Gerry Horkan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As a former member of the local authority, my area was indeed that route from the Belfield campus to Cabinteely church so I know the N11 very well. It was probably the most successful pre-Luas route. People do not remember that there were many challenges when the quality bus corridor, QBC, went through Donnybrook village in 1999.

It has been a huge success. However, we must ensure that modal shift happens and continues.

Mr. Hann stated that Dublin Bus is not competitive enough timewise. Much of the time, I can get somewhere a little quicker if I jump in the car. It is certainly not slower. The carrot element of public transport is important. That is how the N11 worked. The journey time for those who live in Stillorgan, Foxrock or Cabinteely is significantly faster by bus, even with fare boxes, taking coins and tapping on, than sitting in traffic on the N11 at peak times, which many of us have done. Dublin Bus needs to ensure that its request for funding states that modal shift is needed for climate change, sustainability and quality of life purposes. People should not be sitting in their cars commuting if they do not really have to. Many people come into town to work in an office all day or in retail or hospitality and they do not need their cars for work, just to get to work. That is where the 24-7 stuff comes in.

I touched on modal shift as well as overcrowding. As someone who cycles a lot, I would like to know how much cyclist awareness training goes on in Dublin Bus and Go-Ahead Ireland. There are pinch points, such as Leeson Street Bridge, that are tight. Sometimes I feel not every bus driver is aware of cycle lanes. The wands are not and cannot be placed everywhere. To be honest, I wish they were not needed at all. Not every driver makes the same effort to stay out of the cycle lanes.