Written answers

Tuesday, 12 June 2018

Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport

Traffic Management

Photo of John CurranJohn Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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53. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to alleviate congestion on the M50 in the short term in view of the continuing congestion on the M50 especially at peak times; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25393/18]

Photo of Shane RossShane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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I fully recognise the pressures on transport infrastructure in the greater Dublin area, including on the M50.

Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) along with other stakeholders, is continuing to implement a number of measures on the M50 to manage demand and optimise operational efficiency, including:

- enhanced vehicle recovery services;

- establishment of an Interagency Incident Coordination Group;

- changes to merging and diverging layouts at junctions;

- the establishment of signed Emergency Diversion Routes;

and improved access for incident support and emergency services.

TII has also commenced a project titled ‘enhancing Motorway Operation Services’ which will include, inter alia, Variable Speed Limits and Lane Control Signalling.

The variable speed limit regime on the M50 will improve the operational efficiency of the motorway by smoothing traffic flow, improving journey time reliability and reducing the number of traffic collisions. Lane control signalling will also be installed as part of the project which will allow the closing off of lanes.

TII has provided an allocation of €7.5m in 2018 to progress the implementation of variable speed limits on the M50. It is expected that the variable speed limit regime will become operational in late 2019 or early 2020.

In addition, the National Development Plan, which was launched earlier this year by Government as part of Project Ireland 2040, identifies a number of key public transport priorities including the BusConnects programme, MetroLink and the DART expansion programme. These will be delivered by the National Transport Authority progressively and steadily over the short, medium and long term, to deliver a comprehensive public transport network that will match transport demand, alleviate congestion, provide an alternative to private car use and deliver a range of benefits over the next decade.

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