Parliamentary Question addressed to the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport

To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the number of new trams that will be purchased to serve on the LUAS cross city service and their expected date of delivery; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
 

Reply:

As Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport I have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport. Following the establishment of the National Transport Authority (NTA) in December 2009, the implementation and development of infrastructure projects in the Greater Dublin Area (GDA), such as Luas Cross City, comes under the remit of the NTA.

However for the Deputy’s information the advance enabling works for the project have recently commenced. Procurement for the project’s main contract will commence in 2014 with main construction works targeted to start in early 2015. The target date for commencement of services is end-2017.

The procurement process for the purchase of trams is currently at an early stage. The trams are programmed to arrive to facilitate testing and commissioning in advance of the scheduled opening of the line in late 2017. A provision for the cost of the new trams has been included in the business case.

In light of the NTA’s responsibility in the matter I have referred the Deputy’s question to the NTA for direct reply in relation to the specific queries raised. Please advise my private office if you don’t receive a reply within 10 working days.