Ministers Target Judicial Reviews As DART+ South West, Which Has No Judicial Reviews, Put On Ice

Questions are being asked as to why major transport projects, such as the Dart+ South West, are being delayed by government officials.

The government will unveil plans today to make it harder for people to object to new development projects under the Government's new infrastructure plan.

But questions are being asked as to why major transport projects, such as the Dart+ South West, are being delayed by government officials. 

Kfm News undrstands that the project had no active judicial reviews.

Instead, it has been delayed to allow the Government to focus on existing projects before investing in new ones.

Social Democrats Kildare North TD Aidan Farrelly said there is anger over plans to postpone the project until 2030,.

It was intended to bring the DART to Hazelhatch station.

He said the project was "shovel ready" and had planning permission, with work expected to originally begin in the new year.

"The DART+ South West was the first bit of good news in years for commuters from the Celbridge area, as well as those further along the line in Sallins and Naas – and now that’s gone," he said.

He added: “Pushing it down the line to 2030 - beyond the lifetime of this government - really calls into question its future. After such a long delay, will Irish Rail be forced to get planning all over again? Where will the funding be coming from then?"

Meanwhile, the new plan to be announced today will outline who is allowed to take a judicial review and it's also going to be more expensive.

It is hoped that it will speed up the delivery of more homes, roads and waste water treatment plants.

In a statement regarding the Dart + South West project, a Department of Transport spokesperson said: "The Review of the National Development Plan allocated €22.3 billion in Exchequer resources to Transport from 2026 to 2030, with an additional allocation of €2 billion from the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund to support the development of MetroLink. The funding of over €10 billion for public transport infrastructure is allocated primarily in line with the Department’s NIFTI intervention hierarchy of Maintain, Optimise, Improve, and New. This approach involves prioritising investment in the protection and renewal of existing assets before investing in new ones, on economic and environmental grounds."

They added: "The total funding provided in the NDP Sectoral Implementation Plan for Transport will see significant advancements made in a number of public transport projects, including commencing construction on DART+ Programme" 

"The Department of Transport will continue to explore opportunities for additional funding, including through funding streams such as the European Union Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), to compliment national Exchequer funding which may allow some projects to proceed to construction earlier than currently anticipated, including DART+ South West."

"Under the Connecting Ireland Rural Mobility Plan, a number of bus services expansions have been made in the Kildare area, in recent years, including the enhancement of services between towns including Naas and Newbridge," the spokesperson said.