Tadgh McNally reports from Hong Kong

GREEN PARTY LEADER Eamon Ryan has said “transport-led development” could help solve the housing crisis.

Minister Ryan is in Hong Kong today, where he visited the West Kowloon high-speed rail station.

The vast rail complex was constructed by Mass Transit Railway Corporation, which is a majority government-owned public transport operator and property developer in Hong Kong.

The entire area surrounding the West Kowloon station is filled with residential accommodation, which is all centrally owned by MTR Corporation.

Ryan has also met the chair of MTR Corporation Rex Auyeung.

Minister @EamonRyan is in Hong Kong today visiting the West Kowloon high-speed rail station.

He's met with the Mass Transit Railway chairman, Rex Auyeung, and toured the massive rail complex. pic.twitter.com/p9OPTLGSyi

— Tadgh McNally (@TadghMcN) March 14, 2023

Speaking after the tour, Ryan said these “transport-led developments” – if carried out in Ireland – could help solve the housing crisis.

Speaking to The Journal in Hong Kong, Ryan said: “I think what’s really interesting is the concept of transport-led development.

“So you build the rail line first, and then you build the accommodation with it so it helps solve the housing crisis. That’s the model here, where you get the station and then you build over it.”

Ryan said it was good “to see a working example of large scale transport-led development.”

Last September, Transport Infrastructure Ireland today submitted the application to An Bord Pleanála for Dublin’s Metrolink, which has been described as an “ambitious rail megaproject”.

Under current timelines, construction of the MetroLink is earmarked to begin in 2025, with a view to it being in operation in the early 2030s.

Ireland remains one of only a small number of countries in Europe without a metro in its biggest city or a rail connection to its main international airport, making the MetroLink service the first of its kind.

While the “precise” cost of the project is not yet known, the “central” estimate is €9.5 billion, but there is an upper estimate costing with “high inflation and contingencies” that rises to €12.25 billion.

Meanwhile, Ryan told The Journal that a “key thing” for him is the provision of more money for public transport.

An EY Ireland report on Fare Free Public Transport in Ireland, carried out on behalf of the National Transport Authority, claimed “there may be unwanted behavioural issues associated with FFT (Fare Free Travel)”.

“The policy could result in government spending being used to facilitate unnecessary trips,” added the report.

While Ryan told The Journal that he doesn’t think people taking “unnecessary journeys” would be a “big issue”, he said: “The big issue is we want more public transit, we want more frequency, we want more services, more routes, and you have got to pay for that.

“Part of that is the fare revenue. We’ve done a 50% fare cut for those under 24, a 20% cut for everyone, I’m all in favour of lower public transport rates, but you also want more and I think the really big issue is how do we fund more.”

-With additional reporting from Diarmuid Pepper