The role in the Dublin Port tunnel project of an Austrian engineering firm convicted of safety failures in London last month is to be examined at a public inquiry which opened yesterday. Objectors to the project are "very seriously concerned" about the involvement of the Austrian firm, Geoconsult, which was fined £500,000 sterling arising from the collapse of part of a tunnel for the Heathrow Express rail link, the inquiry was told.
The inquiry into the Dublin Port tunnel motorway scheme is being conducted by two inspectors, Mr Anthony O'Connell and Dr Vincent O'Malley, and is likely to take several weeks.
At its opening Mr Alex White, for the Marino Development Action Group, a coalition of residents' associations, said a Dublin Corporation environmental impact study had been carried out with the involvement of Geoconsult and another firm, Ove Arup and Partners.
Convicting Geoconsult last month, a court in London had described the Heathrow tunnel collapse as "one of the worst civil engineering disasters in the UK in the last quarter of a century".
"What precisely is the role of Geoconsult, because it's a matter of very serious concern to the objectors?" Mr White asked. One of the inspectors, Mr O'Connell, said the matter would certainly be "teased out". Representation was granted to a large number of interested parties, including residents' groups along or near the tunnel route and local politicians, who will be allowed to cross-examine expert witnesses for Dublin Corporation and the National Roads Authority. These will begin giving evidence today.
The tunnel, to run between the M1 at Santry and the north port area, is due to be completed by 2003 at an overall estimated cost of £180 million. When the inquiry is completed a final decision on the project will be made by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Mr Dempsey.
The inquiry, sitting at the Teachers' Club in Parnell Square, resumes today at 10 a.m.
