I am proposing that a light rail link be built serve the planned new
residential areas between Baldoyle and Clonshaugh.  Between them Dublin City Council
and Fingal County Council have zoned land for housing for a population
of approximately 40,000 people.  Part of this is a new Dart Station to
the east of the zoned area, just north of Baldoyle.
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The engineers from the two Councils are now proposing that the
distributor road which will give access to the housing area should also
act as a long-distance access road duplicating the M50 motorway from
Baldoyle to Blanchardstown.  The Council engineers propose that in the
middle of an area zoned for housing two flyover junctions are
constructed.  This proposal would have disastrous implications for the
residents in the area.  The lack of quality public transport for this
high-density development would ensure that all the neighbouring areas
of the Northside would be flooded with traffic.
A multi-modal integrated study should be carried out.  

While roads are being designed, there have been no studies of the public transport facilities for this enormous population.

We are proposing that a multi-modal transportation study be carried out analysing the rail options for this area.  We suggest that the east-west route could be used for a surface metro/light rail.  

The light rail route would go along the proposed new distributor road to join up with the proposed Metro North and Metro West.  It would start from the new Dart Station at Stapolin (Baldoyle), with stops at Hole in the Wall Road, Balgriffin, Belcamp, Clonshaugh and joining the Metro north alignment south of the Airport.  

Trams/metro trains could share the Metro North alignment until Ballymun and then either a) continue on the Metro West route,  with interchage to the Metro North Route, or b) travel south on the Metro North alignment into the city centre, with interchange to the Metro West Route.  This integration with Metro North means it will be possible to build and operate the route together with the Metro North route.  

The link across the M1 motorway should be available only to public transport, bicycles and pedestrians.  The motorway is already available to facilitate trucks and cars.  Facilitating long-distance east-west traffic on this east-west distributor road would ruin the possibilities of creating a decent residential area around it.”

My motion directing that a study be carried out on this light rail link was agreed by the Council in September:
"…That the Council direct the
Manager to seek to carry out a multi-modal transport study in relation
to transport in the North Fringe/South Fringe area (Stapolin,
Donaghmede, Balgriffin, Belcamp, Clonshaugh) with Dublin City Council’s
co-operation, to include consideration of the possibilities for a light
rail link between the Dublin-Belfast railway line at Stapolin and the
Metro in the vicinity of Ballymun/Dublin Airport and other possible
rail links and to include consideration of roads, bus routes, cycling
routes and walking routes in the area."