Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

Earlier the Minister mentioned that this is "the best platform interface solution". When I read that phrase I had to re-read it because I did not know what it meant. I ask him to decipher the term so we know exactly what is being talked about. Is the DART fleet on order? Was the specification done in advance of the order being placed? Was the specification provided within that or how has this worked? What exactly is the Minister talking about? What will we physically see that will be different, better and will provide for people with disabilities? I appreciate that there is a range of disabilities, ranging from visual impairment, wheelchair usage and so on.

The Minister gave us a rundown on bus stops. I presume that local authorities will be aware of the desire to provide access that is as wide as possible and that where new bus stops are provided that access is thought about at that time. Often, and I know from being a member of a local authority, the location of a bus stop is an afterthought. Has guidance been provided to local authorities? If so, it would mean that local authorities would not have to redo this work in the future. I urge that bus stops have a suitable amount of space in terms of the width of the footpath or the pull in bay. A bus stop may not be located in the optimum location or whatever but I urge that consideration is given to this in advance. Is that type of work done by the Department or the NTA? Who is responsible for providing guidance to local authorities in this instance?

I have spoken to the Minister about wheelchair-accessible vehicles before. I had a look at where the vehicles are located and discovered that some counties do not even have one wheelchair-accessible vehicle. There are a lot of these vehicles in Dublin but very few in places like Tipperary.

I know that it is down to individuals who make an application, but at the time I asked whether there would be positive discrimination if areas were not provided for sufficiently if there was an inadequate amount of money available. Will the Minister address that issue? It is welcome that the NTA has an accessibility manager with this expertise. If there is not somebody embedded in an organisation whose daily job is to watch out and takes ownership of issues, I do not think they will get the attention they need. That is welcome. It would be useful for the committee to invite the person concerned to come before it, perhaps in six months time, to find out what the experience has been. We could receive very good feedback in that regard.

A criticism we have heard during the hearings and which I hear constantly concerns accessibility. Dublin Bus has vehicles with low floors and there have been serious improvements during the years, but I repeatedly receive complaints from people who are told at a bus stop that the space is being used and that they will have to wait for the next bus. Success invites people to use the service, but at the same time space may not be provided to the extent that it is needed. Therefore, there might be a need to look at existing standards. It is certainly an issue that comes up enough to suggest that while success is encouraging people to use the service, there is a question as to whether they can be accommodated.

It is welcome that a lot more money will be provided for the retrofit programme. Even if he cannot do so today, will the Minister outline how it is being done? What is the priority? Is it based on usage or the particular vehicle used? It would be useful to hear how the Minister is going about it in order that we can have some understanding of what we might see in reality.