News

Northern Ireland’s roads will become much busier over the next decade due to rapid population growth, high levels of construction activity and continued economic expansion according to a new report.

Launched today by InterTradeIreland and the IBEC/CBI Joint Business Council the ‘Freight Transport Report for the Island of Ireland’ makes 21 recommendations which would benefit trade and business on both sides of the border including:

•updating out-of-date and inaccurate forecasting tools to take account of population growth projections. (recent official projection of 4% in NI in the 5 years from 2006, is close to double the past growth rate and will lead to a 10% increase in NI population by 2021)

•increasing port capacity (although Belfast Port has set a target of double capacity by 2020, ferry capacity is already often unavailable at peak times and there is a lack of Ro-Ro capacity)

•improving bottlenecks at access routes to ports at Belfast (York St/Westlink junction),Warrenpoint (Newry Southern Relief Road) and Larne (full dualling of the A8)

•accelerating the pace of investment in key road corridors in Northern Ireland by completing schemes to dual the A5 and A6 as soon as possible.

•co-operating North-South and East-West to regulate and support the freight industry

•involving hauliers in transport planning

InterTradeIreland chairman Dr David Dobbin CBE said: “The ability to move people and goods rapidly from destination to destination is crucial to encourage economic growth across the island.

“A world class infrastructure is a key driver of competitiveness – on its own, it will not make companies competitive but without it their competitive position will be undermined.

“Our recommendations cover the complete cycle of goods movements with the emphasis on integrating the ports with the roads network, minimising the impact of congestion, and supporting the freight industry through joint regulation where appropriate.”

William Poole, chief executive of the IBEC/CBI Joint Business Council said: “There is a clear East-West as well as North-South dimension to the problem, as many Irish ports depend on swift transit across the GB land-bridge to remain competitive.

“This is of huge importance, with around 100,000 vehicles every year travelling in each direction and feedback from businesses indicating that congestion and poor access to ports on the west coast of GB are imposing additional costs.

“Both Governments should work with their counterparts in England, Scotland and Wales to ensure appropriate investment is prioritised to eliminate any bottlenecks.”

The Freight Study reveals that by 2006 half of all the tonnes lifted in Northern Ireland were of construction materials for new dwellings, commercial buildings and transport infrastructure projects.

In the previous decade, containerised traffic going through the island’s ports increased by 125% and Ro-Ro by 70% - and this was expected to grow to service a rise of 10% in Northern Ireland’s population by 2010.

The Report also recommends co-operation with England, Scotland and Wales to prioritise reliable links to GB ports, the standardisation of taxes, speed limits and regulations, and proactive involvement in European transport funding programmes.

In the South, the Report says the priority is getting goods “the last mile” to ports, particularly the major gateways of Dublin and Cork. Congestion and local access roads are also of keen concern to business, and recommendations include carrying out roadworks at night, congestion charging on the M50 and the construction of the Leinster outer orbital route and eastern bypass.