Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy has pointed out a very interesting and telling second example. If that company is the sponsor, it is quite extraordinary. It is a good discovery. I am not quite sure what we can actually do with that except publicise it and ask them about the inconsistency in their position, which is obviously true. I will take that example from Deputy Murphy, or he can send it to me, and I will certainly use it, because it is such a stunning example. The insurance industry does give plenty of reasons as to why it puts its premiums up so much. Many of them look to me like camouflage and that is why the Government has set up a task force. It is imperative that we get to the bottom of this and find the real reasons, because they seem to be confusing. Nobody has been able to put his or her finger on one reason and say "This is it", which makes one very suspicious that there is something not particularly acceptable going on.

The Deputy also asked about accessible bus stops. Accessibility improvements to public transport services are being advanced in the context of my Department's sectoral plan under the Disability Act 2005, Transport Access for All. I understand the Deputy’s point about the need to increase the number of accessible bus stops on the network, particularly in rural areas. It is a fair point: accessibility is far better in the cities than in rural areas, and we will have to address that gap. This is something the NTA and Bus Éireann are working on to deliver now that a very high proportion of the bus fleet itself has been made accessible.

During 2016 the NTA is beginning the installation of wheelchair-accessible bus stops across the Bus Éireann network. The long-term objective is to install a wheelchair-accessible bus stop in every town in the State. The NTA is rolling this out on a route-by-route basis. The first routes are Bus Éireann routes 30, Dublin to Donegal, and 32, Dublin to Letterkenny. More generally, on public transport accessibility, there has been considerable progress in upgrading the infrastructure and facilities, including the fact that full accessibility is built into all new public transport infrastructure projects. One hundred percent of the Dublin Bus fleet is wheelchair-accessible; 100% of the Bus Éireann city fleet is wheelchair-accessible; approximately 80% of Bus Éireann PSO coaches are wheelchair-accessible by lift, and this will increase as the coach fleet is replaced; and 79 of the 143 railway stations have received accessibility upgrades, with ongoing work at four stations and a programme to improve accessibility across a further 54 stations.

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