MetroLink gets green light from An Coimisún Pleanála

An artist's impression of the Tara Street MetroLink entrance.

There was a major boost to Ireland’s long-awaited MetroLink service to link Dublin Airport and the city, as planning permission was granted by An Coimisún Pleanála for the multi-billion euro project on Thursday.

The MetroLink, hailed as “critically important” by ministers, has been given the green light just over three years after planning permission was first sought by Transport Infrastructure Ireland.

“The commission considers that the proposed MetroLink development enjoys very strong policy support at national, regional and local levels in terms of planning, transport and climate policy,” the planning board said.

“This includes both explicit support of the MetroLink project itself, and implicit support with regard to climate action, sustainable transport, facilitating compact growth, improving accessibility and connectivity of Swords and Dublin Airport with the city centre, and other matters.” 

The line, which will stretch almost 19km, will run every three minutes from Ranelagh to the south of Dublin city centre and serve 16 stops to Swords in north Dublin, taking in the airport on the way.

The Government has previously indicated it would move to tender on the project once planning was approved, with it set to take as much as a decade to complete.

Earlier this year, transport minister Darragh O’Brien said there was a variance in the estimated cost, “anything in the region from €14bn to €21bn”, adding he wanted to see construction begin before this Government’s term ends.

“That’s something that will be looked at in detail before, obviously, we proceed with the construction of the project,” Mr O’Brien said.

In the Government’s revised National Development Plan that was unveiled this summer, €2bn in standalone funding was set aside for the project, which public expenditure minister Jack Chambers said provided “certainty” for the MetroLink.

“By providing separate capital allocation and trajectory for Metro and the strategic water projects, that gives funding certainty and gives investors certainty around working with the Irish Government and the Irish people on delivering Metro,” Mr Chambers said.

“This is a project which we expect to draw down, in the best-case scenario, if the planning comes through, in the latter end of this decade.” 

In its direction, An Coimisiún Pleanála admitted there would be adverse impacts during the construction phase on residential amenities and retail/commercial premises that would be “unavoidable in some locations".

“However, the commission considers that such impacts must be balanced against the very significant wider societal benefits and common good that will accrue from the provision of a high-quality underground rail system,” it said.

“The commission is of the opinion that the long-term benefits of the development outweigh the identified construction stage impacts and that none would give rise to an unacceptable impact on a sensitive receptor that would justify or warrant a refusal of the Railway Order.”

The move was welcomed by Dublin Chamber, which described it as a “gamechanger” for the city.

“MetroLink is a once-in-a-generation project that will transform connectivity across the capital, reduce congestion, support climate targets and underpin Dublin’s competitiveness as a leading European city for business and investment,” it said. “This project will also unlock vast swathes of housing development in the north county.

“Dublin Chamber is now calling for works to get under way without delay. Dublin has waited far too long for this critical piece of infrastructure.”