Dublin's congestion is an opportunity for areas outside the capital

With an election imminent, we are getting more job announcements and good news stories around the country.

This is good, because the regions of the country can justifiably feel a bit aggrieved by the manner in which Ireland’s economic recovery has developed over the past couple of years.

Indeed, I have got more than my usual share of strange stares around the country over the past 18 months as I have commentated on the emerging economic recovery.

That is now changing, as activity in many of the regions is improving.

Perhaps living in Dublin may blind us to what is happening in the rest of the country.

However, as somebody who does get out of Dublin very frequently, it has been quite obvious to me for some time that two economies have emerged.

It is very clear that the Greater Dublin Area has very heavily driven the economic recovery in general and Dublin City in particular.

Restaurants and hotels in the capital appear to be experiencing something akin to boom time at the moment.

After such a calamitous collapse in the overall economy, this is certainly good news, but it is not without its downsides.

It is now clear that economic activity in Dublin is rapidly reaching levels that threaten to outgrow its infrastructure.

Traffic chaos in the capital suggests we are approaching capacity again.

Obviously, it is vital that the capital city sets the pace for the rest of the country and so a long-term investment strategy for Dublin that will address areas such as all forms of public transport, parking, access roads, and commercial and residential development, and that public services such as health and education are developed quickly.

Policy makers cannot stand idly by and allow Dublin develop into a dangerously congested city again, because with congestion inevitably comes a loss of competitiveness.

This is not to suggest for one moment that the rest of the country should be neglected.

In fact, the exact opposite is the case.

The National Spatial Strategy was a positive development in its day, but it was sabotaged by flawed initiatives such as the politically motivated decentralisation process.

Of course, this strategy was finally killed off by the economic crash.

Perhaps it is time to revisit some variation on the National Spatial Strategy.

Dublin’s congestion issues, which are only going to get worse over the next couple of years, may present a serious opportunity for the regions.

Some people and some businesses may want to leave behind traffic congestion, pressurised public services, and the lack of reasonably priced commercial property, the lack of affordable housing for renters and owner-occupiers, and a generally higher cost of living.

However, for people to migrate, employment opportunity must exist. A refocus on rural, physical and IT infrastructure is needed.

Local authorities need to become more vocal and proactive in sending out an ‘open for business’ message.

Town centres must be revitalised and turned into places where people want to live, work and socialise.

We may actually now be seeing signs that activity outside of Dublin is getting better.

Anecdotally, Cork, Limerick, and Galway appear to be picking up quite strongly, and the non-Dublin housing market is starting to show signs of life.

Data from the CSO published earlier this week show that national average residential property prices increased by 7.6% in the year to October.

The figures show prices in Dublin rose by 4.5%, while prices outside of Dublin increased by 10.7%.

These statistics suggest that the non-Dublin market is now catching up, which tells us something about both the issues in the Dublin market and increased demand in the rest of the country.

However, there is still a long way to go.

National average property prices are still 35.4% higher than the low point seen in March 2013; and Dublin prices are 52.7% off their low point of August 2012.

Outside of Dublin, prices are 24.1% higher than the low point in March 2013.