Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)

The question of what to do during off-peak hours certainly is an issue. The Deputy's suggestion certainly could be considered by Dublin Bus. Bus Éireann uses quite a number of private subcontractors throughout the company. The off-peak issue also raises the question of work practices in Dublin Bus that must be addressed in respect of how one uses one's resources. As for Deputy Broughan's point, rather than more buses, capacity has increased by well over 30% and passenger numbers are falling. Consequently, it is not a question of not having the buses. Perhaps it is a question of not deploying——

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