Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy O'Rourke for the opportunity to speak on public transport. In my area we have seen the privatisation of some of our bus routes. Go-Ahead operates the 76, the 18, the L51 and the L52 routes in Clondalkin, Palmerstown and Lucan. This has been an abject failure. As we approach Hallowe'en, we have ghost buses in our area. Buses that are on the schedule mysteriously disappear and leave passengers stranded. These buses are important for getting people to work and children to school. The 76 is also the only bus in my area that goes to Tallaght Hospital. Someone contacted me tonight on Facebook to say they have been missing appointments because the bus has not been turning up.

The privatisation of public transport has failed, and it must be reversed. While there have been some improvements from Dublin Bus with the BusConnects programme, it still has its problems. Residents in Dodsborough in Lucan, for example, feel abandoned. Other residents in my area watch helplessly as full bus after full bus passes them by, leaving them stranded. There also seems to be a problem at peak times, as there do not seem to be enough buses. Since the change from the 40 to the G2, one young woman says she has been left in town for more than 40 minutes waiting on a bus at peak times. That did not happen previously.

I am all in favour of encouraging people out of the car and onto public transport, but there needs to be a just transition. We have an unjust situation in Liffey Valley shopping centre, where car parking charges are being imposed on workers. Charges of more than €600 per year are being placed on workers just to go to work. Liffey Valley is not served by the Luas or train and the bus routes do not cater for everyone. The proper public transport infrastructure is not in place to warrant these car parking charges. Shopping centres usually have a Santa Claus visit in the run-up to Christmas. Liffey Valley has the Grinch, and much like the Grinch, these policies are green too. I have stood on the picket line in solidarity with workers in recent weeks. So far, there has been no direct engagement between management and the staff or their unions. This needs to happen. I publicly call on Liffey Valley management to meet with staff and the unions to resolve the problems that they have created.

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