Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Sinn Fein)
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I welcome the witnesses and thank them for taking the time to speak to us and allowing us the opportunity to troubleshoot some of the recurring issues that impact disabled people who want to access transport services.

In my constituency of County Clare, public transport is a salient issue for most people, but it is particularly pressing for people with mobility issues. Wheelchair users have been subjected to exceptional protocols, for example, announcing their intention to use the bus or train by giving notice one to three days in advance. This means that there is an implicit assumption that we expect disabled people to be able to forward plan every time they need to access public transport. This is an unrealistic expectation for a non-disabled person and exposes how biased we perceive our disabled peers.

Having engaged with local advocacy groups, I wish to raise several queries. The NTA completed a public consultation process in October 2019. The National Disability Authority, NDA, made a submission at the time on the proposed changes to the licence conditions and the need to ensure that all elements of services were universally designed and, therefore, easy to access, understand and use by everyone regardless of age, size, ability or disability. Will the NTA publish the outcome of the submissions in a report? If so, what is the status of that process?

My next question is on the provision of rural transport. The NTA announced new services in County Clare with larger buses, but these are fixed-route services and may not suit passengers with a disability and the demand responsive transport, DRT, services or vehicles may not be suited to rural roads. Will the NTA confirm that passengers with disabilities will not be disadvantaged as new services are introduced?

Mr. Creegan mentioned earlier that there was one board member with a visual impairment and he did not take up the post again. I believe that he left last December. I would like clarification on that issue, and specifically, why the vacancy remains, several months later. Has that post gone through the advertisement process yet? I ask Mr. Creegan to clarify that.

Finally, in respect of the awarding of contracts in County Clare, there was no stipulation in the tendering process for a wheelchair-securing mechanism. Therefore, it did not comply with the NTA's definition of "wheelchair accessible", or with chapter 1 section 1(3) paragraph 3 of the European Communities (Road Vehicles Type Approval) (Amendment) Regulations 2017. That is a very serious situation. It meant that wheelchair passengers had no restraint in the event of an emergency. This put passengers at serious risk of injury. I am aware that the vehicles were retrofitted in March 2021. Are all vehicles contracted by the NTA inspected for accessibility legal requirements before being put into service?

Lastly, in respect of the NTA's tendering process, I have heard that there is discrimination against wheelchair passengers in the process and that it fails to comply with NTA definitions. Why does the authority not follow its award criteria and passenger definitions and make corrections during a standstill period? To put that into context, I refer to the likes of low-floor access vehicles only receiving, for example, 20 marks in the tender process, whereas other vehicles with wheelchair access at the back receive full marks. That puts the question into context. I would appreciate the witnesses' responses to those questions.