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CENTRAL GOVERNMENT

EU Funding Details of EU funding of various IÉ schemes have been released. The table shows total and EU expenditure by geographical area where BMW is the Border Midlands and Western area and S&E is the Southern and Eastern area, which attracts lower EU funding:

Project	Total	EU	%EU
	€m	€m
DART Upgrade	172.0	65.0	38%
Kildare Rly Wks Order	6.0	1.1	19%
Heuston Stn & SW Corridor	106.7	66.8	63%
Accessibility S&E	4.7	2.3	49%
Accessibility BMW	2.6	2.0	75%
Track Work S&E	59.3	29.6	50%
Track Work BMW	28.9	21.6	75%
Safety Investment Programme	34.7	3.0	9%
76 DMUs	110.7	55.2	50%
4 DMUs	5.4	2.7	50%
12 DART Cars	23.6	11.8	50%
Drogheda Depot	39.7	18.8	47%
Westport Re-signalling	18.6	10.8	58%
Rosslare Re-signalling	13.1	6.0	46%
18 (120) ICRs	161.8	12.6	8%
24 (67) Mk IVs	100.0	17.6	18%
Carrick-on-Shannon Loop	1.5	0.7	49%
Docklands Stations	17.4	8.0	46%
Platform Work BMW	2.0	1.5	75%
Portarlington Re-laying	14.9	6.7	45%
Limerick Junction Re-laying	7.8	6.6	84%

EU Commission On 26 June, the Commission sent letters of formal notification to 24 member states regarding their failure to implement the [EU] First Railway Package of legislation properly. Ireland was one of these countries. The Commission found ‘that, although Member States had introduced the necessary legislation, some countries needed to take further measures to ensure an effective regulatory framework as well as the satisfactory functioning of the railway markets. The deadline for implementation of the First Package was March 2003. Following a detailed analysis of the conformity of national legislations, the Commission mainly noted shortcomings such as:

	Lack of independence of the infrastructure manager in relation to railway operators;
	Insufficient implementation of the rules of the Directive on track access charging, such as the absence of a performance regime to improve the performance of the railway network and the lack of incentives of the Infrastructure Manager to reduce costs and charges;
	Failure to set up an independent Regulatory Body with strong powers to remedy competition problems in the railway sector’.

RAILWAY PROCUREMENT AGENCY

ANNUAL REPORT

The RPA’s annual report for 2007 was published on 9 July. During the year the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) made significant progress towards the procurement of light rail, metro and ticketing infrastructure through the Transport 21 investment programme. A total of 28.4 million passengers carried in 2007, an increase of 10% on 2006 (see JOURNAL 166). An after taxation surplus of €6.645m (2006: €4.652m) was generated from commercial activities. Amongst these commercial activities, the infrastructure business activities, including the provision of the Luas infrastructure to Veolia, generated a pre tax surplus of €6.868m (2006: €5.646m). Net income from the provision of Luas infrastructure grew by 14% while net income associated with advertising, park and ride and property activities grew by 17%.

Trams ran a total of 2.75m km in 2007, 1.75m on the Red Line and 1m on the Green Line. Over 99% of scheduled services were delivered during the year. SmartCard usage was up 45% on 2006, with 53% of passengers using Luas to commute, 36% for shopping and 30% to pursue leisure activities. Some 68% of passengers are regular users, while 32% are occasional.

The strong performance of Luas allowed the RPA to invest in improvements to services during 2007: increased frequency on the Green Line, giving a 3.5 minute frequency from 08:00 to 09:00, additional services for special events, installation of a lift at Dundrum, modifications to seating and handrails to give extra capacity, continuing the programme to extend the Red Line fleet to 40m.

During 2007, the average number of staff employed by the RPA was 198 (2006: 139).

 

RAILWAY PROCUREMENT AGENCY (LUAS)

RED LINE

Red Cow Services on the Red Line were withdrawn between Blackhorse and Tallaght from 21:00 on Friday 22 until the start of services on Monday 25 August. This was to allow the rerouting of the line through the M50/Naas Rd. interchange at the Red Cow. The original route through the interchange, which ran to the south of the former road layout, had three at grade road crossings, whereas the new alignment, which is adjacent to the inbound lanes of the Naas Rd. , is completely segregated from road traffic.

During the period of the closure, services operated between Blackhorse and Abbey St . To operate the service, 11 trams were left on the city side of the work site and, as these could not access the depot at night, they were stabled in Abbey St. (4 trams), Four Courts (2), Heuston (3) and Blackhorse (2). Facilities for crews, toilets, canteen etc were provided at Blackhorse over the weekend.

The overhead line through the work site was de-energised at approximately 22:00 on the Friday.  Work on disconnecting the old alignment and connecting the new one was completed by early evening on the Sunday and the line was formerly handed back at about 20:00. There followed a period of intensive testing of all aspects of the new section of line, e.g. the track, clearances, the overhead line etc. Starting at approximately 02:00 on Monday, the 11 trams which had been operating between Blackhorse and the city centre were moved back to the depot for servicing, the last entering the yard at 03:00. The first tram for the start up of service left the Red Cow at 05:15.

SYSTEM EXTENSIONS

Line A1 (Belgard-Citywest) Having examined the draft Railway Order, the documents accompanying the application and the Environmental Impact Statement submitted by the RPA, together with the written submissions and the evidence at the Oral Hearing, the An Bord Pleanála (the Planning Board) inspector recommended that a Railway Order providing the RPA with the necessary powers to construct, operate and maintain Line A1 (Belgard to Saggart) be made. An Bord Pleanála made the order on 16 June 2008. To allow for any legal challenges to the granting of the order, there was a two month wait before it came into force.

Area 19 (Cookstown-Fortunestown) The line will cross the new outer ring road at grade a short distance to the east of the Cheeverstown stop. In order to avoid disrupting road traffic at a later stage, the line’s two tracks were installed when the road was being constructed.

Line B1 (Sandyford-Bride’s Glen) Work is well advanced along the length of Line B1:

Sandyford Depot Site clearance work, in preparation for the laying of additional stabling sidings, is well advanced, as is the construction of foundations for new overhead contact system (OCS) support masts.

Sandyford A facing crossover, to allow arriving trams use the inbound platform, has been installed to the north of the Sandyford stop.  Upgrading work on the outbound platform commenced in July and this will be followed work on the inbound one. To facilitate this work, trams operated between Balally and the city centre only for approximately three hours at the start of services on some Saturdays and Sundays during June, July and August.

Area 13 (Sandyford-Murphystown Rd) Formation clearance and boundary wall realignment works have taken place alongside Blackthorn Ave. Construction of the reinforced concrete trackbed has commenced at the junction of Blackthorn Ave and Burton Hall Rd.

Construction of the trackbed on the approach ramp to and across the bridge spanning the roundabout at the Brewery Rd/Leopardstown Rd junction is substantially complete. Work is in progress on the installation of parapets and handrails.

Work on the trackbed along the edge of the Central Park development is well advanced. The bridge spanning the M50 adjacent to the Leopardstown interchange is also substantially complete.

Area 14 (Murphystown Rd-Ballyogan Wood) Clonlea House has been demolished and formation clearance work through the site is well advanced. Formation clearance along Ballyogan Rd section of the alignment is largely complete.

Area 15 (Ballyogan Wood-Bride’s Glen) Work on the Carrickmines bridge over the M50 and its approach ramps is substantially complete. Following the completion of bridge works, Glenamuck Rd reopened on 31 May.

Formation clearance between Carrickmines and Brennanstown is to start during September. Work on the Cherrywood viaduct has been completed.

Line C1 (Connolly Station-Point Depot) To facilitate the construction of the delta junction between Busaras, Connolly and Harbourmaster Place, services in the Abbey St-Connolly section were suspended from 16 June. Preparatory works, including the widening of the inbound platform at the Abbey St stop and the installation of bollards alongside the line between the Marlborough St and Beresford Pl junctions, were undertaken during late May and early June. After the commencement of the shutdown, the overhead power supplies for both tracks were isolated and grounded in Abbey St and at Connolly. A ‘stop board’ was also installed between the rails of the inbound line at the eastern end of Abbey St Lower.

Area 16 (Store St-Connolly-Mayor Sq) Work on the breaking out of the original trackwork between the crossovers at Connolly and the Amiens St crossing began on 16 June. Once the original track and its concrete foundations were removed, new foundations were quickly laid and new trackwork installed. Work then progressed across the southbound and then the northbound traffic lanes in Amiens St .

Turnouts were installed at the eastern end of the Busaras platform and immediately south of the Connolly crossovers. Short sections of line leading from these turnouts towards Mayor St Lower were also completed. To accommodate the new turnouts at Busaras, the platform there was moved slightly away from Amiens St and the ramp at the Abbey St end was replaced by steps.

The first trams to operate into Connolly after the closure ran as gauging trials on the afternoon of Saturday 6 September. Public services recommenced the following day. To mark the re-opening of the line, complimentary bars of chocolate were distributed to passengers at the stops on Monday 8 September.

Area 17 (Mayor Sq-Point Depot) Work on the new bridge over the Royal Canal at Spencer Dock is progressing well. Both abutments have been completed and the formwork for the deck has been erected.

Trackbed works in Mayor St Upper started in May. Track laying is currently underway on the section immediately east of Royal Canal bridge, where the alignment passes through the site of the former ‘ Midland ’ freight yard, and also between New Wapping St and Castleforbes Rd.

Utility Diversions It is expected that all utility diversion works will be completed by mid-September. The work undertaken involved the diversion of 2,000m of drainage systems, 1,800m of gas pipes, 1,500m of water pipes and 15,000m of communications and power ducting. Additionally, 210 manholes and chambers had to be built.

STOCK

Modifications The programme to extend the Red Line tram fleet from 30m to 40m length was completed on 26 May. The occasion was marked by a ceremony at the Red Cow Depot at which the Minister for Transport ‘launched’  3020, the final tram to be lengthened.

Repair & Maintenance Contract On 17 June the RPA awarded Alstom Ireland a 6-year contract for the repair and maintenance of up to 50 Citadis low floor light rail vehicles.

The remainder of this article appears in IRRS Journal number 167, published October 2008.