[article] 'Hurdles' delaying opening of tunnel

Ford Cortina · 18-10-2006 4:04pm #1

Does anyone have some inside information? I was hearing Oct/Nov for the opening. I just went to the http://www.dublinporttunnel.ie/ website. It looks like they they updated the website recently (probably yesterday)
There is some interesting grahics on the site. BTW as the toll will be 12 euro at peak times, I've already figured out a way to make a few euros....I just buy a truck which will allow 2 or 3 cars to drive up a ramp into it, drive thru the tunnel and then let the drivers out at the other end and charge 6 or 7 euro per car to the drivers. I will do this all day back and forth. I wonder if there's enough profit in it. Anyone else have suggestions.

I can see bus travel times from the IFSC to the airport being cut dramatically.

From the Dublin port tunnel website.

PS. The tunnel website has also put up 45MB of hi-res photos of the tunnel inside and out. Really cool.

ardmacha · 18-10-2006 7:22pm

Is there any likelihood of bus routes. E.g. might the Aircoach be rearranged to have the Sandyford service use the tunnel and East link then via Ballsbridge/Donnybrook? The other aircoach could continue to travel via O'Connell st.

icdg · 18-10-2006 8:28pm

If its any help, the NRA announced on 9th October that the Bye Laws for the Port Tunnel come into effect on 1st November. But this still doesn't tell us that the Tunnel will actually open on that date, though it was a pretty good indicator when it came to the M8...

Wishbone Ash · 18-10-2006 9:46pm

I can see a few problems with the variations in the toll prices;

Non exempted drivers, who are entering the tunnel just before 6am, may be inclined to exceed the speed limit to make it to the toll plaza before 6am when the price increases dramatically from €3 to €12.

Similarly, when approaching the time when it is reduced from €12 to €6 and from €6 to €3, motorists may be attempted to delay approaching the toll plaza to benifit from the reduced toll price.

DerekP11 · 19-10-2006 12:24am

I've heard we may be looking at February for Tunnel opening. The last media reports that forced the issue came up with quotes that November was the time. But realistically, if this was true, I think we'd be hearing lots of mouthing and shouting by now in the press and elsewhere. So I'll go with Feb and if Im wrong then happy days to the truckers, unless its March or April

and good night eileen to the M50 when it does happen.

Hope this is helpful.

Navan Junction · 19-10-2006 7:38am

Tim O'Brienm, Irish Times, 19/10/2006

"Significant hurdles" in connection with testing of safety systems are preventing the setting of a date for the opening of the Dublin Port Tunnel, it has emerged.

Tunnel developers Dublin City Council and the National Roads Authority (NRA) both said they could no longer stand over assurances that the tunnel would open in November.

Spokespersons for both bodies said the best advice they had was that a date for the eventual opening may be announced in November, but they could not state definitively that the tunnel would open before Christmas.

They were commenting after Minister for Transport Martin Cullen declined to tell the Dáil whether he was satisfied with safety arrangements in the tunnel.

Mr Cullen was asked by Dublin North Central TD Finian McGrath if he was satisfied with safety issues in the light of concern about the number of fuel tankers travelling between the port and Dublin airport.

In a written reply, Mr Cullen replied that such issues were principally a matter for the local authority concerned, in this case the city council, and the National Roads Authority.

Mr McGrath said last night that it was "unacceptable that the Minister in charge of a €900 million project would reject responsibility for the project. That is some brass neck."

The NRA spokesman said that there were "significant hurdles" with safety testing which were preventing a definitive date being announced at this stage.

© The Irish Times

Drax · 19-10-2006 8:09am

DerekP11 wrote:

happy days to the truckers

Hmmmm, moved from the city centre to the M50 and N11.... great!

Actually something hit me this morning - say I was to drive to the airport from say, Blackrock - I could potentially pay the East Link toll, cross the river and then pay another toll 5 minutes later to enter the tunnel! Thats crazy!

Slice · 19-10-2006 8:56am

Wishbone Ash: Non exempted drivers, who are entering the tunnel just before 6am, may be inclined to exceed the speed limit to make it to the toll plaza before 6am when the price increases dramatically from €3 to €12.

Could this not be easily addressed with the use of speed cameras?

DerekP11: I've heard we may be looking at February for Tunnel opening

I know it's delayed by costing disputes with the Council, but it wouldn't hurt if it the opening was as close to the next general election as possible??

loyatemu · 19-10-2006 9:39am

its ludicrous that you have to pay €3 to go through it in the dead of night. the toll is to discourage cars from clogging up the tunnel - there's no possibility of that happening at 4am so it should be free!

johnnyrotten · 19-10-2006 9:43am

Tunnel construction is finished. There are some small teething problems with electronic comms ( Cameras , Tannoys etc ).
Leaks are fixed.
Dublin Fire Brigade have to commence Tunnel Firefighting courses in November.
Tunnel to Open early - Mid December

westtip · 19-10-2006 10:26am

If getting a taxi to the airport from the IFSC and either pressed for time or on business expenses the toll will be worth paying - EG getting a flight in the morning the toll northbound will be 6 euro - not much to add to a taxi fare the company is picking up anyway! and certainly if aiming for an early evening flight better for the company to pay the toll in the taxi fare rather than miss the flight. Also if you are in a fatcat job in the IFSC, why not pay the toll, liklihood is the bill will be picked up by someone else - and what about the rest of the Joe Soaps struggling down the North Wall - Well Let them eat cake I suppose is the attitude of those in power.

It says on the website, From the Port to the M50 in ten minutes - it doesn't then add, from the M50 to the M4, 60 minutes, to the N7 90 minutes and to the N11 nearly two hours at peak times. Why on earth would any trucker use this "free" facility only to sit in a queue on the M50 to pay on Westlink. Trucks with a destination West, south west or South east would be mad to elect to go up to the M50 and put themselves through added torture on the M50

SeanW · 19-10-2006 12:00pm

Yeah, I always wondered what the hell that was all about - I don't have much sympathy for truckers generally, but I have to wonder what on Earth possesed the deisgners of the DPT to route it NORTH and expect trucks going to to N11 to use it?

That just sounds incredibly stupid. If the Port Tunnel really was supposed to be for all trucks using the Port, then why wasn't it roouted from the Port to the M4 Interchange, to give direct access to the West, close access to the Southwest and equidistant access to the M1 and N11?

I NEVER understood that.

loyatemu · 19-10-2006 12:18pm

its a shorter distance - as the crow flies its about 3 miles from the port to the M1; its over 5 miles to the N4 at Palmerstown (realistically the nearest point the tunnel could surface)

also, the council ultimately wants to build the eastern bypass, and the tunnel is the first phase of this.

Bluetonic · 19-10-2006 12:21pm

westtip wrote:

Why on earth would any trucker use this "free" facility only to sit in a queue on the M50 to pay on Westlink.

Becasue they will be forced to by law.

westtip · 19-10-2006 2:44pm

Bluetonic wrote:

Becasue they will be forced to by law.

The law will prove to be an ass, and probably challenged by the Irish Road Hauliers association - there is supposed to be a viable toll free alternative to our toll roads, making trucks use the M50 is not giving them that alternative, I agree trucks should be kept out of the city, motorways is where trucks should be incentivised to go - IMO trucks should be allowed toll free access to all motorways and reflect this in the vehicle tax they pay, Foreign trucks coming in would need to buy a motorway pass disc to use the motorways No doubt the HGV lobby will be protesting about being forced to use the M50 and Westlink when the destination is west, south west and south, and TBH I wouldn't blame them.

Victor · 19-10-2006 3:04pm

Threads merged.

spacetweek · 19-10-2006 3:57pm

johnnyrotten wrote:

Tunnel construction is finished. There are some small teething problems with electronic comms ( Cameras , Tannoys etc ).
Leaks are fixed.
Dublin Fire Brigade have to commence Tunnel Firefighting courses in November.
Tunnel to Open early - Mid December

Source?

Seth Brundle · 19-10-2006 4:09pm

Maybe it might just manage open shortly before the election.

Navan Junction wrote:

Mr McGrath said last night that it was "unacceptable that the Minister in charge of a €900 million project would reject responsibility for the project. That is some brass neck."

Am I alone in not being surprised that Cullen accepts no responsibility?

D'Peoples Voice · 19-10-2006 4:56pm

kbannon wrote:

Am I alone in not being surprised that Cullen accepts no responsibility?

He has some responsibility but very little as I understand it.
Cullen on behalf of the government set the targets for the NRA. In our case Seamus Brennan set the target of prioritising the upgrading all the primary inter-urban routes etc FIRST before moving on to other routes.

So usually the process is

The minister of transport fights for his share of the budget

The NRA receives the annual budget from the Minister.

The NRA then accept proposals from the local authorities on the relevant projects in their areas.

The NRA then tell the various local authorities who was successful

The local authorities dictate theroute of the road after engaging in public consultation.

The NRA on behalf of the Local Authority will negotiate with the various contractors to build the road.

The local authority then project manage the operation with the contractor to ensure the job is done properly

When finished the Minister comes along and opens the road as if he played a large part in it
I do wonder of the political decompostion on DCC, and whether or not they are playing party politics and purposely delaying the project so as to get public opinion going against central government. After all people think central Government project manage the roads not local government. I wonder who holds the dominant position on DCC, is it FF, Lab & FG?

Wishbone Ash · 19-10-2006 7:25pm

Wishbone Ash wrote:

Non exempted drivers, who are entering the tunnel just before 6am, may be inclined to exceed the speed limit to make it to the toll plaza before 6am when the price increases dramatically from €3 to €12.

Slice wrote:

Could this not be easily addressed with the use of speed cameras?

The use of speed cameras hasn't proved to be very successful on ordinary roads. Why should it make much of a difference in the tunnel? (bearing in mind that, the large number of drivers who's licences can't have points applied to, aren't going to be too worried).

The Swordsman · 20-10-2006 1:18pm

Drax wrote:

Hmmmm, moved from the city centre to the M50 and N11.... great!

Actually something hit me this morning - say I was to drive to the airport from say, Blackrock - I could potentially pay the East Link toll, cross the river and then pay another toll 5 minutes later to enter the tunnel! Thats crazy!

If you do it Monday to Friday between 4 and 7 PM, it will cost you 13.45 in total.

At least you'll get better value for your 1.45 toll :mad: with less heavy traffic clogging up access to the East Wall Road.

LFCFan · 20-10-2006 2:37pm

kbannon wrote:

Maybe it might just manage open shortly before the election.

Am I alone in not being surprised that Cullen accepts no responsibility?

Dunno if that would be a smart move either as it may just remind people of just how badly planned and delivered the whole project was.

sunnyjim · 21-10-2006 3:10pm

spacetweek wrote:

Source?

Well from what he has posted around boards, hes a fireman, so he's probably right about the firefighting parts of the post...

Lennoxschips · 22-10-2006 2:22am

SeanW wrote:

Yeah, I always wondered what the hell that was all about - I don't have much sympathy for truckers generally, but I have to wonder what on Earth possesed the deisgners of the DPT to route it NORTH and expect trucks going to to N11 to use it?

That just sounds incredibly stupid. If the Port Tunnel really was supposed to be for all trucks using the Port, then why wasn't it roouted from the Port to the M4 Interchange, to give direct access to the West, close access to the Southwest and equidistant access to the M1 and N11?

I NEVER understood that.

probably because the tunnel was never designed as a port tunnel

the whole trucks thing was just an excuse to build it, they're moving the port somewhere else soon

i mean, if they had said "we need to build a tunnel between the airport and the docklands development in order to jack up the property prices when we flog the land to the developers" the public would have given out stink

[article] 'Hurdles' delaying opening of tunnel

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