Pauline O'Reilly (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

Just to be clear, I am not suggesting everybody should have access to a car. What we want to see happen is that people in areas, for example, in some parts of Dublin where 80% of people might not own a car, would rightly have access to public transport and active transport and that it would be ensured that their taxes were used predominantly for that. That is my main point, not that we would give more people access to cars who actually do not need it.

Education was mentioned. I would like to see a stepping up of the message on climate and getting it out into the public that we are in an emergency. I am not feeling that from enough people beyond a bubble. Much more needs to be done on that. When it comes to education, we need to talk about things that can be done. It is fairly clear that unless children grow up using buses, they are not going to be as likely to take a bus. For want a better word, we should park the idea that it is just about access to public transport. It is actually also about willingness to walk ten minutes to get on a bus or to get on a bike. What can be done between the Department in collaboration with the Department of Education around school transport? Currently, people have to live either 4.8 miles or 5.2 miles away from a school to get access to a school bus for instance. That access should be for those journeys of less than 2 km that were talked about if we want the 60% to get out their cars. What measures can be taken in that respect? What would the witnesses propose?