Residents in the locality of the proposed MetroLink terminus in Charlemont have called for the "extremely tight" consultation period for the project to be extended into next year.
The planning application for the underground rail line was lodged on September 30. The MetroLink will start in Swords and finish in Charlemont and, crucially, serve Dublin Airport under the plans.
Interested parties will have until November 25 - eight weeks from when the plans were lodged - to make observations or objections to An Bord Pleanala. The Charlemont/Dartmouth Community Group, which claims to represent over 1,000 residents, previously called for the Charlemont terminus to be relocated. The group says this period is not long enough for a project of this "monumental scale and impact".
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In a letter to the Chief Executive Officer of the National Transport Authority, Anne Graham, which was seen by Dublin Live, the community group requested the consultation period be extended to the end of January. They said: "We believe that an 8 week Rail Order Observation period on a project of this monumental scale and impact is far too short a time in which to expect Community Groups to adequately respond.
"We are therefore asking that the timeframe be extended to the end of January 2023. We are aware that many other resident groups from North Dublin are also looking for an extension, so the requirement is broad across many communities."
Community groups were offered the services of independent expert engineers, RINA, to help them understand the plans and make their submissions. The Charlemont/Dartmout Community Group say RINA told them it would take a minimum of four weeks for them to report back on the plans which they received on September 29.
The group said: "In effect, this leaves resident groups with only 2-3 weeks to prepare our submissions. This is totally inadequate given the complexity and scale of documentation."
They added that this "extremely tight" timeframe was "unfair and undemocratic" when the NTA and Transport Infrastructure Ireland have had "years" to plan the project. The group concluded by urging the NTA to extend the deadline "in the interest of good stakeholder relations".
Chairperson of the Dublin Commuter Coalition Feljin Jose told Dublin Live it would be "unacceptable" to further delay a project that has been "consulted to death". He said: "The minimum statutory consultation period for Strategic Infrastructure Development applications is only six weeks. MetroLink will have an eight week observation period.
"MetroLink has spent almost five years in route selection, design and planning including two high profile non-statutory public consultations and local consultations. Inflicting a further two month delay for further public consultation on a project that has been consulted to death would be unacceptable."
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