Kildare TD opposes decision to stall DART + South West

A Kildare North TD has demanded speaking time in the Dail to oppose a decision to stall vital investment in Kildare’s public transport.

Deputy Aidan Farrelly (SD) said he was “angry and disappointed” after news that the Government will postpone construction of Dart + South West (which was intended to bring the DART to Hazelhatch station) until, at the earliest, 2030.

“It’s beyond irony that at a time when Kildare TDs have been receiving numerous emails from people frustrated and burnt out from never ending delays and cancellations in all forms of public and private transport, the Government has decided to pause plans to make life easier for them,” he said.

“This project was shovel ready - planning permission was all sorted and it was expected to start work in the new year.

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“I know I sound like a broken record, but there is a simple fact that successive governments have failed to grasp - the population of Kildare has doubled in the past 30 years, more so in the northern half of the county – and a lot of these new residents move here with the intention of commuting to and from Dublin.

“We are hearing numerous stories of cancelled or full buses, cancelled trains or passengers never getting a seat, ghost buses with nobody on them going to and from all the wrong places, or people sitting in their cars for hours on end just to travel 20kms.

“That’s not to mention a lack of joined up thinking in terms of connecting services.

“The DART+ South West was the first bit of good news in years for commuters from the Celbridge area, as well as those further along the line in Sallins and Naas – and now that’s gone.”

Deputy Farrelly said pushing the project down the line – beyond the lifetime of the current government – calls its future into question.

The matter, he stated, "isn’t just a serious quality of life issue", but has the capacity to inflict significant economic damage on our county.

“It’s time the Government wakes up and begins to understand the needs of people in Kildare generally and their transport needs in particular”, he concluded.