Áine Brady (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)

Transport 21 is the capital investment framework agreed by the Government for the development of the transport infrastructure between 2006 and 2015. It provides for investment in national roads, public transport and regional airports and involves a total expenditure of €34 billion. This investment framework will address the twin challenges of past investment backlogs and continuing growth in transport demand. The projects and programmes that make up Transport 21 will aim to increase accessibility, ensure sustainability, expand capacity, increase use and enhance quality.

Increasing accessibility is about making it easier for everyone to get to and from work, school, college, shopping, business and social activities. It is also about making it easier for industry and business to access raw materials, workers and, most important, markets. Ensuring sustainability recognises a modern transport system must be sustainable from an economic, social and environmental perspective.

Expanding capacity has two important dimensions — existing capacity deficiencies which arise from past underinvestment and appropriate provision for future growth. Increasing the use of public transport is linked to improving the quality of the service. As seen in recent times, as a service improves, more people will use public transport.

Transport 21 is a key enabler in bringing the transport network to a standard fit for a modern and dynamic economy like ours. The opening of recent bypasses at Gorey, Charlestown and Castleblayney reflects the progress made with the road network programme. There is effectively a motorway-dual carriageway standard road from the Border to Kilbeggan and to Portlaoise.

Phase 1 of the M50 upgrade is on target to be opened next year. It will give much deserved relief to commuters on the N4 and the N7. The opening of the Kilcock-Kinnegad motorway in December 2005, aside from reducing travel times on the N4, also opened up areas such as Johnstownbridge, Broadford and Carbury to the road network, giving increased access to services.

The enhanced road network ensures bus operators can benefit from reduced travel times and incur less costs. Construction work on the interurban network, from Dublin to Cork, to Limerick, to Galway and to Waterford is well advanced and on target for completion in 2010.

Our public transport infrastructure is playing catch-up due to years of underinvestment. However, in recent years significant improvements have been made in the level of services, particularly in rail. As a regular user of both the Maynooth and Sallins train services, I have seen this progress. New rail stations at Maynooth and Louisa Bridge in Leixlip have been opened. Extra parking at Leixlip Louisa Bridge, Hazelhatch-Celbridge and Sallins has been provided. Improved frequencies of trains reflect an improved service which has lead to increased passenger numbers.

Under Transport 21, there will be further improvement on the Kildare line. The Kildare route project is a major capital investment, designed to increase the frequency of commuter and other services along the key Kildare to Heuston corridor and to allow more commuters use rail services every day. The Kildare route project will allow Iarnród Éireann to deliver commuter and regional services at peak times including double service frequency from Hazelhatch to Dublin, serving all stations, and double service frequency between Dublin and Sallins, Newbridge and Kildare. Existing train services are fully subscribed and capacity for growth is restricted. New trackwork and signalling is designed to provide increased operational flexibility to run more frequent services. The new Docklands railway station opened in March facilitates increased capacity on the Maynooth line and, under Transport 21, further improvements are planned.

Under Transport 21, bus passenger capacity in the greater Dublin area will increase by 60% by 2015. Transport 21 provides for an increased bus service, with the recent approval for Dublin Bus to phase in an additional 100 buses and 150 to Bus Éireann's fleet. In recent months, I have met with both Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann and am impressed with the plans they have in place under Transport 21. Bus Éireann plans to provide several key services for commuters in north Kildare. Some proposed routes, such as Naas to Dublin Airport, Naas to Tallaght and an orbital route servicing Naas to Clane and Kilcock will enhance the public transport service for the area. Many residents in Naas, Kill and Johnstown work in the Tallaght, Park West area or need to visit Tallaght Hospital and will support this service. The orbital route linking Naas, Clane and Kilcock with Blessington and Trim is an ideal way to link towns by public transport that could not be served by rail. Bus Éireann's other proposed route from Edenderry to Dublin via Carbury and Johnstownbridge, if accepted by the Department of Transport, will give many commuters who live in north-west Kildare a service to Dublin. This proposed route would not have been a viable option, if the road network had not been recently improved.

While significant progress is being made in public transport, there are certain gaps in the service. We need enhanced car parking facilities at train stations such as Maynooth, Leixlip Confey and Kilcock. Iarnród Éireann's plans to increase capacity at Maynooth and Kilcock in 2008 are far short of what is required. We need as part of area action plans and or tax incentives to encourage the development of increased car parking facilities so that people can drive to their local rail stations and park their cars safely. Commuters will pay an appropriate fee for such facilities, similar to the one at Leixlip Louisa Bridge or the Sallins park and ride. I recently met with OK Transport which is working on providing a feeder bus, on a trial basis, to relieve the car parking problems at Maynooth. Feeder buses, apart from facilitating access to the rail stations, also contribute to building communities in the commuter belt. We have limited feeder buses to Hazelhatch from Celbridge and to Sallins from Naas. I encourage all policy-makers, from the Department of Transport to the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs to local authorities and Iarnród Éireann to put in place further incentives for feeder buses.

Transport 21 will help to achieve the dual aims of retrofitting the infrastructure to match the dramatic rise in the numbers commuting and meeting future growth needs for public transport. The proposed €34 billion expenditure to 2015 is a substantial investment by the taxpayers of this country in their transport network. As convener of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport I commend the Minister on the progress to date and look forward to working with all members of the committee and the stakeholders in the transport policy area to ensure that we maximise the benefits of Transport 21.

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