The government's decision to scrap the planned DART Underground has been slammed by Fianna Fáil.

Spokesperson on Dublin Senator Darragh O'Brien accused the Transport Minister of finding any excuse of trying to ditch the plans.

Senator O'Brien said: "The DART Underground is an essential piece of infrastructure that would transform our public transport network, by radically increasing capacity, dramatically improving the customer experience, and finally allowing Dublin to compete with other capital cities in terms of public transport.

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"It is inexcusable that the Government is ditching these plans in what can only be seen as an entirely political and extremely short-sighted move.

"Instead of investing in a key piece of infrastructure that will ultimately result in a significant boost to our economy and put Dublin on the map in global terms, the Transport Minister has kicked the plans back to design stage using the flimsy excuse of costs.

"This is nothing more than an attempt at political cover to free the Government up to spend the money on small transport projects around the country in a vain attempt to salvage votes."

(CD/JP)