Dublin faces severe traffic congestion in the next five years unless there is a shift to public transport, cycling and walking, the chief executive of the Dublin Transportation Office said.
Speaking to a conference on "Energy Conservation and the Urban Traveller" in Dublin yesterday, Mr John Henry estimated the annual cost of delay and extra fuel consumption caused by congestion at about £500 million.
The M50 motorway, the light rail transit system (Luas) and the Dublin Port Tunnel would not operate until 2002 or 2003, and it was likely that car-ownership would increase. Mr Henry said people had to face up to the "crisis" by switching to public transport and bicycles as the car is "by far the most inefficient person mover"
He said there was evidence of a shift in commuters' behaviour which gave some grounds for optimism. In the off-peak period, the numbers travelling by car had dropped significantly and many had transferred to public transport. Over half of the Dublin Transport Initiative's allocation of £626 million went on public transport.
Mr Henry said the DTO aimed to double the proportion of morning cyclists. They already constitute about 5 per cent of morning traffic and a doubling of that figure would reduce cars in Dublin at that time by 5,800.
Details of a strategic cycle network for the greater Dublin area would be published soon. The DTO had allocated £1.8 million for cycle facilities this year and "further substantial sums" could be expected, he said.
The group chief executive of CIE, Mr Michael McDonnell, put the current economic cost of traffic congestion in Dublin city at £1 billion.
He said the traffic forecasts on which the DTI proposals were based had already been overtaken by "phenomenal economic growth", heavier volumes of commercial traffic and "an explosion in private car ownership". There was "an overwhelming economic case for immediate action to rectify this intolerable situation".
Mr McDonnell outlined CIE plans to double investment in fleet and facilities and said staff and unions were totally committed to improving services. The fact that only five of the 11 quality bus corridors recommended by the DTI had been provided so far was a source of "extreme frustration" to him. The existing Quality Bus Corridors had increased public transport usage by 25 per cent, he said.
