Ciarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)

With the permission of the Leas-Cheann Comhairle I will take five minutes of it. I propose to share my time with other Government speakers, Deputies Finian McGrath and Frank Fahey.

This Bill is a worthy step in the right direction. After 20 years of involvement with transportation issues in Dublin, I am glad to see legislation in this area which I think will bring coherence, and some clout in terms of enforcement, to the pressing issue of resolving transport problems in the greater Dublin area. We have had a series of constructive meetings with all sides on this issue, and the Bill has benefited from a few thoughts that we brought to the table. I am glad to see that proper planning is at the heart of this Bill. It is crucial that we consider transportation and land use together. The Bill contains a strong requirement, in section 12(6), for the Authority not only to have regard for but to be consistent with the relevant regional planning guidelines for the greater Dublin area. This is a welcome step forward.

I do have some concerns about the Bill. There is a fear that the National Roads Authority is perhaps not reined in to the extent it might be. However, I have no doubt the Minister will listen carefully to the issues on all sides of the debate. It is important that we consider all aspects of transportation together: public and private transport, the slow modes of cycling and walking, and — increasingly in recent years — the "no-modes" under which people do not travel but instead communicate by telephone, fax, e-mail or text message. Any modern transport strategy should concentrate on reducing the need to travel and facilitating recent innovations in the area of communication. This can reduce the amount of traffic on our roads and hence the level of congestion.

I see this as a new dawn in transportation, as I saw the Dublin transport Initiative of the early 1990s, which took a step forward in addressing transport issues in the capital. The outcome of that was a light rail transport system for Dublin and a series of quality bus corridors around the city. However, much remains to be done, although the study was carried out 14 years ago. There was an emphasis on a network of QBCs around the city. We have QBCs but they are not quite a network. There was also an emphasis on real-time information and integrated ticketing. As I said previously in the House, all transport agencies must have their heads knocked together to ensure they develop a ticket that can be used on all modes of transport in the city and county, and in the surrounding counties, because so many people commute from quite long distances.

I would like to make a couple of pleas in certain areas. I am a regular cyclist and I often cycle with my children. Much needs to be done to provide a good system of cycle routes throughout the city which are safe for both adults and children and, more important, are maintained and kept free of traffic. I am sick to the back teeth of cycling along the red patch on a road and encountering fellas who have pulled in to buy their breakfast rolls and cappuccinos, Garda cars with their flashers on while the lads are out getting their coffee, security vans delivering money and lorries being loaded. I have seen all of this and I can show the photographs to anyone. I am sick and tired of cyclists being seen as second-class citizens. There is a lot more to be done in this area.

This Bill represents a sea change and is a good step forward. We should recognise the great work carried out by the Railway Procurement Agency and the Dublin Transportation Office. I ask only that we ensure the NRA pays sufficient attention to the DTA and that we pay particular attention to the slow modes of cycling and walking. Local authorities and the Garda Síochána have much work to do in this area.

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