Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)

Facilitation of the use of out of service vehicles by bus drivers when on a break must be eliminated. The bunching of buses, whereby when one is waiting for a bus up to three come together, was mentioned yesterday. This issue can be addressed by Dublin Bus ensuring that buses run at 20 or 30 minute intervals. This practice is an absolute waste of resources which frustrates everybody in the process. We must create confidence in bus services.

I recently visited Nantes in France and studied the transport system there. I was so impressed by it that I went back for a second look. The transport system there is totally integrated. It was stated a couple of years ago in The Times magazine that the best quality of life was to be found in Nantes. The reason for this is its integrated public transport system. Key to that is the provision of a modern bus system. The decision was taken in Nantes to halve the volume of traffic coming into the city. They did this by providing two-lane rather than four-lane highways and a quality bus corridor which receives priority and is served by modern buses which have Internet access. This allows people travelling to work in the centre of the city to work while on the bus. We need to think outside the box and to encourage more people to use buses.

Traffic congestion is an issue for us. Let us make more exciting and more rewarding people's experience of travel by bus. I believe we should be fast-tracking issues such as Internet access which make travel by bus worthwhile. People will be encouraged to use buses if perhaps they can send e-mails while travelling to work, be assured they will reach their destinations on time and will not have to sit for hours in traffic.

It is almost 12 years since I was first elected to Seanad Éireann. While previously I could get from home to Leinster House within an hour, it now takes me almost an hour and a half or an hour and three-quarters to get here. This has changed in recent weeks as a result of the recession. While An Taisce is to be congratulated on its Green Schools project, traffic flows much more freely when the schools are closed. I accept our climate does not always facilitate children walking to school. However, we need to fast-track schools' initiatives in regard to transport. We should insist that schools put in place transport plans which could be reviewed by the Department of Transport. Issues such as how to organise school time in the context of what does and does not work could be considered. Unless changes are made, everything will remain the same.

Currently, the taxpayer is paying for everything and there is a monopoly in Dublin in terms of bus transport. At the height of the boom, people chose to travel by car rather than bus, which did not add up. Perhaps the Acting Chairman would again indicate how much time I have remaining.

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