Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the motion proposed by our Dublin spokesperson, Deputy John Lahart. The public transport system in Dublin is at breaking point and is creaking at the seams. There is no question about that. Deputy Curran mentioned buses. There is no provision for multi-annual funding, meaning that Dublin Bus cannot plan its routes.

Deputy Curran mentioned, rightly, how we have to wait until budget day to see how many buses are going to be purchased. That is absolutely ridiculous.

A total of 1.8 million people will live in the greater Dublin area by 2030. That is 13 years away. The more I look at the announcements by the Department, the more I am amazed. Let us consider the cancellations by the previous Government. I will not lay all the blame specifically at the door of the current Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Ross, because that would be unfair. However, the Minister is suffering from the severe lack of ambition shown by his Fine Gael and Labour Party colleagues in the last Government. They slashed capital expenditure when they should have been spending and investing in metro north and DART underground. That was at a time when we would have got good value for money. Now, there are problems in Connolly Station following the opening of the Phoenix Park tunnel, although it was heralded and is good for commuters in that area. Anyway, people cannot get through Connolly Station. The northern rail commuter line and the DART line on the north side of the city and county are absolutely at capacity. Without the DART interconnector we cannot increase capacity within the city.

We need a government that has direction, leadership and ambition because we are living in the 21st century with an early 20th century public transport system. Ambition, leadership and direction was shown to deliver Terminal 2, a motorway network and Luas. However, all we have seen in the past seven years is Luas cross-city. In itself, that is welcome but what about the growing areas in the greater Dublin area? What about towns like Balbriggan, Skerries, Rush, Lusk, Donabate, Malahide, Portmarnock and every place along the northern line where commuters have to shove themselves onto the trains? I am one of those commuters.

The biggest problem arises when we see population growth rates. Let us consider the census figures of 2016 and the associated projections. There is no increased capacity. Instead, we see reports by successive Ministers, such as the second capital review. The former Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Donohoe, carried out a capital review. The Minister, Deputy Ross, is now undertaking a capital review. The great thing about capital reviews is that Ministers need do nothing else bar review them. The Minister need only get his officials to go out and get more reports carried out, although we know what needs to be done.

Metro north was ready to go, but we sent €600 million back to the European Investment Bank. We should have started the work. The route was selected. The land was available and purchased. The railway procurement order was in place. What did the Fine Gael and Labour Party Government do? It went back to the drawing board. A new route is required along with new planning permission and a new railway procurement order. What did the Government say? Those responsible said they would deliver it by 2027. I do not believe that.

What we need is something that will pull all this together. That is why this motion is welcome. I urge the Minister to make a start on this, because commuters in Dublin and the greater Dublin area deserve far better than what they are getting from this Government and from the previous Government.

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