Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

I asked the question because there is a concern that if there is not a rock solid commitment to increase the fleet to bolster this proposal fully, we will end up with a trade-off. The trade-off is that while there will be an increased and improved service along the route of the bus corridor, other services which currently exist will be sacrificed in full or in part to facilitate that. Bus services in the Dublin area developed over decades not so much to serve places of employment, which is an important factor in the thinking of this proposal and I do not have a problem with that, but more on the basis of community and neighbourhood. It is common for bus services to connect with a very specific community neighbourhood or large housing estate and for those services to be used a lot by people who are vulnerable, such as those who are sick or old. The idea of strolling a quarter of a mile to the local bus stop is not as easy for these people as it might sound. Is it the case that services that currently go into the heart of communities, into big housing estates, for example, will be curtailed to facilitate the new service and that there will be a trade-off? If that is the case, the NTA has a responsibility to put all the information out there so that people can make a judgment not on part of the facts but on all of the facts. The witnesses tell us there will be 16 new corridors, which is a positive, and 230 new cycle lanes, which again is very positive. If the plan is implemented as it is currently being framed, however, what is the number of housing estates that currently have bus services going into the heart of them which may no longer will have such bus services? I am asking the witnesses to comment on the general point of a trade-off. Will housing estates lose out and are we talking about being able to count on one or two hands the number of housing estates that will lose out or will it be dozens, hundreds or more?

If there is a dedicated bus corridor, presumably there will be fewer cars on that route, so those cars will go somewhere else. They will be pushed to the left, right, north, south and on to other routes. There will be a knock-on effect in terms of congestion on those routes. I do not expect that to be quantified fully at this stage, but what work is being done in that regard and when will that information be published?

There are concerns in trade union circles about the question of privatisation, which is no surprise given what has happened with Go-Ahead. The witnesses mentioned the idea of revisiting the issue of tendering later in the year. It does not take a rocket scientist to work out that some of these routes might be more attractive to private for-profit operators than the traditional bus routes that exist in Dublin. In that context, I wish to ask about worker and trade union input into the plan. I understand there have been several drafts of the plan to date, perhaps as many as four, but seemingly no consultation of real character with trade union and worker sources, the people who will be implementing a plan if it is to come in on the ground. What is the position on negotiation with the people who drive and service the fleet day to day?