The High Court has permitted the operator of a hospice to challenge An Coimisiún Pleanála’s approval for the proposed BusConnects corridor from Kimmage to Dublin city centre.
The National Transport Authority’s (NTA) €4 billion BusConnects initiative seeks to transform bus services in Dublin through the construction of 12 new bus corridors, as well as the reorganisation of services on existing road infrastructure.
Several of the proposed bus routes are the subject of judicial review proceedings.
The challenge brought by Our Lady’s Hospice and Care Services DAC, which operates the facility of the same name in Harold’s Cross, Dublin 6W, arises from the NTA’s plans to build a 22-space car park on lands owned by the hospice.
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According to court documents, the car park is planned in circumstances where the proposed Kimmage-to-city-centre bus corridor − which An Coimisiún Pleanála approved in May − will result in the loss of 10 existing car parking spaces on Harold’s Cross Road.
An Coimisiún Pleanála in May confirmed the NTA’s application for a compulsory purchase order of various lands, sought as part of the bus corridor’s development. The hospice’s lands, earmarked for the car park, are included in the compulsory purchase order.
The hospice operator says it was planning to build accommodation units for its healthcare workers on the land subject to the compulsory purchase order.
The hospice operator wants the court to quash An Coimisiún Pleanála’s decision granting permission to the NTA for the bus corridor. It also wants the court to quash the planning board’s approval of the compulsory purchase order.
On Monday, Mr Justice David Holland gave permission to Oisín Collins SC, for the hospice operator and instructed by O’Connell & Clarke Solicitors LLP, to bring judicial review proceedings against An Coimisúin Pleanála. The NTA is a notice party to the proceedings.
Making the application for permission, Mr Collins said having staff accommodation is now critical in the provision of medical services, an unfortunate reality of modern life.
In a statement to the court, the hospice operator claims An Coimisiún Pleanála’s decision to grant permission for the bus corridor is invalid and unlawful, as the provision of additional car parking spaces encourages private car use.
This is contrary to the policies and objectives of the Dublin City Development Plan 2022-2028, and the National Planning Framework, the hospice operator claims.
The hospice operator claims the NTA mistakenly identified the area subject to the compulsory purchase order as the location with “the least impact for the future development and operation of the hospice”.
The hospice operator says the opposite is true – in reality, those lands are the only lands it owns that could be developed in future.
Therefore, An Coimisiún Pleanála’s decision to grant permission for the bus corridor and related compulsory purchase order is invalid “by reasons of irrationality and error of fact”, the hospice operator claims.
The hospice operator also claims the approval of the compulsory purchase order is invalid as it interferes with its constitutional property rights.
The grant of permission and compulsory purchase order failed to have regard for statutory climate objectives, in accordance with the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015, the hospice operator further claims.
Mr Justice Holland adjourned the case to the end of the month.
