Sinn Féin TD for Wicklow, John Brady, has raised serious concerns over the €1.16 million already spent on the proposed Ashford–Rathnew Park and Ride facility, amid continued uncertainty over when construction will actually begin.
In a response to a parliamentary question from Deputy Brady, the National Transport Authority (NTA) confirmed that Wicklow County Council acquired the site by agreement using NTA grant funding, at a cost of approximately €950,000.
The NTA confirmed that total expenditure on the project to date amounts to approximately €1.16 million. This includes the acquisition of the site, professional fees, preparation of planning and design documentation, detailed exploratory site investigations, and other costs associated with the project, including staff, printing and publication expenses relating to the statutory planning process.
However, despite the significant expenditure, the NTA has confirmed that construction is unlikely to begin in 2027, although the capital budget has yet to be finalised.
Teachta Brady said:
“The continued failure to deliver the Ashford–Rathnew Park and Ride facility is utterly unacceptable and represents yet another broken promise to the people of Wicklow.
“This project has been talked about for years. In 2023, the NTA stated that it would be delivered by 2025, but that timeline quickly slipped. The project then went through a lengthy and thorough public consultation process in 2024 and was formally approved by the full Wicklow County Council in March 2025. At that meeting, councillors and the public were clearly told that this much-needed facility, providing 210 car parking spaces, would be delivered and operational by Q4 2026.
“The latest information shows that approximately €1.16 million has already been spent developing the project, including €950,000 on the acquisition of the site.
“But despite this expenditure and preparation, there is still no certainty about when construction will begin.
“The NTA has confirmed that, due to the funding available under the revised National Development Plan and the Department of Transport’s Sectoral Investment Plan, it will not be possible to advance all Park and Ride projects at the rate previously anticipated.
“We are now being told that it is unlikely that construction of the Ashford–Rathnew facility will commence in 2027, although the NTA's 2027 capital budget is still being finalised.
“The public was consulted, the council approved the project, and public money has already been invested to bring it to this point.
“It is simply not good enough for over €1.1 million to have been spent and for the people of Wicklow to still have no clarity on when this badly needed facility will be delivered.
“It will also not be lost on people that this news follows the scandal of the substantially complete €11 million Park and Ride in Fassaroe still not becoming operational, due to a lack of funding for buses to serve the facility.
“So, we have a brand new €11 million facility in Fassaroe locked up, and over €1 million spent on the Ashford-Rathnew project with no clarity on when it will be progressed.
“This is a complete failure to deliver for the people of Wicklow.
“The Government needs to provide certainty, make the necessary funding available and move these projects forward without further delay.
“The people of Wicklow deserve better than more uncertainty and more broken timelines.”
ENDS