Calls for Leinster Orbital Route to be revisited
Calls have been made to revisit plans to build an Outer Orbital Route around Dublin, as Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) says there is almost nothing it can do to address traffic gridlock on the M50.
Plans for the Leinster Orbital Route - a motorway linking Drogheda with Navan and Naas were axed in November 2021.
In the Greater Dublin Area strategy, published in 2021, the National Transport Authority ditched plans for the route, which had been planned for more than 20 years.
The call to revisit the route was made following an RTE Primetime programme last night (Tuesday) which highlighted the gridlock on the M50, which saw more than 187,000 vehicles use the ring road around Dublin city on just one day ast summer,
The Leinster Orbital Route would have run from Drogheda to the Naas/Newbridge area, with intermediate links to Navan, Trim, Enfield and other towns.
It was planned as a wider circular route around Dulin city to take pressure of the M50.
In 2021, the national transport policy was seeking a reduction in the growth in car travel and an increase in the use of public transport, cycling and walking and the NTA has decided not to progress the motorway as planned.
The proposal for the orbital route saw Meath County Council leave routes around Navan free of development to facilitate the construction of the proposed motorway.
Ger Hyland of the Irish Road Hauliers Association is among those calling for the Government to revisit plans to build an Outer Orbital Route around Dublin. "The M50 at the present time is just not fit for purpose. There has to be an outer ring road from Naas the whole way up as far as Drogheda or Dundalk," Mr Hyland said.
"It won't alleviate it completely, but it will be a huge help.
The National Transport Authority (NTA) said its strategy to address congestion focuses on reducing car use and improving alternatives, rather than expanding motorway capacity.
It will take time for that to have an impact, while TII says much of the available potential to upgrade the design of the M50 has already been used up.