THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD consider building a second ring road west of the M50, according to Fianna Fáil TD John Curran.

The comments from the Dublin Mid-West TD come a day after Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) chief executive Michael Nolan ruled out such a move.

Speaking at the Project Ireland 2040 transport plan launch yesterday Nolan said there has been a “huge increase” in traffic in the last three or four years, with the M50 currently operating at traffic levels which were not predicted to occur until the mid-2020s.

However, Nolan said a ring road is not the answer.

The M50 is a “finite piece of road space and we can’t keep building our way out of the problem. We need a public transport solution,” he said yesterday.

Building an outer ring road to the M50 would help with access, but it would not reduce traffic on the motorway, said the TII boss.

Curran argued today that such a project should be looked at, adding that it would help alleviate gridlock on the M50.

“There is no further scope or capacity on the M5o,” he said, adding:

I believe it is about time we looked at alternatives and in my view that is the possibility of an outer ring road west of the M50.

He said traffic levels and congestion are growing in Dublin city.

“It is costing us hundreds of millions per annum on traffic congestion in Dublin alone,” said Curran.

“It is a serious project that should be investigated and investigated in tandem with where our housing developments are. There are housing developments in my own area – one with 10,000 units and one with 8,500 housing units.

“An outer orbital route would be a significant investment. It would take several years but we have to have a vision of where we see Dublin in ten or twenty years’ time. It does not replace public transport, but adds to the infrastructure that I believe is necessary,” he said.