Metro North Poll

Metrostar

A poll is running today on the Irish Times website - "Should Metro North be built?"

Be sure to vote. Share this poll with your friends on Facebook or Twitter and encourage them to vote. So far 51% are voting for Metro North. Let's keep up the momentum.

http://www.irishtimes.com/comment/

Typewriter

Done.

Here's the direct link...

http://www.irishtimes.com/polls/

Metrostar

51% YES / 49% NO.

It's like the divorce referendum all over again. Keep your votes coming and let's have a decisive result in favor of Metro North!

jd

Done and comment made.

lods

Metrostar wrote: »

51% YES / 49% NO.

It's like the divorce referendum all over again. Keep your votes coming and let's have a decisive result in favor of Metro North!

In reality it means nothing , both sides can vote as many times as they want.

Metrostar

In the end it was 53% in favor. Do not underestimate the significance of this result, given that the Irish Times has a particular bias against the project, the newspaper will be very disappointed that despite the steady drip feed of anti Metro articles, its readers have decided that they actually want Metro North to be built.

paulm17781

Metrostar wrote: »

A poll is running today on the Irish Times website - "Should Metro North be built?"

Be sure to vote. Share this poll with your friends on Facebook or Twitter and encourage them to vote. So far 51% are voting for Metro North. Let's keep up the momentum.

http://www.irishtimes.com/comment/

I recall you giving out about P11 encouraging members to campaign for the interconnector. Amazing how standards change.

lods

Metrostar wrote: »

In the end it was 53% in favor. Do not underestimate the significance of this result, given that the Irish Times has a particular bias against the project, the newspaper will be very disappointed that despite the steady drip feed of anti Metro articles, its readers have decided that they actually want Metro North to be built.

The Irish times are in the board of the Dublin chamber , they have never been anti metro . The poll is not is of Irish times readers , it's an online poll , open to anyone to abuse.

Metrostar

paulm17781 wrote: »

I recall you giving out about P11 encouraging members to campaign for the interconnector. Amazing how standards change.

I simply alerted people to the poll and had no control over which way they voted. I wanted people to have their say. The people have spoken!

Metrostar

lods wrote: »

The Irish times are in the board of the Dublin chamber , they have never been anti metro . The poll is not is of Irish times readers , it's an online poll , open to anyone to abuse.

Funny how you think the online poll result is potentially biased yet you believe the Irish Times paper edition is a bastion of truth telling. Actually, if you read it carefully by looking at what is emphasized, what are the headlines, etc, you'll see that every Irish Times article about Metro North is negative and fails to highlight the project's benefits (eg. constant references to the guy from the souvenir shops who opposes Metro North and never a quote from residents in Swords who are crying out for the project). Letters have been published with outlandish claims that the project will cost 15 billion. Frank McDonald has been allowed to mix opinion with fact in reports. Worthy of Pravda.

lods

Metrostar wrote: »

Funny how you think the online poll result is potentially biased yet you believe the Irish Times paper edition is a bastion of truth telling. Actually, if you read it carefully by looking at what is emphasized, what are the headlines, etc, you'll see that every Irish Times article about Metro North is negative and fails to highlight the project's benefits (eg. constant references to the guy from the souvenir shops who opposes Metro North and never a quote from residents in Swords who are crying out for the project). Letters have been published with outlandish claims that the project will cost 15 billion. Frank McDonald has been allowed to mix opinion with fact in reports. Worthy of Pravda.

Planning board grants permission for Metro North - The Irish Times ...
29 Oct 2010 ... AN BORD Pleanála has granted permission for the Metro North, but has cut three stops and 2.3 km of track from the line sought two years ago ...
www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/.../1224282235036.html - Cached
Developing Metro North - The Irish Times - Mon, May 24, 2010
24 May 2010 ... Madam, – Your Editorial (May 17th) is eloquent on Metro North. However, instead of jumping to untested conclusions, The Irish Times should ...
www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/letters/2010/.../1224271010567.html - Cached
RPA selects two bidders for Metro North project - The Irish Times ...
1 Jul 2009 ... TWO GROUPS backed by a series of multinationals are set to bid for the right to build and operate a new rail network valued at up to €5 ...
www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/.../1224249837962.html - Cached - Similar
Metro North is 'essential', says Dublin business body - The Irish ...
28 Sep 2010 ... DUBLIN CHAMBER of Commerce has dismissed fears that construction of Metro North will cause major disruption for city centre businesses, ...
www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2010/.../1224279828132.html - Cached
Should Metro North survive the cutbacks - The Irish Times - Thu ...
28 Oct 2010 ... Given that Ireland is now teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, we simply can't afford to build both Metro North and Dart Underground. ...
www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/.../1224282143901.html - Cached
Metro North work to begin in April despite calls for rethink - The ...
27 Sep 2010 ... WORK ON the long-awaited Metro North line from St Stephen's Green to Dublin airport and north Co Dublin will begin in April, the Railway ...
www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/frontpage/.../1224279762767.html - Cached
Metro North should go ahead as planned, says Broughan - The Irish ...
4 Oct 2010 ... METRO NORTH should proceed as planned, former Labour transport spokesman and TD for Dublin North East Tommy Broughan has said, ...
www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2010/.../1224280311584.html - Cached
Calling a halt to Metro North? - The Irish Times - Mon, Oct 18, 2010
18 Oct 2010 ... Madam, – Surely it is now time to call a halt to the absurdity which is Metro North? The country is in severe debt, our interest payments ...
www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/letters/2010/.../1224281343780.html - Cached
Bord Pleanála approves Metro North -News - Ireland.com
Bord Pleanála approves Metro North. Irish Times ... Irishtimes.com photo sales offers one of the most extensive range of photos taken by Irish Times ...
www.ireland.com/news/bord-plean-la...metro-north/585437 - Cached

i googled metro north Irish times & it gave me these 10 articles, it doesn't show the Times as being negative towards the project.

Zebra3

Interesting quote from one contributor underneath the poll...

Why should the tax payers from outside the capital pay for this expensive folly? Perhaps there should be a seperate Dublin tax to fund such projects.
frank Ireland

I'd actually really love it if the they seperated the tax take from the GDA and the rest of the state and let each area spend its ow.

FreudianSlippers

Zebra3 wrote: »

Interesting quote from one contributor underneath the poll...


I'd actually really love it if the they seperated the tax take from the GDA and the rest of the state and let each area spend its ow.

But then who would subsidise the farmers?

paulm17781

OisinT wrote: »

But then who would subsidise the farmers?

Much the irony of the above statement!

monument

lods wrote: »

i googled metro north Irish times & it gave me these 10 articles, it doesn't show the Times as being negative towards the project.

No, it does not, but such a search is not very in-depth.

DWCommuter

Metrostar wrote: »

I simply alerted people to the poll and had no control over which way they voted. I wanted people to have their say. The people have spoken!

People had their say. But you can hardly say that anyone has spoken.

BrianD

Metrostar wrote: »

Funny how you think the online poll result is potentially biased yet you believe the Irish Times paper edition is a bastion of truth telling. Actually, if you read it carefully by looking at what is emphasized, what are the headlines, etc, you'll see that every Irish Times article about Metro North is negative and fails to highlight the project's benefits (eg. constant references to the guy from the souvenir shops who opposes Metro North and never a quote from residents in Swords who are crying out for the project). Letters have been published with outlandish claims that the project will cost 15 billion. Frank McDonald has been allowed to mix opinion with fact in reports. Worthy of Pravda.

But you have to acknowledge that the overwhelming public and expert opinion is not supporting this project. Leaving aside Frank McDonald there isn't exactly a queue of expert opinion wanting to state the case for the project. In theory, the average person would welcome the construction of new infrastructure and in the ideal world we all would. However, the Metro North world is far from the ideal world and the existing conditions (and next ten year conditions) do not favour the project. That's just being practical and sensible about it.

I don't think the Times has an agenda on this though their chief correspondent is McDonald. There isn't that much support from other papers of record either.

Anyway, the poll was gone before I got to vote 'No' though I did get to vote 'No' on Berties dream to be president. I'm sure he'll be taking credit for the project at some point. In fact the RPA should take him on a writer for their next 'myths and realities' feature - he has the track record as a writer and he says he's at a loose end in the Dail.

DWCommuter

Metrostar wrote: »

Funny how you think the online poll result is potentially biased yet you believe the Irish Times paper edition is a bastion of truth telling. Actually, if you read it carefully by looking at what is emphasized, what are the headlines, etc, you'll see that every Irish Times article about Metro North is negative and fails to highlight the project's benefits (eg. constant references to the guy from the souvenir shops who opposes Metro North and never a quote from residents in Swords who are crying out for the project). Letters have been published with outlandish claims that the project will cost 15 billion. Frank McDonald has been allowed to mix opinion with fact in reports. Worthy of Pravda.

Who gives a **** about the Irish Times. If you have an opinion, lets hear it....again. The people of Swords that are crying out for it need a voice!

lods

Metrostar wrote: »

I simply alerted people to the poll and had no control over which way they voted. I wanted people to have their say. The people have spoken!

Give me a break, "the people have not spoken".:rolleyes:

FreudianSlippers

paulm17781 wrote: »

Much the irony of the above statement!

I'm not sure you are using that word right

Metrostar

lods wrote: »

i googled metro north Irish times & it gave me these 10 articles, it doesn't show the Times as being negative towards the project.

Come on! Just look at this headline, "Metro North work to begin in April despite calls for rethink" - it's a prime example of what the newspaper wants to emphasize for its readers, ie, not that work will start in April but that there are calls to rethink it. During the boom years the Times got fat on revenues from their property supplement and now, in a change of tactic, they are feeding into a frenzy of negativity. Bad news is good news for some, it seems.