Rail Network
Dail Éireann — 2026-06-18
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Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal East

This is a very exciting time for public transport. This five-year period is a delivery period of major projects that people have heard and spoken about, including the expansion of the DART and, as I mentioned, DART+ West, DART+ South-West, DART+ Coastal North, Cork light rail, phase 1 of Cork commuter rail, which is concluding, and the commencement of MetroLink. These are transformational projects that are badly needed. A lot of them will deal with an infrastructural deficit that we have carried for a long number of years.
Thankfully, when we provide public transport options people use them. I welcome the support of the Labour Party for this project. Over the next year it is important that the Deputy and others in Dublin South-West and beyond engage with the NTA through the process of that review. We are commencing the construction and delivery of MetroLink, which will enable us to deliver further extensions to the MetroLink line, like what is being done with the Luas. I intend to bring Luas Finglas forward. Under the previous Government, the project was due in the mid-2030s. I think we can start construction in 2028. I use it as an example because it is an existing line that is being extended. The same can apply to this.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-06-18/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-27T06:54:51+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-06-18