Everything should have been finished with the redesign of Dublin’s bus network – the most radical in a generation, or more – by June. However, the work is running late.
Now, the revisions to the original plan are expected to be published by September, but this will only act as the start of the clock on a further round of public consultation.
The National Transport Authority (NTA) has said the date was pushed back due to the 30,000 submissions received during the initial consultation phase, "which are still currently being reviewed and analysed".
Equally, says the NTA, locals affected and politicians had complained that public consultations should not take place during summer months “when people are away, schools are out and generally it’s not suitable for a lot of people”.
“The important thing is that there will be a second round of public consultation, with a revised network having taken account of the feedback and inputs from submissions,” an NTA spokeswoman said.
The new network is expected to be rolled out in 2020.
Separately, the public consultation for phase one of the BusConnects core bus corridor project has closed. Phase one corridors include routes from Clongriffin, Swords, Blanchardstown and Lucan to the city centre.
Public consultation for phase two is ongoing, with the closing date extended to April 30th. Phase two corridors are from Liffey Valley, Greenhills, Kimmage and Rathfarnham to the city centre, as well as from Clondalkin to Drimnagh and Tallaght to Terenure.
The deadline for public consultation runs until May 31st for phase three. These corridors are from Ballymun, Bray, UCD Ballsbridge and Ringsend to Dublin city centre, as well as from Finglas to Phibsborough and Blackrock to Merrion.
The core bus corridor project is subject to approval from An Bord Pleanála and construction of new lanes would not begin until 2021.
The NTA has said construction would be on a phased basis, with each corridor upgrade taking up to two years to complete.
