The underground system has faced significant delays over the past 20 years.
More than €150m has been spent on Dublin's Metro up to the end of last year - despite no "significant" physical work.
An estimate of the project - which would run from Swords, through the airport and into the city centre - puts the cost at around €9.5b .
The underground rail system has faced significant delays over the past two decades.
Speaking at the Public Accounts Committee, its chair, Laois Offaly Sinn Féin TD Brian Stanley, says the cost of preparatory works are "astronomical":
Laois Gardaí Concerned For Missing Woman
Gardaí Searching For Missing Laois Teenager
Man In His 90s Dies In Laois Crash
Offaly Prize Bonds Holder Wins €500k
BNM Workshop Reunion Taking Place In Offaly Tomorrow
ICTU Reminds Employees Of The Right To Disconnect
Laois Town To Host Famine Commemoration Event
Plans For Billion Euro Data Centre In Westmeath Face New Appeal
Westmeath Councillor Advocates For More Remote Working Hubs
Midlands Homelessness On The Rise
Hundreds Without Power In Westmeath
Westmeath Domestic Abuse Support Service Reports Rise In Cases
Laois TD Highlights GP Gap
Call Made For 'Cost Of Disability Payment' in Budget 2027
Offaly Coffee Shop Listed Among Top 100 In Europe
Man To Stand Trial Over Midlands Tasering Accusation
Another Report Underlines Midlands House Price Inflation
Midlands Braced For Severe Thunderstorms
Sustainable Livestock Village Programme Launched For Tullamore Show
Offaly Woman Named National Carer Of The Year