Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 10 December 2014

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications

National Postcode System: (Resumed) Nightline

9:55 am

Mr. John Tuohy:

There will be some capital investment in integrating the system and adapting our processes to use it. However, the benefits in terms of reducing fuel consumption, improving productivity and so on are huge, because one will be able to find addresses quickly, without driving up and down a rural road. Many of my van drivers in rural areas would echo this. They spend a great deal of time driving a commercial vehicle up a narrow rural road, getting to one end of it, turning around and driving back down the other side and then having to ring the customer for more directions. The long-term benefits of eliminating all that far outweigh the initial investment required to implement this. If we were a multinational, I would have to change a system that covers every country in Europe just for the Irish market. I would probably have reservations about that. However, for the Irish conditions and for operations whose business is primarily in Ireland, it will be a boon and a significant improvement. The benefits will far outweigh the required investment.