Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 5 October 2016

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport

A Vision for Public Transport: Discussion

9:00 am

Photo of Robert TroyRobert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to this morning's meeting. It is funny to note that the first three pages of his presentation gave us a history of public transport. In the final pages of his presentation, he spoke about plans and next steps. He committed to examining a review, consulting his Department later in the year on a revised policy and working on climate change. I am somewhat disappointed that we have heard no specifics, no vision and no indication of where the Minister is coming from as he takes responsibility for this incredibly important brief.

I would like to ask a number of specific questions. I hope the Minister will keep his reply specific. Does he feel the rate of subvention is adequate? The Minister has said today, as he did in previous committee meetings, that he would like to see an increase in that subvention. Can he indicate what he would consider to be an appropriate level of subvention for our State companies? Will conditions be attached to any increase they receive? Will an increased level of subvention have to be accompanied by an improvement in services, by additional services or by investment in buses and trains, etc.?

The Minister said he cannot overstress the importance of the national planning framework. Can he give us a timeline for that framework? Can he tell us what role the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport is playing in that regard?

The Minister did not mention the review of the school transport network even though it is an integral part of the activities of Bus Éireann. I understand it has been operating on a cost recovery basis whereby the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport pays Bus Éireann exactly what it costs. Can the Minister confirm whether any profit has been made on the school transport system? If it has, then school transport is subsiding Bus Éireann at the moment. When will a review of school transport take place? Anyone who represents a rural constituency will know just how inefficient the routes are at present.

The Minister said that transport will be competing with major issues like housing and education. Does he agree that public transport has a fundamental role to play in helping to solve the housing crisis and, on that basis, we should be able to get an increased allocation for capital expenditure to improve our public transport infrastructure? We need to make sure there is an efficient and reliable public service to bring those who have to live on the outer limits of Dublin into the capital.

What level of interaction has the Minister had to date with Bus Éireann regarding the proposal to hive off the Expressway service and diminish the terms and conditions of the workers? In my opinion, this will run the risk of leaving provincial towns and villages in rural Ireland without a public transport service in the future.

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