Madam, – Your Editorial (May 17th) is eloquent on Metro North. However, instead of jumping to untested conclusions, The Irish Timesshould be demanding to see the analysis that purports to show Metro North really is a good investment for Ireland. That is a highly debatable claim.
No cost benefit analysis was done of the proposed 18 km Metro from St Stephen’s Green to Belinstown, north of Swords. Some analysis was done of a much shorter 10 km route from Dublin City Centre to Dublin Airport.
That analysis is only available in heavily redacted form, but shows that the option was a bad investment. There is good reason to believe the current larger proposal is not viable either, not least given that the outlook for patronage has dropped sharply from that of the boom years when Metro North was conceived. In the present crisis there is no excuse for a failure to assess transparently a capital investment proposal costing about €5 billion, before deciding to build it.
Further, in demanding an efficient public transport system, you lament the cuts in Dublin bus numbers and Government bus subsidies. You should be aware that one-third of Metro North passengers will be taken from existing parallel bus routes, and those services will be cut accordingly. Metro North will therefore have a significant detrimental effect on the environmentally positive bus usage you support. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – The comments made about Dublin Bus in your Editorial (Metro North, May 17th) need clarification.
The Dublin Bus Network Direct project is the outcome of the most wide-ranging review of the Dublin Bus network in the history of the company which will deliver a better bus service for Dublin and bring significant improvements to customers. When fully implemented, Network Direct will provide a bus network that is simpler and easier to understand, with more direct, frequent and reliable services.
Savings from the project will follow on from the significant enhancements to bus priority across the city, particularly the College Green Bus Corridor and improvements to bus journey times due to an ease in traffic congestion. More direct services operating on Quality Bus Corridors will ensure more reliable services with faster journey times.
Regarding the implementation of Real Time Passenger Information (RTPI), the installation of this equipment on the Dublin Bus fleet is almost complete and customers will be able to access RTPI by mobile phone, on www.dublinbus.ie and at selected bus stops across the city by the end of 2010. – Yours, etc,