Dublin Port Trade Car Terminal T6 opens on October 13th 2014
The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Paschal Donohoe, TD, officially opened Dublin Port Company’s new trade car terminal on October 13th 2014, the company said in its press release.
The new terminal is located at East Wall Road and will cater for 2,500 vehicles at a time, monitored by a state-of-the-art security system manned on a 24/7/365 basis. The opening follows a 13 month development and construction phase and €3.4 million investment by Dublin Port Company in the new facility.
The works include the construction of a new 80m flyover bridge across East Wall Road. The bridge allows cars to move between the port estate and the new terminal without any interruption to traffic in the surrounding areas. The perimeter of the terminal also incorporates a ‘living wall’, or vertical façade of green plants, which will be visible from East Wall Road by mid-next year as a permanent feature of the facility.
Measuring 4.3 hectares, the terminal will accommodate the growing number of trade vehicles entering Dublin Port as Ireland returns to economic growth. Figures for 2014 already show a strong increase in numbers.
There were 58,399 trade vehicles recorded in the first nine months of 2014, up 29.8% on the 44,987 that arrived in the same period last year. New figures for the third quarter this year show the arrival of 14,802 trade vehicles, mostly new cars destined for car dealerships, up 48.8% on the corresponding quarter in 2013.
Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Paschal Donohoe, TD, said: “The opening of the new trade car terminal at Dublin Port signals confidence in Ireland’s economic recovery and motor industry. The car industry supports thousands of jobs and this investment by Dublin Port Company will further facilitate the growth in this sector. The opening of the terminal today reaffirms Dublin Port Company’s commitment to planning for future growth in a timely and forward-thinking manner.”
Eamonn O’Reilly, Chief Executive, Dublin Port Company said: “Dublin Port Company is pleased to officially open our new trade car terminal today. We have invested €3.4 million in developing this facility that will cater for the growing number of trade vehicles arriving at Dublin Port. The trade vehicle figures for 2014 are already positive, up almost 30% on this time last year. We expect 2014 to be Dublin Port’s strongest year for trade since the peak of 2007 and trade vehicle imports will be an integral part of future growth.”
Lucy McCaffrey, Chairperson, Dublin Port Company said: “Dublin Port Company made a commitment in the Masterplan to utilise existing lands to the greatest extent possible. By locating the new trade car terminal on East Wall Road, Dublin Port Company has further consolidated its use of existing quayside space, allowing other port operations to benefit from improved proximity to the quays. Today’s trade car terminal opening is a very practical example of how Dublin Port Company is delivering on that commitment under the Masterplan.”