Marie Sherlock (Dublin Central, Labour)

Go raibh maith agat a Chathaoirligh. I thank the Minister of State for taking this question. We had to postpone to tonight so he could be in the Chamber to take this. My question relates to commercial vehicle roadworthiness testing centre operators and tester regulations. I very much support improvement and adherence to the highest standards regarding commercial vehicle testing. I also very much support the concept of a 15-minute city and keeping services as close as possible to where they are needed. I support initiatives to reduce congestion and we have obviously had a lot of debate about the M7 over the past week and the carpark it has become, and the M50 has of course been incredibly congested for a number of years. The programme for Government states, "This Government will: Support the [logistics and road haulage] sector to ensure the efficiency of the supply chain and to maintain competitiveness" and the Minister of State has special responsibility for this area. There is also a commitment in the programme for Government to try to reduce the emissions from the logistics and road haulage sector. That applies to a lot of the vehicles, especially the commercial light goods vehicles that are in question here with respect to their annual testing and where they are tested.

My frustration is with SI No. 475/2022 which effectively mandates a series of improvements to light goods commercial vehicle testing centres. I support most of these improvements but one relates to the specific need for a drive-through. I did not get a specific answer to the key question I asked of the Department two years ago on the technical and engineering justification for a drive-through in these commercial vehicle roadworthiness testing centres. While we do not know that explanation, we know the regulations that will come into force on 18 March 2027 will result in the closure of at least four testing centres across the country and the loss of associated jobs. Those centres will be lost in Dublin’s north inner city, in Coolock, Greenhills, Ballymun and in many other parts of the country where it is not possible to introduce a drive-through.

I will give the Minister of State an example because this has come to my attention through William O’Brien Motors in the north inner city, in my constituency. It was set up in 1993. In 2012 it was asked by Dublin City Council to move to a premises – the only premises that could be found in the north inner city to facilitate such testing - because the council wanted to keep it in the city centre. Bear in mind the council asked William O’Brien to move in 2012 notwithstanding that there was guidance in place since 2004 and there was no intervention or interference then by the Road Safety Authority or the Department of Transport in the move to the current centre. It is 8,500 sq. ft. of which 4,250 sq. ft. is currently allocated to testing. If the Minister of State was to walk into that centre he would see it is capable of a 360 degree turn. It does not have the capacity for a drive-through but it is entirely safe in terms of how it is laid out. William O’Brien Motors has been fighting and debating with the Department over a number of years now about the need for this drive-through. A person from the Road Safety Authority came out a number of weeks ago and tried to provide helpful suggestions as to how William O’Brien Motors could comply with the regulations. The key issue is it would wipe out William O’Brien’s business. If he was to comply with the regulations it would effectively do away with all the other things he would need like a waiting room, toilets and office space. My question to the Minister of State is whether he wants places like this to close down out of the communities in which they are serving.

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