Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Dooley who has given me his time. In its statement, the NTA referenced its responsibility "for the provision of an integrated, accessible public transport system." I always say that affordability has to come into that. Public transport should be integrated, affordable and accessible. I will come back to the integrated piece. The issue of affordability has been raised. I will not say the statement regarding the delay in implementation of the fairer fares strategy was an announcement because, to be fair, it was not an announcement but something we learned of rather casually, which is extremely regrettable. I live in Newbridge, which is in the constituency most impacted, and use the train quite regularly. In fact, I used it this morning. It was a bombshell that was dropped yesterday, when this news spread on social media. There were a number of phone calls, emails, etc., looking for clarity on it from public representatives, who were integrally involved in trying to deliver this. I am sure the NTA will acknowledge all the many meetings we had.

Technical issues that have arisen were referred to. Why were these not factored into the NTA's original timeframes?