Gerry Horkan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Taxis are a huge issue at the moment. I know the credit card side of it is being dealt with at the moment but the lack of taxis is a real concern. In regard to a 24-hour bus service, the NTA needs to work with Dublin Bus and Go Ahead on the routes provided to have far more 24-7 routes because the more 24-hour buses we have that are safe, the less requirement there will be for taxis. At the moment taxis are the only show in town past a certain hour of the night, almost everywhere. I hope there is scope to use and protect a significant part of the eastern bypass corridor. Once you take away the eastern bypass corridor, it vanishes from development plan maps and then people can build all over it. There is a route there, whether for a Luas or a bus rapid transit, BRT. There were plans as far back as 2005 and 2006. A blue line plan was presented when I was a councillor in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown and even before I was chair of the transport strategic policy committee, SPC, we were talking about using a route that connected RTÉ, St. Vincent's hospital and University College Dublin to Sandyford, connecting with the Luas and Kilmacud to get to Dundrum. That corridor must be protected. I ask the NTA to make sure it protects that for future generations, whether it be a cycle lane, a bus lane or Luas line. Once it is built on, we will never get it back. Can I get a response to that?