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Under the National Development Plan Dublin is to get an extensive public transport system. This will include the Luas light rail system, an underground Metro system, vast improvements to both the DART and suburban rail lines. Several thousand new parking spaces will be created to allow for better Park and Ride facilities. The over all ethos of the new transport policy for Dublin is to move away from a dependence on the private car. The Dublin Transport Initiative recognises that the car
has its place in an integrated transport network but that it should not be allowed to dominate.
This policy is a result of the failure Dublin’s car based commuting. Dependence on the motorcar has caused much publicised gridlock in Dublin. This gridlock is seen as an impediment to the continued economic growth of
Dublin by increasing businesses costs. More importantly it leads to a drop in the quality of life of the residents of Dublin and those who spend up to 15 hours a week in traffic. Car traffic adds hugely to air and noise pollution.
This contrasts with the travel policy that the government has for the regions. Instead of learning from the mistakes made in Dublin, the government is repeating them. By proposing to build a large new network on roads instead of upgrading public transport between the regions, the car is being allowed to dominate. This will lead to many of the problems that Dublin has experienced being
repeated in the countryside. Air and noise pollution will increase and the quality of life of the rural population will decrease
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