak times. The Government and the NRA are fully committed to improving the level of service provided to motorists on the M50. This will be best achieved through the M50 upgrade project along with the move to barrier-free tolling.

The upgrade project involves the widening of some 32 km of motorway from two to three lanes in each direction, with a fourth auxiliary lane in places, from the M50-M1 interchange near Dublin Airport through to the Sandyford interchange, and the upgrade of ten junctions along this length. The total cost of the upgrade is some €1 billion and it is being undertaken in three phases. Phase one comprises the widening of the carriageway between the N4 Galway Road roundabout and Ballymount interchanges and the upgrading of the N4, N7 and Ballymount interchanges. Work has commenced and is expected to be completed by mid-2008.

Phase two comprises the widening of 24 km of the M50, other than the West Link section between the N3 and N4 junctions, and the upgrade of interchanges. The NRA aims to award the contract for phase two in mid-2007 and expects that construction will be completed in 2010. Phase three comprises the widening of the West Link section between the N3 and N4 junctions, which is expected to commence in spring 2007 and to be completed by mid-2008.

It is against this background that I will now turn to the specific issue raised by the Deputy. The M50 upgrade is a major infrastructure project by any standards. The delivery of the project is immensely complicated by the need to carry out the work under live traffic conditions. This imposes serious constraints on those carrying out the works and on motorists using the facility. It is simply not possible to implement a project of this scale without incurring a worsening of traffic conditions and causing a certain amount of unavoidable disruption to the lives of people living in the vicinity of these works.

The NRA informs me it is aware of its obligations pursuant to European Directive 2002/49/EC, which was transposed into Irish law by the Environmental Noise Regulations, SI 140 of 2006, by the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. The arrangements entered into between the NRA and local authorities in the Dublin area provide for the NRA to carry out noise mapping on all national roads outside the agglomeration of Dublin. The various local authorities will be charged with mapping the M50 itself and all roads within their administrative areas with traffic volumes in excess of 6 million per annum. Moreover, section 7 of the Environmental Noise Regulations 2006 places the responsibility for developing action plans to deal with noise issues on the local authorities.

I am assured by the NRA that it is striving to find a balance between the need to complete the much needed upgrade of the M50 as early as possible while at the same time mitigating the negative impacts of construction. For example, the NRA, local authorities and Garda are co-operating closely to ensure everything possible is done to mitigate the impact of the work on traffic flows. In addition, the NRA and the contractors are working to strict noise abatement constraints that were imposed as part of the planning approval granted by An Bord Pleanála. The imposition of these constraints is adding to the length of time it will take to complete the works.

I am informed that the works are on target for completion within their respective deadlines. I expect that when the works are completed, residents of the areas affected will notice a significant reduction in the noise generated by both the construction works themselves and by passing traffic.