Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

The unions in Bus Éireann believed there would be a period of time to see how this company was performing, so it is related, and I would hope that we care about the working conditions for bus workers. I am sure nobody is suggesting we do not.

I met Mr. Creegan at a public meeting in Blanchardstown where a lot of people came up to him and he probably had his ears burned off with people repeating the same things to him, mainly to do with the loss of local routes. The pattern in all areas seems to be to create a giant corridor and a super route. The problem is the number of routes feeding into the super route and therefore people feel, when they arrive at a hub in, say, the centre of Blanchardstown, which is one of the busiest shopping areas in the whole country, they are competing with people in neighbouring districts for the same buses. That is why it has proven unpopular. It has nothing to do with people not appreciating public transport. The changes to routes Nos. 70 and 38 mean that a passenger has to get two buses when he or she previously had to get only one.

What it boils down to is we need investment to increase public transport and not just rejig what we currently have.

A question was raised about metro north. People's gardens will be cut across as a result of this project. We all want to see bus lanes but there is a massive shortage of light rail. There is a plan for Finglas but what about Blanchardstown? We are talking about a large conurbation with 100,000 people relying on buses alone. It cannot work for an area that is 10 km outside the city. It is too far. There are too many obstacles in the way, such as traffic lights and so on. We have people suffering because they spend an hour and 20 minutes trying to get home from work. Their quality of life is affected by it. I would not have a problem with BusConnects if it was implemented in addition to what we already have, but I do not agree with taking away routes and rejigging them in this way. Public consultation is going on with regard to the bus corridors. I am sure people have been informed by the National Transport Authority. It is a CPO process. What happens if people refuse to cede their territory or space which they feel is important. How will the issue of noise as a result of buses being closer to people's homes be addressed? Will there be insulation or noise abatement measures? I assume it will be an issue. It is not just about ceding one's flower beds, for example, but about noise which can affect people's quality of life.