Dáil debates

Wednesday, 21 September 2022

Road Traffic and Roads Bill 2021: Report and Final Stages

 

6:37 pm

Photo of Danny Healy-RaeDanny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am flabbergasted and do not know where to start. When someone who is elected by the people comes in here, having got enough votes, those people are depending on the person to do the right thing. For someone to come in here and try to use his influence to obliterate the rights and proposals put in place by a local authority that has arrived at something collectively - there are 33 councillors elected to Kerry County Council. To think that someone in this Chamber, or a group of people, would try to deny them what they had put together over hours and days, together with management. Think of all they do together. I must remind those present councillors hardly get paid anything for their time save expenses and mileage. To think we would try to take all the powers they have and entrust it to An Bord Pleanála. We know what An Bord Pleanála has been at in recent times and indeed in times long ago. It has not acted fairly and squarely much of the time. As for suggesting the taking of powers away from local authorities, given some of the things that are here by way of amendments, I am glad the Minister is not accepting them.

It looks to me as if any proposed road development or scheme would not be accepted or allowed to go ahead if it was to help cars or vehicles that were not electrically operated or if it was not for walking or cycling. God almighty, man alive, what kind of a mind would put this kind of a story together? It would mean we could not remove a shrub or a tree to give vision around a turn on a narrow road where there might be a good bit of traffic and it is dangerous to travel, even for school buses or vehicles bringing materials or feed to farmers. For someone to think they could blindfold us here and make us vote for something like that and put it through the Dáil, who the bloody hell does the Deputy think he is to try to do this to the people of Ireland or to the people of Kerry we are representing? We would not be able to widen a turn, remove a bend or straighten a bit of a road where there are accidents day after day unless the people were driving an electrically-operated car or bicycle.

I will tell the Deputy so much about two electric bicycles anyway, seeing as it came up here. I have a man across the road from me. He bought two electric bicycles. He paid €1,700 for them over a year ago. The two of them are broken down now and they want two new batteries. He will have to give over €500 for the batteries for these bicycles. That is God's gospel truth; I am not making it up. I meet him every day when I am at home. He is my next-door neighbour. This is the kind of a mind that is here telling us we will not be able to widen a road unless it is for walking, cycling, use by electric vehicles or public transport.

There is no thought about the man or woman who is getting up this morning and leaving some rural place like Gneevgullia, Scartaglin or Brosna and trying to make his or her way maybe down miles of narrow roads to get on to the N72 or the N22 which will take them to Cork, Mallow or wherever. There is no thought about those people at all only trying to deny them the right of widening a road. God help us.

Where are we with the Killarney bypass? It is no wonder this is going on since 2004. We were told it was to go ahead and that tenders would be put out in a couple of years but it is backwards it has gone now in the last two or three years since this Government got into power. It is no wonder because with roads that were sanctioned we see the Minister himself trying to block them in Limerick and other places. The Killarney bypass is vital because the town is choked because of the lack of it. God only knows when that will go ahead if he remains in power. I can see that the Government has gone frantic at the present time. They know what we are hearing, that they are finished after this term and they are trying to rush through everything drastic and any kind of proposal at all they get in their head here knowing they are finished - I do not know who will be elected next time. I may not be elected myself. There is one thing sure - the Green Party candidates will not be elected, not in rural Ireland anyway, I can guarantee it. They will not be elected by the people of rural Ireland. They would want to be fairer with their ideas if there are certain things they want to get through here. What they are proposing at the present time is absolutely ridiculous, trying to force people so they cannot be allowed to widen roads or straighten bends and that they must buy electric cars after 2030. The Government must get real because it is not real at the present time.

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