Ceisteanna Coitianta a bhaineann go sonrach le Tionscadail

Cliceáil ar lógó thíos chun teacht ar na Ceisteanna Coitianta a bhaineann leis an tionscadal DART+ sin.

Ceisteanna Coitianta

DART+ Coastal North is seeking to extend the existing electrified rail network from Malahide to Drogheda as well as increasing rail capacity on the Northern Line between Dublin City Centre and Drogheda MacBride Station, including the Howth Branch. This increased rail capacity can be achieved by implementing an extended electrified railway network with high-capacity DART trains and an increased frequency of train services. In addition, the DART+ Coastal North project requires that some track modifications are implemented, including the provision of turnback facilities at Malahide, Clongriffin and Howth Junction & Donaghmede Stations. These modifications are essential to facilitate the increase in train services by allowing trains to be turned back clear of continuing services and to allow for a higher frequency and a more reliable service.

The proposed changes to the Howth Branch will facilitate an increase in both DART service frequency and capacity, along with improvements to the reliability of timetabling and service operation. Operational benefits linked to the infrastructural upgrades will allow for greater operational flexibility and optimisation of services on the Howth Branch.

The current level crossing barrier opening and closing timings have been used to inform a traffic model assessing the effects on vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians. Detailed assessment of the four existing level crossings along the Howth Branch Line has concluded that these level crossings can continue to operate and provide an appropriate level of cross connectivity and accessibility whilst still meeting the increased DART service frequency requirement. The increased frequency of level crossing closures will result in a greater likelihood of vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists being required to queue at the crossings, however, the traffic modelling and sensitivity analysis has shown that queue lengths are likely to remain within the available queueing road space in all cases. Based on the assessments carried out to date, additional infrastructural interventions at the four level crossings are not considered necessary.

The impacts on traffic surrounding the Howth Branch level crossings have been assessed using LinSig modelling software. LinSig is an industry standard software tool which allows traffic engineers to model traffic signals and their effect on traffic capacities and queuing. This was used to investigate the impacts of the barrier closures on the surrounding road network and further details are included in Annex 3.7 Appendix B of the published material which is available through the project website https://www.dartplus.ie/en-ie/projects/dart-north.

The traffic data used in the level crossing assessments was based on surveys carried out in May 2022. These included classified vehicle junction turning count surveys over a 14-hour time period between 0600 and 2000 at the junctions within the study area and also at the level crossings within the study area. The data also included queue length surveys and pedestrian count surveys. The AM peak hour was determined to occur between 0800 and 0900 and the PM peak hour between 1730 and 1830 (refer to Annex A). These are the busiest periods on the road network and the impact of the proposed level crossing closures was therefore assessed for these time periods. Historical traffic data (2018/2019) was available at some of the junctions adjacent to the Kilbarrack and Sutton level crossings and a comparison of the most recent traffic data (2022) and the historic traffic data (2018/2019) has shown that traffic levels observed in the recent surveys have, to a large extent, returned to pre-Covid levels in the study area. The most recent 2022 traffic count data were therefore considered a suitable data source for the assessment.

The effects of any changes to traffic patterns will be fully assessed as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIAR) and Traffic Impact Assessment (TIA) and it should also be noted that the EIAR accompanying the Railway Order application will include a comprehensive assessment of potential air quality and climate impacts resulting from the proposed DART+ Coastal North development.

An existing user worked Level Crossing (XB001) located to the south of Donabate Station is to be closed as a part of DART+ Coastal North. This is as a result of the introduction of electrification and increase in train frequency on the Northern Line which significantly increases the safety risks at this level crossing to users of the crossing and to rail traffic. Level crossings on the Howth Branch are not currently expected to close, initial assessment of the four existing level crossings on the Howth Branch line has indicated that these level crossings can continue to operate while still providing a more efficient and optimised service overall.