Feedback: Reaction to the publication of the route of Metro North and the timetable for completion, was broadly positive yesterday.
However, politicians and commentators were critical of a number of aspects, notably the lack of budget details for the project.
The "lack of transparency" was particularly criticised by Fine Gael spokeswoman Olivia Mitchell who said "intuitively, most Dubliners support the concept of a metro and believe that only such a high-capacity system can meet the needs of the capital".
But she warned "nobody can justify making an investment of this magnitude on the basis of intuition alone". She added that the taxpayer would be paying for the metro over a 25-year period "and the huge sum involved will limit other expenditure choices for many years to come. This commitment of public funds cannot be kept a secret.
Labour transport spokeswoman Róisín Shortall said she was particularly concerned that the planned route should be overground from DCU outwards.
"I believe that this is a mistake and that it will cause severe traffic disruption as well as major inconvenience for communities in the area and that the logical approach would be to keep the route fully underground until the metro reaches Ballymun," she said.
Green Party spokesman Eamon Ryan said the party would be looking for a number of improvements to the design of the metro. These include:
The extension of the line to Donabate.
The extension of the metro southwards to Beechwood to allow the Green Line upgrade to metro.
The St Stephen's Green station should be constructed on the existing road.
A new Luas line should be made from Ballymun to Baldoyle.
"The Green Party in government will ensure that the metro is built to budget and as quickly as possible, and that these improvements would be included in a transport plan for the next 10 years," Mr Ryan said.
Business organisation Chambers Ireland said its Transport Users Survey showed workers in Dublin lose nine hours a month due to traffic congestion. "In this context," a spokesman said, "it seems foolhardy to wait until 2009 to commence work on this line. The Spanish government built a metro in three years, we should be able to do the same and not wait until 2012 for it to be completed," the spokesman added.
