Radical plan to wipe out €1.4bn of metro cost

THE Government is preparing for a massive political and legal battle in a bid to knock off €1.4bn from the cost of the Dublin Airport metro.

New laws will be introduced changing ownership of land beneath houses, abolishing the right to appeal and allowing the Government side-step environment impact studies.

Transport Minister Seamus Brennan said getting the metro on track would mean pain for those living in Dublin.

The radical reversal in costs and speed follows an analysis of metro systems in Madrid by the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA).

"The people of Dublin will have to get their head around this. If we're going to do it Spanish-style it will have to be different," said Mr Brennan.

He said the plan would entail sweeping legal changes to the cumbersome consultation process.

"If we want to get two-and-a-half years down to eight months, the big losers are public consultations, environmental impact studies, rights of appeal and compulsory purchase orders," he said.

Mr Brennan said he also intended to alter people's ownership of land below their houses.

He accepted that he had a massive political and legal battle on his hands.

Professor Manuel Melis Maynar, President of Metro Madrid, said that in the Spanish city 20 metres below the first 10 metres of a house can be used for public utilities.

Combining this idea with 24-hour tunnelling mandatory in Spain and less environmental studies speeds up their completions.

He said they had built 75km of rail in the last three years at a cost of less than €100m per km.

In contrast, Mr Brennan said that the 12km route from Dublin Airport to the city centre was due to be finished in 2009 at a cost of €4.8bn.

Mr Brennan said that he intended to bring in the necessary legal changes in a new Dublin Metro Bill and bring it before the Cabinet next month.

He said the Taoiseach and the Cabinet were very impressed by the Madrid model.

Mr Brennan said he went to Madrid last March after the RPA.