Mary Wallace (Meath East, Fianna Fail)

I congratulate the Leas-Cheann Comhairle on his appointment and wish him every success.

In September 2006, Exchequer funding of €30 million was announced towards the cost of 100 additional buses for Dublin Bus. Dublin Bus took delivery of these buses in 2006. These additional buses enable Dublin Bus to expand the number and frequency of services throughout its network to the benefit of customers across the Dublin Bus network. As a result up to 8 million additional passengers are expected to be carried each year.

The deployment of these buses across the network is an operational matter for the company. Since the arrival of the new buses, the company has commissioned and introduced 42 into service in areas such as North Wicklow, Tyrrelstown and Finglas, Skerries, Portmarnock and Malahide.

Dublin Bus has informed the Minister for Transport and Marine that the balance of the new buses will be commissioned and in operation in time for the peak period from September next when demand is greatest. Areas to benefit in the coming months include the Merrion Road quality bus corridor, the Ballymun quality bus corridor, Blanchardstown, Finglas, Meakstown etc.

The only area where Dublin Bus has been advised it is not in a position to proceed with a new service is the route 141 from Swords to the city centre via Drumcondra. This is because the company must await a decision on a prior application from a private bus operator for a licence for bus services along the route. In the past year, the Department of Transport and Marine has received a total of 76 notifications from Dublin Bus to initiate or amend services. Of these 56 were noted and therefore authorised, three were withdrawn by the company, two were advised they would require section 25 applications, three have been deferred due to a prior application from a private operator and one service has been part approved and is now in operation. The Department, however, has deferred a decision on some bus stop elements of that proposal and 11 notifications have been received in the past three months and are being processed in the normal way in respect of other routes across the city. As can be seen from this data, most Dublin Bus service changes have been approved.

Since January 2001, Dublin Bus is required to give at least four weeks' advance notice to the Department of Transport and Marine about proposals to initiate new services or to alter its existing bus services. The purpose of this procedure is to ensure a level playing field between Dublin Bus and private operators in the authorisation of service changes. Dublin Bus is also subject to compliance with the requirement of the provisions of section 25 of the Transport Act 1958 concerning competition with licensed private operators.

There is no delay in clearing Dublin Bus notifications where there is no conflict. However, where the proposed service change is judged likely to compete with an existing licence, the application may be refused or a decision deferred until the prior application has been finalised. In accordance with standard regulatory procedures, the prior application from the private bus operator, made under the provisions of the Road Transport Act 1932, as amended, has to be considered first. Once the licence application has been processed, the Department of Transport and the Marine either clears the notification or Dublin Bus is asked to review its proposals in the light of the licence issued to the private operator for the route in question. Under section 25 of the Transport Act 1958, Dublin Bus also has the option to seek the Minister's consent for the initiation or amendment of services operated so as to compete with a licensed passenger road service. These procedures are adopted in the interest of an orderly approach to the regulation of the bus market and considered to be of benefit to Dublin Bus, private bus operators and the consumer.

The use of the Dublin Port tunnel by Dublin Bus on a regular basis for its services is subject to the company complying with the requirement to give formal notification to the Department of Transport and the Marine. So far, the company has only formally notified the Department of its wish to use of the port tunnel for three of its services. Approval has been given, without delay, for two of these services and Dublin Bus is now operating routes 33X and 142 through the tunnel.

The third proposal from Dublin Bus for use of the Dublin Port tunnel is for changes to four of the existing services on the 41X route and no extra services have been sought which would require the deployment of extra buses. Dublin Bus has been informed that a decision on the proposed 41X changes has been deferred because the Department of Transport and the Marine has a prior application from a private operator to provide a commercial express bus service, without State subvention, from Swords to the city centre, via the port tunnel. Deliberations on this application are at an advanced stage.

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