Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 29 June 2016

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport

Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 31 - Transport, Tourism and Sport (Revised)

9:00 am

Photo of Imelda MunsterImelda Munster (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister has answered some of my questions in part. The Minister spoke about road improvements and maintenance and mentioned the difference of €43 million. The gentleman beside him said the spend for 2015 may be matched for this year but can the Minister clarify if this is the case? If it is not the case, is it sustainable to decrease funding for local road improvements and maintenance? Only six months ago, the CEO of Louth County Council told us the situation with regard to local roads funding was so dire that the council needed to prioritise which potholes to fill in. The world and his brother know there is a serious lack of funding for local roads and their maintenance not just in Louth, but right across the State. I am not just talking about potholes but road safety measures at junctions and all the other necessary works that need to be carried out, whether they relate to road safety issues in rural areas or built-up and urban areas.

In the capital plan for public transport, there is a note about measures to improve public transport accessibility. Can the Minister direct me to where it shows the funding identified for accessibility to public transport for people with disabilities? In a priority question recently I raised with the Minister the difficulties encountered by people with disabilities. He replied that he had not realised how bad it was until he started researching. It is obvious that this has not been prioritised. Yesterday, I received a response from the NTA to a question which the Minister had referred to that body about a particular route, though this applies right across the State. On this particular route, the 190 from Laytown to Drogheda, wheelchair users are very often left at the side of the road, watching the public bus drive on without them. The NTA's response was disappointing, to say the least, and shameful at worst. It stated that double-decker buses may be assigned to the route. That does not take this matter seriously or treat it as a priority. Will the Minister go back to wheelchair users in Louth and east Meath and ask them if they mind sitting at the side of the road for another six months or 12 months until the NTA takes this matter seriously?

If there are double-decker buses that are wheelchair-accessible, which there clearly are, as the NTA has suggested, it could switch a double-decker bus back onto this route. Can the Minister intervene to see to it that this is done in Louth and east Meath and in other areas across the State where there are similar problems with wheelchair accessibility?

Other Deputies raised the question of the Ardee N52 bypass. Some €5.3 million has already been spent on this for land acquisition and surveying but the funding has not been included in the capital plan. The initial stages are complete and ready to go. Can the Minister say whether it will be included in the capital programme? People in Ardee say that Ardee is a bypass, as it is bypassed for everything, but they have been fighting for this for years.

The other issue is the R150 spine road from Laytown to Bettystown. The Minister said this was included in the capital funding plan, but Meath County Council seems not to be 100% sure. Can he confirm whether the funding has been allocated and is ready to be given out, and that there is no delay?

There was an article in The Irish Independentthis morning about the number of used cars imported from the UK. There was an increase of 1,000 in the first five months of this year, bringing the figure up to 3,442. This flags up problems in regard to road safety, particularly in view of the slack regulations. I understand there was to be legislation to deal with this. Where is that legislation? Does the Minister intend to speed it up? This is a huge increase in imported cars. Many of these cars are not roadworthy and many are death traps so we need to take it seriously and prioritise legislation to deal with it.

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