Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

As for the parking issue, if there is nothing on the car stating the owner has paid for parking or is permitted to park, it of course will allow some abuse of those car parks, particularly in the larger towns such as Portarlington and Portlaoise, but there is a simple solution. When one buys a ticket for the train, one should be given a small disk which one would put on the car. There are ways around the difficulty. Commuters who are heavily taxed paying €100 plus a week to get into whatever city by means of a 40-mile or 50-mile journey feel this is a significant additional imposition.

I have one point on the bus shelters. The problem is the process is too slow. I am aware that the National Transport Authority has supported some of them and has managed to get some in place, but the process is too slow. They are big and expensive. Something more basic will do. There are simpler models in other countries. North of the Border, there are simpler ones that can be erected. I am not saying the NTA should put up something shabby looking but small bus shelters can be put up. One can have a design for them for certain types of towns and villages, and very small ones for rural areas for perhaps four passengers to stand into etc. Where there is a bigger catchment, such as in Mountrath, one could have slightly bigger ones. That is all I would say in this regard.