Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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462. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if his Department has calculated indicative costings for the DART expansion project along lines (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40218/17]

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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As the Deputy is aware, the National Transport Authority (NTA) has statutory responsibility for the development of public transport infrastructure in the Greater Dublin Area (GDA).  The NTA's Transport Strategy for the GDA 2016-2035 proposes implementation of the overall DART Expansion Programme involving electrification of the Northern line as far as Drogheda, the Kildare Line to Hazelhatch, the Sligo line to Maynooth in the west and to the M3 Parkway and construction of the DART Underground Tunnel. The original cost of the overall DART Expansion Programme (including the tunnel element) was estimated at €4 billion, of which €3 billion was in respect of the tunnel as originally designed.

The Government decided in September 2015 that the original proposal for the tunnel should be redesigned to provide a lower cost solution and work is underway on that at present.

Funding has been provided under the Government's present Capital Plan for work on the redesign of the tunnel and other elements of the DART Expansion Programme including for the extension of the DART to Balbriggan and the design and planning of DART services to Maynooth and Hazelhatch.