Infrastructural progress/mistakes in the 00s

Amtmann

The Noughties saw Ireland's infrastructure improve enormously.

It would be interesting to know how many kilometres of new road (all types) were built:

Bypasses (all types)
DC/Motorway
2+1

A big improvement was made in lining and studding across the country. We also went metric. Signage was improved, and we now have a brand new motorway network nearing completion. Dublin got a Port Tunnel.

Of course, we got the LUAS too (and the Spire - though that's not infrastructure in fairness, but it did go hand in hand with the O'Connell St regeneration), and IE got a fleet of new trains. In Cork St Patrick's Street, Grand Parade and Oliver Plunkett Street were re-made, and Galway's Eyre Square was revamped.

Broadband came to Ireland. Our use of renewable energy sources increased; but by how much?

What do you think were the highs and lows of the past decade in terms of infrastructure provision? What did we do well, and what did we mess up totally? Did we achieve all that was possible in those bumper ten years, or could we have got more bangs for our bucks?

markpb

Purely in Dublin terms, I think the damage done by sprawl and lack of proper planning outweighs the few improvements in infrastructure. Whatever they did to improve roads and public transport couldn't keep up with the extra cars and the extra miles each car is travelling.

The original two Luas lines serve a very small part of the city and the extensions into the suburbs are pretty much useless unless those areas densify in the coming years. The Dart platform extensions programme was of some benefit but the resignalling programme which would have been more useful was dropped or delayed. Likewise, Metro north should not have been delayed as long as it was.

If you can call QBCs infrastructure, I think some of them (Malahide Road, College Green busgate) have made huge improvements that people haven't realised. Like the Dart though, other things like integrated ticketing, AVLC and PIS which should have been done were delayed badly.

Lots to do but where will the money come from.

serfboard

Furet wrote: »

A big improvement was made in lining and studding across the country. We also went metric. Signage was improved, and we now have a brand new motorway network nearing completion. Dublin got a Port Tunnel.

Of course, we got the LUAS too (and the Spire - though that's not infrastructure in fairness, but it did go hand in hand with the O'Connell St regeneration), and IE got a fleet of new trains. In Cork St Patrick's Street, Grand Parade and Oliver Plunkett Street were re-made, and Galway's Eyre Square was revamped.

Broadband came to Ireland. Our use of renewable energy sources increased; but by how much?

What do you think were the highs and lows of the past decade in terms of infrastructure provision? What did we do well, and what did we mess up totally? Did we achieve all that was possible in those bumper ten years, or could we have got more bangs for our bucks?

Interesting questions. To answer the last one first, yes we probably could have got more bang for our buck, but in general, we were not used to having the kind of money that was available, and we over-egged the pudding in certain things.

Roads. Motorway network - the MIUs are almost completed. M50->Outskirts of any city will take 2 hours reliably. As the decade wore on we became better at contracting out road construction, so that by 2009, we were getting far better value than in 2000. I await the completion of the Atlantic Corridor with interest.

Light Rail. Yes of course, the LUAS cost an awful lot of money, and doesn't go to enough places, but passenger numbers and the fact that it needs no subsidy make it a success in my books.

Heavy Rail. Commuter trains. We got a lot more and they got a lot fuller.
Inercity Trains. Now here, I would have preferred if the money was spending on upgrading the tracks rather than the trains. With the completion of the motorway network, shiny new trains taking much longer than a car journey will not compete in the teens.

Broadband. Boards would not be as successful as it is without it. We are now falling behind in terms of next generation investment, but we did make great strides in coverage in the last 10 years.

Power Generation. The jury is still out on this one. We hiked up the prices to make the market more enticing for competitors to come in, so they could compete against each other and lower prices. We still didn't get back to where we had been, though. :rolleyes: Airtricity became so successful that the Scots bought it. At least we didn't flog off the grid infrastructure like we did with the telephone infrastructure.

I'd say 7/10.





And obviously we wasted a LOAD of money on things like PPARS, E-Voting and certain quangos, but that's a whole different discussion ...

silverharp

how about not moving Dublin port? huge opportunity lost imo

Judgement Day

silverharp wrote: »

how about not moving Dublin port? huge opportunity lost imo

Yes what a lost opportunity! We could have moved Dublin Port at great cost and replaced it with more yuppie apartments and finance centres that will ultimately cost billions to protect with flood defences when somebody finally realises the folly of building there. :rolleyes:

silverharp

Judgement Day wrote: »

Yes what a lost opportunity! We could have moved Dublin Port at great cost and replaced it with more yuppie apartments and finance centres that will ultimately cost billions to protect with flood defences when somebody finally realises the folly of building there. :rolleyes:

depends on the facts, given the power stations there I assume the area will have to be protected in any event. Be they "yuppie" aprtments or not, at least people would live in them due to the proximity ot the city. Surely better then all the west dublin crap that has been built?