Organisers want Dart to run during Dún Laoghaire festival

CIÉ has been urged to reconsider a decision not to operate a Dart service during the big international arts and culture festival in Dún Laoghaire next month.

The programme for the Festival of World Cultures is due to be announced today and is expected to include artists from more than 30 countries. But organisers fear they will be deprived of many of their visitors following a refusal by CIÉ to suspend work on the Dart for the festival weekend.

Now in its fifth year, the largely free festival attracted 160,000 visitors over its three days last August, and the organisers, Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council, estimated that some 70 per cent of these travelled by Dart.

But this year the Dart line will be closed at weekends throughout the summer to allow for upgrade work.

Festival director Jody Ackland said the loss of the Dart would have major implications.

"There will be major traffic congestion, nowhere to park, and we may lose the majority of our audience," she said.

Arrangements have been made for additional Dublin Bus services to operate on routes along the Dart line at weekends over the summer, with an extra 35,000 seats each weekend.

But the council does not believe the extra buses will be able to replace the Dart.