Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail)
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Deputy Fitzmaurice raised the issue of gas-fuelled vehicles which I raise in the context of Bus Éireann's commitment to examine ways to reduce costs.

An old chestnut is the reason for using large coaches on some routes in rural areas instead of using smaller buses. Does Bus Éireann have smaller buses than the 45 seaters? There is a service that goes from Cavan through Leitrim down to Sligo on a Saturday morning. I see it nearly every Saturday morning around 10 a.m. and there would not be any more than 15 or 20 people on this big 45 seater bus. Has Bus Éireann looked at similar routes across the country and considered introducing smaller buses?

My next question relates to the NTA and perhaps it might be better if I was to talk to the witnesses privately about Westlink Coaches, which is currently in a tangle over licensing of a route. To put it simply, they are allowed to carry university students from Leitrim through Roscommon to Galway university, where they drop them near the campus. However, they are not allowed to pick up the same passengers on a Sunday evening going through Castlerea, Ballygar, Williamstown and Dunmore. There is another operator on that route. They have lodged an appeal because it seems their last appeal was turned down on the basis that there were insufficient numbers. They have now provided further numbers coming from NUIG, GMIT and they are also being told by NTA that there is a Bus Éireann service operating on the same route.

That Bus Éireann route goes all over the country, going into Ballyhaunis and into Mayo, yet as we know the students want to get home. I wish to raise this issue and I am just flagging it as I would like to talk privately to somebody about it afterwards. This operator is providing more than 20 jobs in Drumshanbo, a small town of 800 people. It would be devastating if he were to lose out. It does not make sense to me that he is allowed to bring passengers from Drumshanbo through Roscommon and Galway into NUIG and yet not allowed to bring passengers whom he picks up in Castlerea because a licence was given to another operator. This issue needs to be examined. I was with the Minister when he was in Leitrim recently. He promised the people from Westlink he would contact the witnesses about this. I would like to have this issue addressed sooner rather than later.