The proposed 19km Dublin metro system, to run from Swords to Charlemont via Dublin Airport, could be opened in phases to cut costs, it has emerged.
Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), the state agency responsible for the development of MetroLink, said on Friday a phased opening was feasible, but a final decision on the matter would have to be taken by Government.
A Department of Transport submission to the Department of Public Expenditure (DPER) in summer as part of the process to secure funding under the revised National Development Plan (NDP) said it was planned “to deliver in two phases”.
These would be: phase one to O’Connell Street, which would open in the last three months of 2035, and phase two to Charlemont, near Ranelagh, which would be ready between July and September 2036.
RM Block
The Department of Transport said on Friday it was envisaged the full railway line from Swords to Charlemont would be constructed as part of one project.
However, under current plans, services on sections of the route could start before all work on the full line was completed.
A planning decision on the multibillion euro railway line, which will run underground mostly, is expected soon.
If a Railway Order, the planning permission needed to build MetroLink, is granted by An Coimisiún Pleanala then TII will seek indicative tenders for its construction.
It will then draw up a final business case, which it will submit to the Government for approval to build the line. It is at this point the likely cost of the project will be known.
A spokesman for the MetroLink project said phased opening could be facilitated by undertaking the testing and commissioning work, a significant element of the overall construction programme, on a sequential basis along the line.
“The programme director, Seán Sweeney, is continuously examining ways to optimise schedule and reduce cost. One way to do this would be to commission and test the railway in stages sequentially, from the north to the south,” the spokesman said.
“This will provide Government with the option of a phased opening if it wishes.”
However, he said: “No decision on a phased commissioning and testing has been taken by Government at this point, and any opening dates are dependent on the Railway Order process and Government approval.”
The potential cost of MetroLink has long been a contentious issue and a particular concern of DPER.
TII’s preliminary business case, prepared for Government in advance of the submission of the planning application for MetroLink in September 2022, included a range of estimates for the project.
At the time €9.5 billion was the midpoint of a “credible” cost range of €7.16 billion to €12.25 billion.
However, a review of the business case, undertaken by DEPR’s major projects advisory group, said the cost forecasts should have allowed for so-called “unknown unknown” risks, which would put the potential upper limit of costs at more than €23 billion.
Asked about its submission as part of the revised NDP, the Department of Transport told The Irish Times: “The phased delivery of MetroLink is not currently being contemplated, and the procurement packaging for the project will include the full route from Estuary [in Swords] to Charlemont.
“However, the current construction programme facilitates phased testing and commissioning of sections of the project enabling a more efficient regulatory approval process and may offer the opportunity for services to commence on sections of the line prior to completion of all works.”
