Liam Fitzgerald (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Deputy Callely, to the House. I congratulate him on his appointment to the Department of Transport with special responsibility for certain traffic management issues in Dublin and the major cities. During his many years as a member of Dublin City Council, he was never shy about making forceful and critical comments on how local authorities and Government were bringing about a balanced programme for public transport facilities. I hope the same critical faculties, so sharp and vociferous on Dublin City Council, will be to the fore in his new role as Minister of State at the Department of Transport. I will be delighted to share many of those views with him in the future as I have in the past.

Much comment has been made on the large investments made by the Government in the past seven years to develop public transport facilities in Dublin. Investment has also been made to tackle the growing and persistent problem of traffic congestion. Surveys carried out by many bodies, including IBEC, point to this growing problem. One issue, mentioned only briefly in this debate, is traffic congestion in the inner city area within the two canal networks. Congestion in this area is ongoing because economic success is ongoing, leading to an increase in the population of Dublin city. This in turn leads to an increase in use of cars and the flow of traffic through the inner city. City council officials informed me that in the past 30 years, the increase in the throughput of the volume of road vehicular traffic in this inner city area was approximately 33%. This is at a time when the car user population has increased many times. The Government has taken this problem on board by adopting the Dublin transport initiative programme.

Contemporaneous with the development of off-road public transport facilities, such as the upgrading of the DART service, the first phase already completed on the south side of the city, and the introduction of the Luas service, most motorway development must take place in the outer suburban ring of Dublin city. A phenomenal level of development has taken place in this area. Last year, the Dublin city manager commented on the pressures brought on the inner city by the increase in car users. He said that if motorists wished to go through the inner city, they should do so underground. Although a wry comment, it did point to the problem in this area. Any attempt to increase the throughput in Dublin's inner city will see inner city motorways having to be built on stilts or underground. Neither of these proposals is acceptable for various reasons.

I congratulate the Minister of State, Deputy Callely, the Minister for Transport, Deputy Cullen, and the former Minister, Deputy Brennan, for the introduction of the Luas service. However, Senator O'Rourke deserves special tribute. As Minister for Public Enterprise from 1997 to 2002, she piloted, protected and enthusiastically promoted the Luas project, often in the face of criticism from public commentators. The extent of her commitment and determination to bring the project to fruition was impressive. Without that, we would not have Luas today. Her efforts have resulted in us now enjoying a wonderful facility that will greatly enhance the image of Dublin city as a tourist destination and contribute to public transport facilities.

I am impressed with the extent of the Government's commitment to the development and completion of the M50. Members spoke about the enhancements to be enjoyed if the project was completed. However, one disheartening feature is the manner in which this necessary project has been held up. Everyone has the right to an appeal. If individuals or communities believe their rights will be infringed or their heritage will be damaged by a project, they have the right to appeal. However, a balance must be struck in the interests of the public good. That balance has not been struck in the succession of appeals causing the blocking of the completion of the M50. At this stage, it borders on the farcical and certainly on the vexatious. It also raises questions about the whole appeals mechanism regarding compulsory purchase orders. I favour compulsory purchase orders being made on a ring of land between Malahide, Swords and Lucan to allow a frontloading of road and rail infrastructure. The suggestion made by Senator Paddy Burke, and others, on compulsory purchase orders must be examined as a matter of urgency by the Department of Transport.

The problems caused by the appeals system must also be addressed. How much are the appeals costing through delays or deferred costs? I have often asked this question but have yet to receive an answer. A deferred project will cost more due to the variation of contract triggered at a later stage. There was the example of the Glen of the Downs motorway where eco-warriors and rent-a-crowd environmental professionals came down to the area to delay a laudable project. Environmentalists and those in the local community conceded there was very little to be saved by this type of action. When one aggregates the cost of these actions and delays, what was the final cost to the taxpayer?

Those figures should be determined, aggregated and published, and the people who must pay the piper should be told so that they can make a balanced appraisal of what this liberal appeal system involves.

The common good should be to the fore at all times. That should be the balancing factor. I thank the Minister of State and look forward to working with him. I am sure that as he moves forward to develop facilities for public transport in his Department we will hold many views in common and will occasionally hold differing views.