Issues in national transport policy

Abstract

This paper is concerned with inland or internal transport in Ireland and not with other forms of transport, i.e., with sea or air transport. Its focus is mainly on the future development of transport facilities and services, but this naturally requires some consideration also of the utilisation and upkeep of existing facilities and services. The discontinuance of the road tax on private motor cars below a certain horsepower and the consequential transfer of the cost of road improvements to voted capital expenditure financed by the Exchequer, together with the shift of part of the maintenance cost of roads from local rates to the Exchequer, make it opportune to re-appraise public expenditure on roads and transport generally. Serious transport problems exist and are apparent in the growing congestion in Dublin and Cork and the mounting deficit of the public transport undertaking, CIE. The uncertain outlook for oil, both in relation to its continued availability and its cost, means that transport development policy must have increased regard to energy considerations.