Does MetroLink have planning permission?
Yes. An Coimisiun Pleanala made the Railway Order for MetroLink on 30 September 2025 (case ABP-314724-22), three years to the day after Transport Infrastructure Ireland lodged the application on 30 September 2022. The order - covering the 18.8 km, 16-stop line from Estuary north of Swords to Charlemont via Dublin Airport - followed a 22-day oral hearing in early 2024 and carries conditions. One judicial review, brought by residents of Dartmouth Square, was withdrawn in December 2025, leaving the order standing.
Every filing on the record
The Railway (MetroLink - Estuary to Charlemont via Dublin Airport) Order: 18.8 km and 16 stops, largely tunnelled under the city. Decided after a 22-day oral hearing in February-March 2024; legal-sector analysis of the order counts 31 conditions.
The order's only court test ended without a judgment: nineteen residents of Dartmouth Square West and one company sought judicial review on the eve of the deadline in November 2025, and withdrew the challenge on 23 December 2025 after mediation in which TII agreed to purchase the objectors' houses (Irish Times; RTE).
With consent settled, the story moves to procurement and delivery: main-civils tendering activity began appearing in 2026, and the project's cost and delivery-vehicle questions now sit with government rather than the planning system.
What to watch next
- Main-civils procurement milestones through 2026.
- Compliance submissions against the Railway Order conditions.
- Any delivery-body or funding legislation naming the project.
Core documents
The primary sources behind this tracker - reports, orders and official records, linked directly for researchers.
Method: compiled from the public planning register as ingested by PlanningLeads; updated 16 July 2026. Registers move as cases progress - always check the live record before relying on a status. Organisation campuses only; no personal data is reported.