FG: More buses and raised toll barrier can ease congestion
An extra 200 buses should be purchased and Dublin’s Westlink toll barrier raised at peak times to help struggling commuters, it was claimed today.
Fine Gael’s Enda Kenny said there were a number of short-term and long-term measures which should be adopted as a matter of urgency to help ease traffic chaos in Dublin.
Some of the measures proposed by the opposition party included the purchase of 200 more buses for Dublin Bus, granting 100 new private operator licences and raising the Westlink Barrier on the M50 at peak hours to ease the traffic flow.
“These are proposals that can be delivered in a short space of time and can deliver an actual benefit to the people around Dublin struggling with that torturous commute. Political will, better planning and embracing new ideas is what will make it happen,” Mr Kenny said.
He called for the introduction of night-time and Sunday work on the M50 to ensure the ongoing upgrade is finished at a fast pace.
Mr Kenny said it was time commuting families, such as the Price family from Dublin’s Lucan, were offered some relief from the traffic chaos.
Dominic and Catherine Price, who have a three-year-old daughter Heather, spend the equivalent of three-and-a-half working days in their cars travelling to and from the crèche and work.
After visiting the family, Mr Kenny said: “It takes between 30-45 minutes to get from their house in Lucan out on to the main road to even begin the commute to their jobs in Drimnah and Griffith Avenue.
“As a result of the traffic chaos and the absence of real public transport alternatives Dominic and Catherine’s day is dominated by the hours spent in their cars struggling against the earlier and earlier snarl ups on our roads.”
Mr Kenny proposed that some of the additional private operator licences should be used for additional school bus services.
The TD said Operation Freeflow ahead of expected Christmas shopping traffic should be started in November rather than December.
Fine Gael also called for greater use of traffic light sensor technology which can automatically alter signal sequences in response to traffic volumes.
Fianna Fáil TD John Curran claimed Fine Gael’s traffic proposals were simply cobbled together from old policies and those already implemented by the Government.
The Dublin Mid-West TD said: “Enda Kenny is trying to hoodwink Dublin commuters with his call for more private buses. The reality is this policy is worlds apart from the policies of his would-be coalition partners – Labour is completely opposed to deregulation of the bus market.
“The proposal to lift the barriers on the M50 Toll Plaza during peak hours will leave the taxpayer facing a bill of €20m a year.”
Mr Curran said the roll-out of 100 extra buses to bring the fleet to 1,200 was already under way.
