Government and NTA Under Pressure Over €50m Failed Irish Rail Traffic Management Project

Irish Rail's failed traffic management system has cost taxpayers over €50 million and is currently more than two years behind schedule, according to details debated during Leaders' Questions in the Dáil.

Sinn Féin Deputy Pearse Doherty raised serious concerns over the project, stating that the new system failed safety testing and has been written off as a complete failure. He revealed that taxpayers are currently paying €100,000 every single week while the Government and the National Transport Authority (NTA) decide whether to terminate the contract. Additionally, a further €200,000 is being spent on an investigation to establish how the project failed.

According to Deputy Doherty, Irish Rail briefing papers show the company requested the termination of the contract a year ago, warning that it had lost confidence in the contractor's ability to deliver. The Department of Transport was reportedly alerted to project risks and red flags last October.

In response, the Tánaiste, Simon Harris, acknowledged that the new traffic management system, designed to oversee signalling and other railway systems, has been delayed beyond its completion date. However, he defended the wider public transport capital programme, stating that the physical National Train Control Centre building itself was delivered on time and within budget, and is currently in use by Irish Rail and An Garda Síochána.

The Tánaiste confirmed that the Minister for Transport met with the NTA and the contractor, Indra, last year and again in January of this year to discuss the delivery of the system, and that a baseline programme has since been agreed between Irish Rail and the NTA.