Rose Conway Walsh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for their opening statements. I am going to start on school transport because I have been dealing with it for a long time. We have the case of Kate, who has a valid medical card, but her parents were advised that Rebecca is eligible to get a school bus ticket but she cannot be issued with a ticket as there are no seats available on the bus. Kate's siblings currently travel on that bus route. Whose responsibility is it to provide a bus big enough to take all the eligible students? Could Mr. Hernan answer that question, specifically? Who decides on when the closing date is for applications for school transport? Students who find that they have to repeat their leaving certificate are then considered to be late applications and are put into another category. Who is responsible?

On school transport, I suggest this committee invite the Department of Education and Skills, which is responsible, and Bus Éireann to come in and comprehensively answer questions. Children are being deprived of seats on the bus. I take the point that was raised around Government policy. I have followed the policies right through from Fianna Fáil's Mary Coughlan, who did the review in 2008 or 2009. The buck must stop somewhere because children are entitled to a seat on the school bus, particularly in rural areas. There are all kinds of precarious situations where one could end up with child protection issues, children arriving late for school and all that. It has a real impact on children's education because there is not a proper school bus service. I would like that to be addressed separately. The biggest problem is the lack of flexibility, or the rigidity, around transport.

Changing anything is like trying to move the Titanic. Sometimes trains arrive in Westport five minutes after the bus for Louisburgh has departed. It would seem logical to change the departure time once a lack of connectivity has been identified. It is impossible to get routes changed and find out who is responsible. The National Transport Authority, NTA, is failing abysmally on the key objectives regarding route development and expansion.

One of the key objectives stated is to "ensure that rural transport services are comprehensively linked to and integrated with public transport services provided by other entities including Bus Éireann, Iarnród Éireann and other private operators". That is not happening. Does the NTA map services in all counties and is there a proper map of all the routes? How often are these maps updated? What community consultation takes place on these routes? In my view, there is a lack of proper community consultation. Was Mayo among the counties that made applications for LocalLink later?

On communication and timetables, trying to have a timetable provided at a bus stop is like trying to send somebody to the moon. Could the provision of timetables and other forms of communication be facilitated in order that people can find out what routes are available? It is no good asking people to check a website because most of those who use rural transport services do not have access to broadband services or other technology. A means of communicating with people must be found to enable them to find out when routes are running.

While I am glad bus shelters are back on the agenda, we were told they are dependent on funding. Is funding available for bus shelters and, if so, will the witnesses outline the process for applying for bus shelters and the criteria and timescale involved?

Has any work been done on transport that is conducive to meeting the needs of children and adults with autism or non-physical disabilities? Has research been done on this issue and, if not, will a study be done in respect of noise and other factors that cause distress for people with disabilities, specifically autism? Will the witnesses also comment on moves to ban those with free travel cards from using transport services during peak times? Such a ban, which is being mooted, would be a backward step for people trying to access hospitals, etc., and I would certainly resist it.

The document also states that the level of engagement with the Health Service Executive differs between areas. Will the witnesses comment on that issue in the context of the HSE's obligation and responsibility to engage with the NTA and Bus Éireann? A lack of access to transport has social and economic consequences. Many people cannot turn up for appointments because they do not have access to transport. People in parts of Mayo and Galway who have to travel three hours each way for an appointment - a six-hour round trip - need transport. The survival of rural Ireland depends on the NTA and Bus Éireann. I plead with both organisations to examine this issue. While certain things work well, major changes are needed and many of these require nothing more than greater flexibility and a different approach, as opposed to additional resources.