The proposed rail link between Navan and Dublin has risen to a €3 billion cost, the National Transport Authority (NTA) has revealed. 

The rail link price has been affected by inflation of approximately €1 billion since costings were first carried out three years ago.

A new report on the rail line estimates it will now cost approximately €3 billion but has said the cost cannot be finalised until closer to the project start date.

Trinity College Dublin School of Engineering Associate Professor Brian Caulfield told Newstalk Breakfast the project "does seem quite expensive” but that this is just what rail projects are costing nowadays.

“The original report that was done on the line back in 2021 said it would be up to about €2 billion - €1 billion more in three or four years does seem quite expensive,” he said.

“The best time to have done these projects was probably 20 years ago, and now the costs have escalated.

“Does that mean Navan shouldn't have a rail line? I don't think so.”

Prof Caulfield said he believes that is the standard rate of inflation for the construction sector.

Capacity

He said the rail line is necessary to serve the people of the region.

“If you look at the population of Navan, it's actually slightly higher than Bray,” he said.

“If you look at the population of Meath, it's 1.4 times higher than Wicklow.

“So in terms of the capacity and what this line could deliver, it is there.”

The new report does compare the rail line against a bus option but the rail option can carry “seven times more people”, Prof Caulfield said.

“So there is in terms of moving people, and if you park economics for a site, it is a viable line,” he said.

"It's time to make decisions"

Prof Caulfield said the benefit is there in terms of population numbers, but the cost benefit ratio has to be looked at if the cost keeps spiralling.

“I suppose one of the things about this report that has been done - it does need to be looked at again, but it doesn't have to go back to first principles,” he said.

“This new Government that's about to take over, they will have all of these options in front of them - it's not go off and do a study on it, the studies are done, now it's time to make decisions.

“The same thing happened with the Metro - the cost will go up once we know exactly what it is that they plan to do. “

Prof Caulfield said that when the greater Dublin area transport strategy was looked at – the Navan rail line was what “people asked for the most”.

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Irish Rail train at Heuston Station in Dublin. Image: Alamy