Shane Moynihan (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)

The alignment of route 80 away from the quays on O'Connell Bridge has been identified as the cause of many of the operational issues affecting the operation of that route and the commuters who use it, including my constituents in Palmerstown. While I understand from the belated statement from the NTA yesterday that a review of the route is now underway, something that has been called for by elected representatives for some time now, it may take months. We need to arrive at a sustainable solution much faster, which is something the Tánaiste and the Minister for Transport will support.

This goes to the heart of an issue we have correctly identified in the programme for Government. We have promised to review the structures and operation of the NTA to strengthen its engagement with local authorities, communities and stakeholders. This now needs to happen as a matter of urgency, as it has come to a head in light of the reaction and the way in which the issues around route 80 have been dealt with. While I have engaged with individual operators on individual service matters, I understand that they operate within the parameters set by the NTA.

We need to build confidence in our public transport system. The NTA's statement yesterday that operational data for route 80 showed no major issues did not match the experience of commuters in Palmerstown and Chapelizod, who have been let down in recent weeks. Does the Tánaiste agree that we should make more granular performance data on our public transport systems available for all routes in order to build that public confidence and, as I have previously suggested, enable a traffic light system to show daily performance of individual bus routes around the country? That transparency can only build confidence.

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