John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister started by saying it must be wonderful to be in opposition and raising traffic congestion, which is the gift that keeps on giving. It does not give me any pleasure to do it because it is a problem on which he does not appear to be making an impact. I have not seen a significant Garda presence on the street. However, let us keep the focus on positive matters. Did the Minister call the representatives of all the agencies to his Department, because if I was in his position I would do this a month or two months before the Christmas period, and have a discussion with them, push them hard on the measures they could take and ask them if they look at international experience? It would be a logical first step for a Minister with responsibility for transport to hear from them at first hand and also to offer some suggestions.

Perhaps the Minister would abandon the script for his response to the next issue, which is the bus lanes. This could benefit people all year round. If they are policed adequately, particularly the important ones, and if people are penalised when they drive in a bus lane, they will learn a habit that will continue over the rest of the year . It is not about penalising them for being in a bus lane but because the bus simply cannot proceed when there are cars in the bus lane. The buses are held up and do not meet their timetables so the public is less inclined to take public transport. This would be a real public transport initiative.

There is another issue. On the next occasion the Minister meets the representatives of Luas and Dublin Bus could he ask them why all vehicles must start at a terminus? I have raised this with Dublin Bus. In Dundrum and Sandyford in the Minister's constituency, is there some technical or logistical reason that Luas cannot dispatch the occasional empty tram at peak times that passes a few stops and starts at Dundrum and is able to pick up everybody on the platform instead of starting every Luas at the terminus? It is similar with buses. Many people in different areas complain that if a bus was allowed to start boarding passengers four or five stops into the route, it could absorb the capacity and there would not be the problem of packed buses passing people queuing at bus stops.

These are two or three simple solutions.

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