Feargal Quinn (Independent)

I thank the Minister. It seems ridiculous to equate the cost of building the road with the cost to the economy. The cost of paying people to carry out work is only part of the cost because there is a further substantial cost in voter frustration, petrol and people sitting in traffic jams doing nothing when work is ongoing. The loss of business due to trucks repeatedly sitting idle is very great. The company I have been running for many years has a large number, and if they get stuck on the M50, there is a cost to us. However, our fleet is tiny compared with the national total.

When I travel elsewhere, I invariably see big lights rigged up at night to allow work to be carried out. I understand there might be frustration about not getting something done. In a rural area, I cannot understand why work cannot go ahead at night. I can understand that on the Rock Road in Blackrock, local people might ask for work to stop to allow them to sleep, but that does not apply to the M50.