Ireland is facing a Significant Crisis | Transport and Housing - METRO DUBLIN

Ireland is facing a significant crisis | Transport and Housing

22/10/2024

22 Oct 2024 - Jed van de Poll - CEO of Metro Dublin

Ireland's housing and infrastructure crisis is being exacerbated by an overly restrictive planning system, and urgent, decisive action—similar to a wartime mentality— is required to streamline regulations and prioritise essential projects to meet the population's critical needs.

Apartments in Adamstown

Ireland is facing a significant crisis, and at the heart of it lies the housing shortage. Our current housing stock is woefully inadequate to meet the needs of the population, yet the planning system in place is fundamentally failing to support the level of construction required to address this. It's time for a radical shift in how we approach this problem. I believe Ireland must adopt a wartime mentality to overcome the bottlenecks in the system, and this includes not only streamlining planning regulations but also fast-tracking the essential infrastructure projects that will support the mass building of new homes.

To move forward, we must prioritise the most urgent needs over lengthy procedures that delay progress. Unfortunately, many of the current planning regulations—while well-intentioned—are adding months, if not years, to the process. These "nice to have" regulations, which are no doubt designed with the environment and other factors in mind, are not viable when faced with a national housing emergency. When there's an existential threat to the well-being of a population, we must be willing to adjust our approach. While we’re not yet in the middle of a full-blown crisis, it's clear that certain environmental restrictions are not just slowing down housing development—they're actively preventing it.

Take, for instance, the recent situation in Killarney, which was highlighted by the YouTube channel Polysee. Here, the construction of over 200 new homes was blocked due to concerns about a bat flight path. And, to be clear, this isn't about an endangered species. At a time when there are just two properties available for rent in the area, the well-being of the bats has been prioritised over the well-being of the people. This isn't an isolated case—it's a symptom of a much larger problem. Multiply this scenario across Dublin, where housing shortages are even more acute, and it’s clear that we are facing a perfect storm.

The housing crisis is just one side of the coin. If we look at the infrastructure challenges Ireland faces—especially the long-promised Metro Link—the situation becomes even more alarming. The construction of the 92-kilometer Metro Dublin will require an enormous collective will to push through the bureaucratic, political, and environmental barriers that seem to stand in the way of every major infrastructure project in this country. We've waited five generations for a metro system in Dublin, and if we continue with the same approach, we may be waiting five more.

Metro Madrid Train

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Just look at Madrid. They were able to plan and start a 120-kilometer metro extension in just six months (completed in just 6 years). So why can’t we? It is entirely possible to make Metro Dublin a reality by 2032, but only if we are willing to put the people of Dublin first. This means cutting through the red tape, setting aside unnecessary regulations, and taking decisive action to meet the needs of the population. We need vision, leadership, and, above all, the political will to make it happen. The question is, are we ready to act?