Emmet Stagg (Kildare North, Labour)

I want to share time with Deputies Wall, Lynch and Broughan.

I thank my colleague, Deputy Shortall, on behalf of the Labour Party, for bringing this motion before the House and producing a policy document on bus transport for the greater Dublin area that is simple, practical and the aims of which would be achievable in the short term. It is a proposal that recognises Dublin has spread way beyond the old city boundaries and the reality of daily commuting for tens of thousands of workers. It is a proposal that recognises the need to take urgent action to ease congestion and traffic jams on roads into and within the city and seeks a positive and achievable solution for many now trapped in daily gridlock. It is a proposal that recognises that the workhorse of the public transport system will remain for some time the bus service provided by Bus Átha Cliath and Bus Éireann.

This is a positive, realistic and achievable proposal from the Labour Party and when in government next year we will implement it. We will provide an additional 500 buses for Bus Átha Cliath. The Fianna-Fáil led Government provided 20 extra buses in the last five years. We will extend their operational area to cover a 25-mile circle around Dublin city. This will include areas in my constituency such as Celbridge, Leixlip, Maynooth, Naas and Kilcock and extend to Sallins, Prosperous, Clane and Straffan. It will also extend to south Meath, where our colleague, Councillor Dominic Hannigan, has been campaigning for public transport reform and provision.

The Labour Party proposal on public transport includes a provision in respect of strategically placed park and ride facilities in order that long distance commuters, visitors and shoppers would be able to drive to the outer city ring and get buses from there into the city, leaving their cars in secure locations, while reducing congestion in the city area. The proposal would introduce for the first time a flat rate fare of €1 for a 25-mile journey. This would simplify the present system and remove the anomalies highlighted by Deputy Shortall. In my area it costs nearly twice as much to travel from Dublin to Kilcock as it does from Dublin to Maynooth. The new system would not only be fairer, it would also provide real financial encouragement for commuters to leave their cars behind and take the bus. Not only would the Labour Party proposal provide for 50% more buses and a fare rate that would encourage their use, it would also reduce bus travelling times by completing the quality bus corridors, thereby providing certainty.

The Labour Party has traditionally been and is now the champion of public transport. It believes public transport is a service best provided by the public sector. As a service, it should be efficient, cost effective and attractive. It is not possible to achieve these aims, provide a universal service and make a profit. We should now accept that the aims of being cost effective and profitable are not synonymous. The cost savings from a good universal public transport system would not be seen on the balance sheet of any company. These savings would be seen in the time saved by bus users, the reduction of stress as traffic congestion is eased and the quality of life of road users. Surely, if there had been a three-hour wait on the then equivalent of the M4, it would have been included in the horrors of Dante's Inferno.

All good universal public transport systems are supported by public funds, an investment from which the taxpayer gets a good return. Of course, the private sector can make a profit if it is allowed to cherrypick the best routes. The last time it went universal, however, it went broke and CIE was established in its stead.

I again thank Deputy Shortall for bringing this motion before the House and presenting Labour Party policy on bus transport which would provide for 50% more buses, a flat fare of €1, full length quality bus corridors and park and ride facilities.

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