Mr. Ray Coyne:

I thank the Chairman and members of the committee for inviting me here today. In the past 18 months I have had the privilege of addressing this committee on Bus Átha Cliath's vision for public transport and on the accessibility of our services. I welcome the opportunity to engage with the committee on congestion and its impact on our city.

In October 2016 I outlined to the committee that an efficient public transport system is key to delivering positive economic and social development in our country and in the case of Dublin Bus, to Dublin and its hinterland in particular. An economically vibrant Dublin is also of benefit to the wider economy. In 2017 Dublin Bus carried 139 million customers. We achieved this through strong growth in both our commercial and public service obligation, PSO, network of services. Dublin Bus customers account for 39% of all retail spend in Dublin city and 62% of all public transport users in Dublin are Dublin Bus customers. This demonstrates the importance of the bus as a mode of transport in delivering retail spend into the city centre.

Creating an integrated, customer centric, well-functioning and efficient public transport network will assist in delivering economic benefits. This cannot be achieved in a congested city.

Congestion during the morning and evening peak commute times is a significant problem in Dublin. Our city’s roads are not designed for large volumes of vehicular traffic. There are many users competing for the limited road space available, including private transport, public transport, cyclists, taxis, delivery vehicles and pedestrians. As economic growth continues, congestion levels will further increase unless significant mitigating measures are put in place. Congestion limits a city’s ability to achieve its full potential in economic, environmental, social and cultural areas. Research by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport's economic and financial evaluation unit in 2017 estimated the cost of aggravated congestion across Ireland’s transport system at €350 million per annum and forecasted this to rise to €2 billion per annum by 2033. This is not sustainable for transport operators, Government or the public.

Dublin is positioning itself as a modern European capital and a congested city does not fit with this vision. Our network speed at peak times is in the region of 14 km/h, with substantial variations on all public transport corridors. Despite the significant roll-out of quality bus corridors, private transport remains extremely competitive in terms of journey times to the city, and in many cases is faster than the bus.

A customer-centric public transport system must have, after safety, three basic fundamentals in place. These are frequency of service, reliability of service provision and competitive and consistent journey times. Thereafter, information and price are key for customers. Congestion is the main barrier to achieving all three fundamentals, while also negatively impacting on price.

One of the key advantages of bus transport is the ability to adapt and accommodate additional customer demand more quickly than other modes. This is due to the ease and speed at which Dublin Bus can adjust alignments in keeping with a changing, growing city. The bus network today is far removed from the network that existed prior to 2011 and will continue to evolve in 2018. Similarly, the road infrastructure and priority in the city has also significantly changed over the past two decades. These changes have provided tangible benefits for our customers through increased service levels and reduced subvention requirements, allowing for further reinvestment in service provision.

During the construction phase of Luas cross city, significant adjustments were made to the Dublin Bus network to minimise the impact on our customers and assist in the delivery of Luas cross city. As we transition from construction to operation, Dublin Bus continues to adjust services to benefit our customers, other public transport operators and the city as a whole.

In January 2018, following engagement with the National Transport Authority, NTA, and Dublin City Council, 17 bus routes were realigned to improve congestion levels in the College Green area. Following further engagement between parties and an assessment of current operations, Dublin Bus will realign a further eight routes away from College Green on 5 March, again to enhance the customer experience and to benefit other public transport users and the city.

Unfortunately the customer experience on some journeys continues to be impacted by congestion, which is not confined to College Green. Dublin Bus and the economy are growing strongly but it is vital that we do not leave this recovery at our bus stops and stations. Additional capacity introduced now will benefit our city in the long term and introduce new customers to public transport, mitigating the impact of congestion. This additional capacity must be matched with continuous improvements to on-street priority throughout the network. Failing that we will simply be moving congestion from one area to another, rather than what is intended by recent initiatives, which is improving the operating environment for all users of the city, from pedestrians and cyclists to public and private transport users.

Consistent service delivery in the areas of punctuality and reliability is required to deliver a multi-modal mobility solution for public transport in Ireland. An integrated network of services, information and payment will provide a platform to achieve significant increases in public transport use. A new bus route is proposed to connect Broombridge Luas and train station to Finglas, Ballycoolin and Tyrrelstown, providing alternative transport modes to our customers. The NTA continues to support public transport with increased service frequency at both peak and off-peak times added to our bus network since November 2017. These measures are vital steps in the bid to tackle the congestion currently affecting the city.

Some key decisions will be required to maximise the use of the finite road space in our capital city. Congestion has the potential to stagnate economic activity in the city now and over many years to come. Increasing the use of the public transport network is the best way to tackle congestion. The implementation of further measures that ensure public transport is a better alternative than the car would enhance our ability to tackle congestion. At a minimum, our public transport network speed at peak times must increase from approximately 14 km/h to at least 18 km/h. This will provide for a more efficient public transport network, delivering the key requirements of increased frequency, more reliable services and consistent and fast journey times. With the above improvement in journey times, significant efficiencies would be realised and reinvested in the network, effectively increasing fleet capacity within existing fleet resources. Underpinned by a commitment to multi-year funding, additional current and capital funding would also be required.

The significant challenges experienced in our operating environment have not reduced customer support for public transport. We have increased customer numbers on our services every year since 2013. In December 2017, Dublin Bus recorded double-digit growth on our services. We are already seeing strong growth in 2018 with 6% organic growth achieved in January. The introduction of bus priority measures on the north and south quays and the Rosie Hackett public transport bridge have contributed significantly to our growth figures. The NTA-sponsored BusConnects programme of work will see €750 million invested in the bus network for the greater Dublin area over the next five years, and I welcome the commitment from Government to support this project through the national development plan. BusConnects will significantly enhance the customer experience in the city in the short term, while providing long-term benefits. If all aspects of the NTA’s BusConnects programme are implemented, it will have a beneficial impact on congestion levels.

In the fourth quarter of 2017, Kantar Millward Brown carried out customer satisfaction research on behalf of the NTA. Dublin Bus recorded the highest percentage of customers in the “very satisfied” category, at 54%, with a score of 92% satisfaction overall. This is a wonderful testament to our employees and our stakeholders, who continue to recognise the importance of the bus to the economy. It is also a strong reflection on our service delivery, aided by continuous improvements to bus priority.

Dublin Bus will continue to assist key stakeholders as it seeks to reduce congestion in the city. College Green is one component of this and addressing one area does not readily solve other areas. Having a public transport system that is a better option than owning a car is a vision that is achievable and will enable our city to fulfil its potential in many diverse areas. These include enhanced urban living opportunities, reduced congestion, improved air quality and reduced noise pollution. It will enable the economy to prosper and provide a platform for a vibrant social and cultural city scene. It will increase the capacity to deliver people to and from the city with reduced road space, increase the pedestrian environment in the city and enhance the safety for all road users. Congestion is a barrier to achieving this vision.

The bus is the most flexible mode in delivering significant movement in public transport and will be with us for a long time. It has the potential to drive the growth in public transport in the short to medium term. This will lay the foundations to implement priority measures on key corridors with bus rapid transit, BRT, standards, increased frequency levels on corridors to continue customer growth, and provide the space for the implementation of further light and heavy rail over the medium to long term. Many initiatives announced in the national development plan, Project Ireland 2040, are aligned with this view. We must act now for the future.

Should the committee have any questions I would be happy to take them as they arise.