Richard Curran's report on Luas (25th June 2006) indicated that the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) had not been directed by government to recover its capital expenditure and non-operating costs. It quotes the RPA as saying that "no toll road in the world for example has recovered its capital costs". Has the RPA never heard of the East and West Links and is the National Roads Authority not endeavouring to do exactly that with its tolls? Imagine, ESB constructing a power station and only charging for the cost of fuel and local labour, or Aer Lingus ignoring the cost of aircraft when setting ticket prices. I suppose that this approach is only to be expected given Minister Seamus Brennan's suggested on Prime Time that Luas was "planned on the back of an envelope".
Letter published by the Sunday Business Post on 2nd July 2006.
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