TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE IRELAND:
Bringing Ireland To New Places
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2001 book by author Ultan Cowley entitled “the men who built Britain: A history of the Irish navvy” looked at the contribution of Irish immigrants to construction in the UK and in particular, its road and transport infrastructure. According to Cowley, “the canals, the railways, the roads, tunnels, dams and public utilities of Britain stand as lasting monuments to their sacrifices and achievements.”
Massive changes in just
30YEARS
Back in their native Ireland, however, transport infrastructure – and in particular, the country’s road network – suffered from years of underinvestment and an integrated plan. Two organizations were formed to address this issue in early 1990s: the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) in 1991, and the National Roads Authority (NRA) in 1993. Reflecting the need for an integrated transport infrastucture plan, the organizations merged in August 2015 to become Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII). A country of Ireland’s size and population often can’t reach the critical mass required to support large-scale infrastructure projects, which makes the work of an organization like the TII more challenging. However, the evidence witnessed by recent dramatic improvements in Ireland’s trasport infrastructure suggests serious progress is being made on several fronts. Many of these will certainly deliver on the TII’s miss to deliver transport infrastructure which contributes to the quality of life for the people of Ireland and to support its economic growth.
In the early 1980s, Ireland had a population of just over 3 million people and was an economic backwater which sent most of its newly-minted graduates abroad to locations
like the UK, the US and Australia. However, in the 1980s, a change in government policy led to a resurgent economy that focused on foreign direct investment. This helped a surge in population (now about 50% higher at 4.6 million), more car ownership, and a need for transport infrastructure that responded to the changes.
with the introduction of several extensions to the road network, again in the greater Dublin area. However, it was in the 2000s that the greatest changes were seen: swelling government coffers at the time brought the country’s transport intfrastructure more centrally on the country’s agenda. Several hudred kilometres of high-quality motorway added to the network, at a cost of billions of euro. An example of this can be seen in the introduction of interurban motorways, linking Dublin to Ireland’s secondary cities: Galway, Limerick, Cork and Waterford. Whereas 20 years ago,all of these cities were reached through a network of regional secondary roads, all are now served by world-class road networks reducing transport times, increasing safety and ultimately delivering on the TII’s remit to improve the standard of life of Ireland’s citizens while supporting the country’s economic growth.
Remarkably, Ireland only had one motorway until 1990: a small stretch of four lanes outside of Dublin known as a dual carriageway. This slowly began to change in the 1990s however,
It isn’t just Ireland’s road network, which has changed irrevocably, however. Its rail network too, is a vast improvement on what existed before the TII’s predecessor,the Railway
Procurement Authority (RPA). Ireland’s rail network now operates more frequently with more competitive rates and with a much improved service: customers can expect highspeed wifi and in-train kitchens as standard with easy online booking available, often offering discounts to the price customers receive at Ireland’s main stations.
Changes in
Dublin
A third of Ireland’s population is located in Ireland’s capital Dublin and its surrounding counties, making long-term thinking about transport infrastructure absolutely essential. Although it only has a population of about one and a half million people, the TII is determined to make its transport infrastructure something that Dubliners (as the locals are called) can be proud of.
In 2004, two lines of the LUAS (Irish for “speed”), an above-ground light-rail tram system began running through Dublin. These trams not only breathed new life into several neighborhoods around Dublin which gained increased connectivitiy to the city centre – they also took pressure from the city’s roads and bus routes, carrying some 285 million people since their introduction. The success of the project can be measured not only with how Dubliners have adopted it, but also in that the TII is now planning a series of extensions. The first of these – the Luas Cross City extension – will link both the green and red lines, will be delivered in the second half of 2017. Other proposals for the future include potential routes that link Dublin’s airport to the city centre and even some undergroud lines.
Mindful of the
environment The TII’s madate is to improve the lives of the people living in Ireland and its ongoing work on improving planning and transport all contributes towards that. However, it has also introduced a four-phase strategy to further facilitate the integration of environmental
Sustainable View Mott MacDonald working closely with TII, designed the N25 Waterford bypass to provide significant economic and social benefit with the least environmental impact, while ensuring efficient construction and best value for money. We’ve applied similar expertise on successor PPPs like the N11 Arklow Rathnew and N25 New Ross road schemes. Each project offers the chance to push boundaries and achieve better outcomes – we’re now using our Carbon Portal tool to cut CO2 and drive down cost. The result is better journeys on more sustainable roads. Search ‘Mott MacDonald, sustainability’ Opening opportunities with connected thinking
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issues into transport infrastructure planning, construction and operation. The four phases of the TII’s environmental strategy are: i) environmental assessment guidelines, ii) development of best practice guidelines to minimize construction impacts, iii) development and implementation of an Environmental Operating Plan, and iv)
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Post-EIA Evaluation studies. All phases run simultaneously with relevant stakeholder consultations forming part of the development of the strategy initiatives.
Partners Perhaps
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country has embraced its membership of the European Union as warmly as Ireland. As a country on the periphery of Europe, the EU has allowed it to become a more integrated part of the continent. This can be seen in how agencies
like the TII use competitive tenders to attract world-class partners from across the EU. The TII’s major partners include Arup, the worldrenowned British engineering consultants, Mott McDonald, a London-based consultant engineering firm, Atkins Global, another wellknown British engineering firm and Imtech, a Dutch technology engineering firm. Foremost among the TII’s local partners are Electro Automation, based a few miles north of Dublin, which have been operating in the automation industry in Ireland since 1984.
Continuing to put Ireland on the
right track
An old slogan for Irish Rail, now under the remit of the TII, was ‘we’re getting there.’ The phrase seems to capture everything about the TII: dynamism, progress and a plan to reach a future goal. The TII has an important role not just to help Ireland reach trasport infrastructure targets, but also in ensuring it meets its carbon emissions targets. Good public transport is an essential element in reaching these goals. The TII’s work is ongoing. The existing road and rail network is constantly being improved and upgraded, with an increased emphasis on safety and sustainability. Ireland’s burgeonging population will soon need a transport infrastructure that caters for a population much bigger than it is now. It can count itself lucky that it has an agency in the TII which has experience in dealing with such requirements.
Headquarters:Enerparc AG Zirkusweg 2 / Astra Tower Parkgate Business Centre, Parkgate Street, Dublin 8, D08 DK10,Ireland, Tel: +353 1 6463600 info@tii.ie
http://www.tii.ie/
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