Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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273. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the reason the National Transport Authority with regard to bus rapid transit proposals is ignoring the expert advice published in October 2012 in the bus rapid transit in Dublin report, which concludes that demand on Swords to city section greatly exceeds the capacity that can be provided by a BRT system. [11204/14]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The National Transport Authority (NTA) has statutory responsibility for developing public transport infrastructure in the Greater Dublin Area (GDA) including Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) projects. As I explained in my answer to the Deputy's question on the 18th February, the NTA has proposed a BRT Scheme as an interim solution to the short term demand needs of the Swords/Airport corridor.  It is accepted that BRT will not on its own replace rail-based solutions where a higher capacity solution is required in the long-term, such as on the Swords /Airport corridor.  

For this reason the NTA  is undertaking a technical consultancy  to assess the long term rail transport requirements of the North Dublin/Fingal corridor, extending from Finglas to Malahide and including Dublin Airport and Swords.  This review will examine existing proposals as well as other options for a rail-based transport solution to meet the area’s needs in the long term. 

Under the current capital plan, funding is only available for the initial design and route selection of a small number of BRT schemes.  These schemes will be considered along with others, including any project identified in the  NTA rail transport review for the North  Dublin /Airport Corridor, when selecting priorities for inclusion in the capital plan post 2016.    

The specific projects identified to meet current and future demand will be prioritised on the basis of affordability and a detailed appraisal with regard to their  benefits and costs.

In the light of the NTA's responsibility in the matter, I have referred the Deputy's question to the NTA for direct reply.  Please advise my private office if you don't receive a reply within 10 working days.