James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the CTTC for coming before the committee. We are all aware of the issues facing coach operators in Ireland and my constituency of Cork East is no different from that of Senator Dooley. It is a major concern that we do not have enough bus drivers. At a practical level, schools are telling me they cannot find bus drivers or private bus operators to do runs for matches during the day because many are caught up in obligations to school transport and such. The practical impact this is having on people's lives is taking hold in Cork, which is interesting.

With regard to the of training bus drivers and the licensing process, I would like to tease out some references the CTTC made in its opening statement about the considerable time between the initial application being submitted and the eventual granting of the licence by the NTA. Will the witnesses give a little more insight into how long that process generally takes?