PPP contract signed yesterday
international |
environment |
news report
Thursday March 08, 2007 12:59
by M. Ni Bhrolchain - Save Tara
The PPP for the M3 has been signed
An Irish Times report, Thursday, March 8, 2007, by Tim O'Brien says that the PPP for the M3 was signed on Wednesday March 7. A dark day for Tara, the Gabhra Valley and for Ireland.
The mutilator
Contracts for the construction of one of the State's most expensive
motorway sections yet, the controversial M3 motorway in Co Meath, have
been signed by Siac Ferrovial and the National Roads Authority. The
cost of the road, including land, is €900 million.
Siac Ferrovial, an Irish-Spanish consortium trading as Eurolink, has
already commenced preparatory works and has moved machinery on to a
site compound at Dunshaughlin. Construction of the 60km of motorway and
50km of ancillary roads is now expected to get under way in earnest.
A spokesman for Minister for the Environment Dick Roche said there were
no outstanding issues in relation to archaeology to delay the start of
the project.
At €900 million, the road is more expensive than all schemes so far
except the upgrade of the M50 where the addition of a third lane and
upgrade of the junctions is expected to cost €1 billion. In comparison,
Dublin Port Tunnel cost some €750 million - although the contractor is
seeking additional payments - and the Shannon Tunnel in Limerick has a
projected cost of about €570 million. The South Eastern Motorway, the
most expensive section of the M50, cost about €500 million.
Opponents of the M3 have not ruled out another legal challenge and in
the last month transport researcher Brian Guckian has lodged complaints
against Ireland with the European Commission and the European
Parliament over four Irish motorway projects, including the M3.
He told The Irish Times yesterday his complaint related to defects in
the environmental impact assessments of the M3, the proposed M7/M8
motorway in the midlands, the Monkstown Ring Road in south Dublin and
two schemes on the N6/M6 between Athlone and Galway.
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Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13At the same time, Fred Barry of the NRA appears in front of the Transport Committee:
Irish Independent, Thursday, March 8th 2007
Why the new-look M50 'will soon grind to a halt'
Warning that extra lanes won't help
THE new-look M50 will grind to a halt almost immediately as an extra 85,000 cars and trucks fill the four new lanes, which will cost €1bn.
The road already carries 85,000 vehicles and this is set to double when the extra lanes and freeflow junctions are completed in three years' time.
Drastic measures - including congestion charging - will be needed if there is not a huge improvement in public transport so that more people leave their cars at home, the Oireachtas Transport Committee heard yesterday. The road had been dubbed the biggest car park in Europe, and the new upgrade spells more bad news for drivers.
National Roads Authority (NRA) chief executive Fred Barry predicted capacity on the road would double as a result of the upgrade.
Volume
However, the volume of traffic would catch up with the improvements very quickly, Mr Barry said.
If public transport did not improve, demand management would be needed.
This normally refers to higher charges at peak times. However, it could include a variety of measures to encourage people to use public transport instead of their private vehicles.
The NRA chief also revealed that 5,000 fed-up drivers have abandoned their daily commute along the M50 since the influx of trucks that were banned from the city centre. These drivers are using "rat runs" though city suburbs instead, to the anger of the suburbs' residents.
The 85,000 vehicles that use the road every day will double to 170,000 when the €1bn upgrade is completed in 2010, Mr Barry and his officials told the committee.
Management
And new demand management systems may be needed for the M50 if the promised suite of public transport is not delivered on time, Mr Barry warned.
The State is in line for a cash bonanza from the extra vehicles using the revamped M50.
The Westlink currently makes €80m a year, with €50m of this going to the private National Toll Roads (NTR) and the remaining €30m to the Exchequer.
From August 2008, when electronic tolling will be introduced, the extra revenue from the increased traffic will all go to the State, with NTR still getting just €50m.
Mr Barry said a report on the proposed new outer orbital motorway would soon be ready.
He pointed out that if the new motorway was built close to the existing M50, this would benefit M50 users.
If it is built along a route which runs past Navan and Naas, these towns would benefit.
Treacy Hogan
The Campaign to Save Tara
Press Statement/Photo Call
TARA PROCLAMATION READ AT DÁIL
Women on Horseback Protest at M3 Route
On Thursday 8th March three women will ride on horseback to the Dáil, where a Proclamation will be read out. The Proclamation asserts the rights of the people of Ireland to their heritage and historical places, and the duty of the Government to protect that heritage. The demonstration is organized by the Campaign to Save Tara to protest at the routing of the proposed M3 tolled motorway through the Tara/ Skryne Valley in Co. Meath.
The three women represent the three ancient Goddesses of Ireland; Ériu, Banbha, and Fódhla, who traditionally stand for Sovereignty, Wisdom and Justice. The protesters claim that these three principles are being breached by the proposed motorway.
The Proclamation says:
“The Government and National Roads Authority scheme to deface the Tara/ Skryne Valley with the M3 tolled motorway signals a massive National and International tragedy that must be prevented. The destruction of our ancestral past inflicts a wound on the collective memory and so this cultural vandalism presents a clear and present threat to the welfare of future generations.
Today, International Women’s Day, we call on the Government, particularly the Taoiseach, the Minister for Transport and the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to reverse the decision to build the M3 in an area which is both timeless and priceless”.
In addition to the re-routing of the road the protesters want the Tara/Skryne Valley designated a World Heritage Site. Under the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, which was signed by Ireland in Paris 1972, the area of the Hill of Tara fulfils all three categories as a World Heritage Site; having being created intentionally, having evolved organically and being of cultural importance.
The Campaign to Save Tara is a new umbrella group based in Navan, its General Election campaign strategy will be formally launched in the next few weeks.
Ends.
Photodesk Note: The demonstration will start at the Famine Memorial at the Custom House at 1pm. It will follow a route via College Green to Kildare St. arriving at the Dáil at approximately 2pm. The Proclamation will be read out in front of the Dáil.
For more information contact:
Heather Bucannon 0876595056
Michael Canney 086 8528200
No less person than Bertie Ahern himself admitted on Newstalk 106 a fortnight ago that the M50 when widened and completed will still not be able to take the extra traffic we'll have by then.
That's why he says that we'll need the new outer orbital ring, which he personally favours.
How come nobody has pointed out to him that with the new outer orbital there'll be no need for the M3 ?
The Dail will be closed next week to allow the Td's to 'Go abroad to promote Ireland'
which is highly ironic , given the PPP signing.
Bertie Ahern Launched his Meath Policy last week,in the face of condemnation
where he asserted that we need more roads- more cars.
FF have used the offices of government for personal gain.
They have not addressed the EU directives and fines on habitat destruction,
nor the issue of Ireland's carbon footprint.
When asked about the 11% increase in emissions Minister Roche asserted
that "it has to be read in the context of rapid development and modernisation"
(vote them out- and if you see them in an Irish Bar , spit in the pint)
The Government is charged with the responsibility of protecting and maintaining
our environment and heritage for future generations. They have created a generation
of mindless zombies who think nothing of what they are creating in the name
of greed and avarice.
The FF way is and always has been to corrupt and abuse and leave the mess
for someone else to clear up, or for the families and survivors of toxic
policy and corrupt planning.
For Shame!
Following the signing of the PPP one wonders at the comments on the academic and the druidic community here and elsewhere. One wonders also about the future of the Tara campaign and if there is any point in going any further with this?
But one wonders more than ever where are the writers, artists, musicians, poets, actors, novelists and film makers of this country? Has more than a handful raised their heads or hands on this issue? And why? Where is Christy Moore, Seamus Heaney who is supposedly so passionate about landscape? At a grander level, where are Enya, Sinead O'Connor, Bono or Bob Geldof? Is seems quite odd to say the least that none of these passionate people have stepped up on Tara? Why? Has this Government hoodwinked everyone and bought them off or sold them the NRA spin? Or is there another reason?
At least the academics and the druids actually did something ... there are many in Ireland who should now hang their heads in shame and should be named and shamed in the future. Their absence will be noted in times to come ... and questions asked as to why they refused to add their names to this cause. If Tara is destroyed they can take some of the blame ...
(c)
There were no horses, some body painting and bizarre interpretation of the Celtic revival ...........
The two women were quite shocked at the event- they thought the protestors were very brave as it was rather chilly.
What, no bras, painted tits, how dare ye go to the Parliament of Holy Catholic Ireland like that, ye brazen Celtic Hussies !
And I don't see druids or academics there and who are the Campaign to Save Tara? Thought that was the Salafia brigade? I don't see him either ... too chilly for him as well perhaps?
If this is the Save Tara campaign - ??????? I suggest that you all give up ... its over lads ... oh and lassies.
With my three lovely wives gone off to the Dail for the day, I had to keep the mares at home here on Tara for, oh well.....
And the Druids were running my creche
The womens protest at the Dail yesterday against the M3 at Tara was spontaneous, not organised, not announced, not publicised. That's why academics, druids etc weren't there, nobody knew in advance that it was going to happen. Thank you, brave ladies
Im a little perplexed by that last comment. Isn't the whole point of staging a protest about being noticed (heard) . Why then was there no advertising/ publicity?
It was organised and advertised and a press release was issued. There is a photograph in the Irish Times today - that's what it was about. Publicity.
This women's demonstration seems like a really good idea to me.
I (for one) hope there will be more of them, and that more women - many more - will join in.
What might be REALLY useful is if such demonstrations attracted international media attention? - as I suspect they have the potential to do.
For any Celtic woman who might be in need of a bit of inspiration, and who has not yet heard of her, there are probably very few better recorded examples than that provided by Boudica (Celtic Queen of the Icini People) - who very nearly succeeded in driving Nero and his Roman Legions out of England.
Thanks very largely to Rome's flair for keeping written records, basic information on Boudica (a name believed to be based on the Celtic word "bouda", meaning "victory") can be found at the following address: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boudica.
Though the accuracy of her historical records are probably much less reliable, there is also our own Queen Meave of course, who lived around the same time (roughly) as Boudica . Some basic information on Queen Meave can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medb .
Some modern researchers of Iron Age Irish history, such as Tom O'Connor for example, appear to be entirely convinced that the Turoe Stone in County Galway lay at the centre of Queen Meave's power-base. A very sexy symbol created for a very sexy woman maybe? For more, please see at http://homepage.eircom.net/~williamfinnerty/protest/nov...e.htm
A final thought, and not many (?) at the present time know this perhaps: Under the ancient Brehon Law of Ireland, Celtic women were equal to men with regard to education, property, and all sorts of other things. More at: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Brehon+Law%2C+Celt...earch