Speech by An Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern T.D., at the launch of Transport 21 in Dublin Castle

Date: 01 November 2005

Today, the Government is announcing the most significant transport investment programme in the history of this country – TRANSPORT 21.

The decisions we have taken will complete the transformation of Ireland’s road and public transport system for generations to come.

Our ambition and plan is clear and substantial – we will build a world-class transport system for the 21st century and we will do it on time and on budget.

Progress so far
The hard work of the Irish people has brought Ireland to a level of prosperity that only a generation ago seemed impossible to attain. And this Government's economic policies have provided the financial resources to do the work that must be done to realise our goal of building a world-class transport system.

Since 1997, we have been implementing a sustained programme to develop key elements of our transport system. We believe in a world-class road network and public transport systems.

Major progress has already been achieved:

We said we would dramatically reduce travel times between Dublin and our other main cities by planning and building a motorway network linking them. This far-sighted initiative is well on its way to realisation;
We transformed the planning and management of transport projects with multi-annual funding and a range of other reforms. We are now getting better projects, built faster, to a higher standard and, crucially, on time and on budget;
We saved the national rail network from a slow but terminal decline. Our investment programme has seen the renewal of over 400 miles of track, renewed rolling stock and, as a result, better quality and frequency of services;
We are the first administration to make a serious investment in urban public transport;
We have doubled the peak passenger capacity of the DART. We have built the first two phases of the LUAS, which will carry over 20 million passengers on its two lines this year;
We were the first Government to provide for Exchequer capital investment in buses;
We have also made a major commitment to regional and local transport. New low floor bus fleets have been introduced in the provincial cities and we have provided financial support for bus priority and park and ride schemes. We have also provided funding for additional commuter buses; and
We introduced the Rural Transport Initiative that has transformed the lives of many thousands of people in isolated rural areas.
From a standing start, we got up to speed fast and we have been delivering real progress. Now is the time to accelerate that progress by establishing a coherent framework for the next decade. Transport 21 is that framework.

Transport 21
Capital investment for the next 10 years under Transport 21 will be of the order of €34.4billion. €26.4 billion will come from the Exchequer, with the balance funded through Public Private Partnerships.

The proposals we are announcing today are real costed plans that will lead to real progress. Transport 21 has been fully evaluated and built into our long-term budgetary planning. It is not aspirations or political talk. This is the way Government works when it works for people.

It is a huge amount of money. But it is needed.

Minister Cullen will give you the details of Transport 21 in a few minutes, but I will give you a brief overview:

We will complete the five major inter-urban motorways;
Dublin will get a genuinely integrated transport system;
The capital's roads will be upgraded;
Existing rail and bus services will be upgraded;
Luas will be extended and connected;
We will build a new Metro rail network;
There will be a huge improvement on intercity rail services;
We will invest in both the Atlantic Road Corridor and the Western Rail Corridor;
Together with the roads programme and strong regional airports, we will develop a more regionally balanced transport system, in line with our 20-year National Spatial Strategy; and
In all of this, we will insist on top class services and access for people with disabilities, the elderly and all other citizens on an equal basis.
We can do this because of the remarkable progress we have made as a country.

We are effectively at full employment, and forced emigration is a thing of the past. Indeed, our successful society is attracting more and more people to come and live, work and invest here. The public finances have never been sounder.

It is no wonder that, more and more, Irish people travelling abroad find themselves being asked about the Irish success story.

But when people come back home, they see that our physical infrastructure lags behind the pace of overall economic progress.

We are determined to change that.

We did not have the benefit of an inherent pool of wealth and resources to build our infrastructure like many of our European neighbours. And for decades, many Irish people emigrated in search of work. Indeed, many of them ended up building roads, bridges and railways, not in Ireland, but all around the globe.

We were always going to be playing infrastructure "catch-up" here.

The success of the last ten or fifteen years is welcome. But it has added to the pressures on our transport services. The labour force has doubled. The population projections are for five million inhabitants in fifteen years time. Dublin will continue to prosper and grow.

We need, and deserve, a first class transport system in this country. So we have to move from far behind into the lead. With Transport 21, we are now moving into the fast lane.

Delivery
We have designed the programme.

We have chosen the projects.

We will provide the resources.

The key challenge now is to deliver.

That is a challenge I am sure we can meet.

We have a sensibly programmed timetable, to ensure step-by-step delivery within the substantial resource allocation.

We have learned lessons from the past. The work already completed means that we have experience and expertise. We will add to that, where we think it is necessary. We will also bring in the legislative changes which are required.

We have already implemented a range of improvements to the planning and delivery of transport projects. These changes mean that huge projects are being delivered on time – often ahead of schedule – and on budget. We can see that in the roads programme.

Moreover, we must continue to maximise the integration of our investment strategies across the roads, public transport, ports and airports sectors.

On that front, the Government intends to arrange for the transfer of responsibility for our major national commercial ports from the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources to the Department of Transport. My colleagues, Ministers Cullen and Dempsey will outline details of this shortly.

The Minister for Finance, Brian Cowen recently announced a range of further measures to ensure value for money in Government expenditure. The taxpayers are being asked to fund this investment. We will ensure that they get the services they deserve.

Since they are paying for it, they are also entitled to know what we are doing. I have asked my colleagues to ensure that all aspects of the programme are communicated fully to our citizens with clarity as to what is involved and regular, public progress reports.

Conclusion
Today we set forth a new vision - a new era for transport in Ireland. Transport 21 will transform our country. It will improve the lives of everybody who lives here, visits here and does business here.

A programme like this takes a lot of long, hard work to put together, involving people from many different organisations, at many different levels, ultimately reporting to the Cabinet Committee on Housing, Infrastructure and PPPs prior to formal Government decision.

It would be impossible to thank everyone individually. Suffice to say that I would like to express my appreciation to everyone involved for their tremendous effort. This includes my Ministerial colleagues, the many officials in the various Departments, agencies and organisations, and everyone who contributed, whether in a large or small way, to the development of Transport 21.

In conclusion, Ladies and Gentlemen, Ireland has come a long way over the last 20 years, sometimes against the odds. We have succeeded because of the hard work of the Irish people, and because in Government people worked hard together to plan and to deliver on complex policies and programmes.

Delivering Transport 21 will be a huge challenge for all involved. It may not always be easy. But I am confident that the people of this country, as on so many occasions in the past, will meet this challenge.

Together, we will build a better Ireland for this generation and for many generations to come. A better Ireland, where communities are united and prosperous, and where our quality of life improves in pace with our economic success. That is the Ireland we are building today and that is the Ireland we will leave to our children tomorrow.

Thank you.