Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Accessibility improvements to public transport services are being advanced in the context of Transport for All, which is my Department's sectoral plan pursuant to the Disability Act 2005. The plan promotes the principle of mainstreaming by requiring accessibility to be an integral element of public transport services and sets out a series of policy objectives and targets for all modes of public transport to make them more accessible to people with mobility, sensory and cognitive impairments. The plan was first published in 2006 and reviewed in 2008. The latest edition was published in 2013 following approval by both Houses of the Oireachtas. It provides a roadmap for further advances in public transport accessibility improvements and aims to build on the progress already achieved. As was the case with previous versions, the plan was prepared following an extensive consultation process with all stakeholders.

To date there has been a significant increase in the number of accessible vehicles together with improved access to much of the public transport infrastructure. Many targets have already been achieved and significant progress has been made towards the realisation of several others. For example, close to 60% of Irish Rail's stations have received significant accessibility upgrades while urban bus fleets in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick, Waterford and Sligo are 100% wheelchair accessible. While 56% of Bus Éireann's coach fleet is wheelchair accessible, I recognise that an accessible service is only available on a limited number of routes. Work needs to be done and that work is ongoing. The targets in Transport Access for All are also reflected in the national disability strategy implementation plan which provides for a whole-of-Government approach to improving public service provision generally for people with disabilities. Both plans contain monitoring and evaluation mechanisms which involve groups representing people with disabilities.

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