Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Let me start with Deputy Troy's questions. He is correct that the €5 million will go towards buses and the Luas due to the growth in passenger numbers. There will be a staged payment for the Luas green line enhancement, which is a problem area.

The revised allocation will enable the NTA to take delivery of extra bus vehicles this year, enabling some of the additional services to be operated with a new bus fleet instead of older end-of-life vehicles. Discussions are ongoing with manufacturers as regards delivery scheduling. As the Deputy identified, there is a great need for new buses, rail and DART trains. We are moving as fast as we can on that. On the rail issue, we have been making some progress but the proposed refurbishment proved to be extremely expensive when it went out to tender. Irish Rail is now looking at buying second-hand carriages. Refurbishing some of the old carriages was going to be almost as expensive as buying new ones. Irish Rail is now looking at leasing and buying second-hand carriages.

The app will be introduced early in 2019. It is moving full steam ahead. On cycling, Deputy Troy said the allocation of €400,000 is too little but it is an extra €400,000 in funding which we did not expect to have in the first place. It is going towards trying to prevent cycling accidents. The number of accidents last year increased by almost 50% to 15.

Fortunately, it has decreased this year, but we cannot depend on that continuing. We are very conscious that we need to encourage cycling. There is regularly criticism from the committee and others about the amount of money the Government is spending on cycling in the light of the number of cyclists. We are putting in a considerable amount and have committed to spending a great deal more under the national development plan. We have bought into cycling. We know that it is part of the equation and helps the environment and the health of the nation and will relieve the traffic problem. It is probably unfair to criticise the Government on the basis that we are not doing enough regarding cycling. There was a reluctance to commit funding at one stage, but that is no longer the case. We made very serious commitments in the national development plan to triple the amount spent on cycling. A large amount is being spent on greenways. Under the BusConnects project, we have committed to 200 km of dedicated and segregated cycleways to run alongside the bus corridors. The commitment is there and it is underlined by the fact that an extra €400,000 from this windfall will be spent on making the roads safer for cyclists, particularly at junctions. We intend to continue in that vein.

On the BusConnects market opening addressed by Deputy Troy, there is probably something of a misconception. The money is not being handed over as a current or capital payment. It will not be allocated to Go-Ahead as Deputy Coppinger suggested. It will be used to address a cashflow issue involving a probable gap in revenue and will enable the project to progress. It is certainly not being allocated to Go-Ahead.

Deputy Munster raised the issue of privatisation being the end goal. We have had this conversation before. It is not and will not be the end goal. Although the Deputy refers to it as privatisation, nothing is being sold. Privatisation only occurs when an asset is transferred from one person or company to another.