Transport system below par, says Cowen

THE public transport system in greater Dublin and urban areas nationwide “falls far short” of what modern cities require, Finance Minister Brian Cowen admitted yesterday.

A “radical enhancement” of the system was necessary, he told the cross-party Oireachtas finance committee. He outlined the proposals for the next National Development Plan (NDP) which, he said, would be the “key instrument” in bringing the national infrastructure up to the required standard.

The existing seven-year NDP ends this year, and its successor will run from 2007 to 2013.