Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

How many people per day used the two routes being discussed? What did the services cost to provide? Mr. Murphy has said Bus Éireann operates under impediments other operators do not face. Presumably they are operating under licence.

Are different licences allocated to different companies on the same routes? In other words, are there different criteria for different companies and, if so, who sets them? Who sets the PSO routes on the motorway network, particularly on the N7, N8, N9, M6 and M1? As the motorway network was being developed, did the agency responsible for the establishment of PSO routes not think it important to revise them to make sure the towns that would be bypassed would continue to have a service?

In his presentation Mr. Nolan mentioned that the school transport service was making a profit. To what does it amount? To follow on from Senator Paschal Mooney's question, children in the Dublin metropolitan area can travel to school on Dublin Bus, DART and mainline rail services. Why is it the case in rural Ireland that there can be four, if not five, public service buses on the same roads, on the same days and practically at the same times? Why can children living in rural areas not travel to school on a bus bringing a pensioner to the local town? The HSE operates a transport service, while the rural transport service is also in operation. In some instances, two buses pull in to the side of the road at the same time to collect two people. We were promised that this issue would be examined. Has anything happened in that regard?

Mr. Murphy has said Bus Éireann is open to change and willing to work with the NTA. That comment suggests there is not a lot of communication between Bus Éireann and the NTA. Does Mr. Murphy agree that the way this decision was announced was a public relations fiasco? It was a botched announcement and it seems from what we have heard this morning that there is very little, if any, communication between the NTA and Bus Éireann on the management of services.