Mr. Stephen Kent:

I will respond on accessibility and Mr. Parker can respond on the vehicles. Just to put on the record, in my opening statement I allude to the fact we are supporting greater modal shifts to improve social accessibility and inclusivity. I want to put on the record that Bus Éireann is 100% committed to that in the company we operate and is trying to embrace diversity in all of its forms. The Senator asked a couple of questions about the vehicles; 100% of the Expressway vehicles are accessible but by lift not low-floor. That is one of the issues we have but the fleet is 100% accessible.

The Senator asked about the commitment to free travel for people who are free travel passholders. That has been raised within the group and is under review so it is something we have to look at. We do not have a technical solution just yet but we are trying to see it. On one side, we are trying to take a booking in to make sure we can accommodate them and do it but we need to come back on that.

The Senator also asked about vehicle age for public service obligation, PSO, and the age at which we retire the vehicles.