Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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I move:

That Dáil Éireann:

notes:

— that the transport sector accounts for 17.7 per cent of our total greenhouse gas emissions, and investment in public transport can play a central role in helping to reduce carbon emissions;

— that expanding affordable, accessible and reliable public transport infrastructure across the island can deliver environmental, social and economic benefits to all cities, towns and regions;

— that 13.5 per cent of the population have a disability, and ensuring universal access for all on public transport must be a priority;

— that a lack of public transport options in rural Ireland means many workers and families are completely reliant on private car use for education, work and leisure, and should not be penalised financially for this;

— that commercial bus operators deliver important connectivity in areas the State failed to invest in, and accounted for 30 million passenger journeys in 2019; and

— the concerning level of anti-social behaviour across public transport services;

recognises:

— the detrimental impact on commuters who rely on bus services in Dublin and the Greater Dublin Area as a result of the previous Fine Gael Government's decision to privatise 10 per cent of bus routes in these areas;

— the failure of the Government to extend the 20 per cent public transport fare reduction to commercial bus operators in Budget 2023; and

— that the Western Rail Corridor is not included in the National Development Plan 2021-2030, nor will the Navan railway line be completed within the lifetime of the revised plan;

acknowledges:

— that the Navan railway line and the Western Rail Corridor combined could provide for an additional 2,375,000 sustainable passenger journeys each year and deliver significant economic and social benefits to these regions;

— the call from the National Bus and Rail Union for the establishment of a dedicated transport policing unit;

— that many people with a disability continue to face barriers using public transport, such as broken lifts, limited wheelchair spaces or having to give 24-hour notice before their journey in order to have a ramp in place;

— the very poor standard of service being delivered by Go-Ahead Ireland in particular, which includes late buses, overcrowding and no-shows; and

— the failure of the Government to include specific funding in Budget 2023 to extend the Short Hop Zones to more train stations to reduce the cost of travel for commuters; and

calls for:

— the 20 per cent public transport fare reduction to be extended to commercial bus operators;

— the timeline for the delivery of the Connecting Ireland Rural Mobility Plan to be accelerated;

— funding to be allocated to kickstart the delivery of the Western Rail Corridor project and expedite the delivery of the Navan railway line;

— the establishment of a dedicated public transport policing unit;

— the Public Transport Accessibility Retrofit Programme budget to be increased, to ensure accessibility at all train stations, platforms and bus stops;

— the National Transport Authority (NTA) to exercise their regulatory powers to ensure punctuality, reliability and customer service standards are met by all public transport providers;

— the Minister for Transport to mandate the NTA to ensure that the current contractual agreement between the NTA and Go-Ahead Ireland will not be extended beyond its current contractual timeframe, and that the 10 per cent of previously privatised services would be brought back under public or State-owned control; and

— the extension of the Short Hop Zones, in order to reduce the cost of travel for commuters currently excluded.

Expanding our public transport network across the State can deliver environmental, social and economic benefits to all regions. Unfortunately, due to decades of neglect by successive Governments, large swaths remain without quality public transport links, while some regions remain entirely cut off from our rail network. People in rural Ireland are punished by a punitive carbon tax for having to use their car, despite the Government putting no alternatives in place for them. The rail network we have today is a skeleton of what we had 100 years ago. This has resulted in communities being isolated and has contributed to the stagnation of economic growth in some regions. Sinn Féin wants to change this. We want to see an accessible, affordable, reliable all-Ireland transport system that enables the movement of people and goods locally, regionally and nationally at the least environmental, social and financial cost. That is at the heart of our motion tonight. This plan could and should be implemented.

The motion contains a number of measures that I have raised with the Minister before and all of which are contained in our alternative budget, which we believe should be acted on. We want to see the 20% public transport fare reduction made permanent, not just extended until the end of next year, and extended to commercial bus operators. The latter were responsible for in the region of 30.5 million trips in 2019. They fill a gap that the State has left open. They provide a very important service.

We want to see the timeline for the delivery of the Connecting Ireland rural bus plan accelerated. I have raised this with the Minister on numerous occasions. I am referring to the €5 million allocated in 2022 and to a €56 million plan that would deliver significantly for communities if invested in and rolled out on time. Sinn Féin would invest €25 million in that plan next year.

We want to see funding allocated to kick-start the delivery of the western rail corridor project and expedite the delivery of the Navan rail line. Between these two important regional projects, in the region of 2.375 million passenger journeys could be made every year, taking people out of their cars and putting them on public transport.

We want to see a dedicated public transport and policing unit established. We have had much discussion on this topic. It has included backbenchers and various Ministers and Ministers of State but we have had no progress on it. We are aware that anti-social behaviour and crime on public transport are increasing, putting workers, including drivers, and passengers at risk. We know the unit would be a deterrent. According to research carried out by Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, just 15% of women in Dublin felt safe on a train and just 24%, or almost one in four, felt safe on the bus network. This should be a genuine concern. It needs to be addressed. The establishment of a dedicated public transport policing unit, as called for by several unions, should be part of the solution.

We want to see the public transport accessibility retrofit programme budget increased year on year to bring it, in five years, to the €137.5 million that is said to be needed to deliver a fully accessible public transport network with buses, coaches, light and heavy rail, and, importantly, stops, stations and platforms. That needs to be done.

We want the short-hop zones extended to reduce the cost of travel for commuters who are currently excluded. My colleague, Deputy Munster, has been particularly vocal about the anomaly that exists between Balbriggan, Gormanston, Laytown and Drogheda. This is but one of several examples in Meath, Louth, Kildare and Wicklow. These need to be addressed. Sinn Féin would do so.

My last point, on which some of my colleagues will pick up, is that we need to see the Fine Gael agenda to privatise 10% of Dublin Bus routes to be scrapped and reversed. The Go-Ahead experiment has failed miserably; it needs to be reversed.

Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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I thank Deputy O'Rourke for introducing this motion. I call on all Deputies to support it. The lack of reliable public transport in the north west means that households have fewer options for travel and are more dependent on their cars in order to access basic services and commute to and from work and school. This is even more stark now as the cost of running a car has shot up. This reflects the real cost of Government underinvestment in the north west, including my county, Donegal. The people of the north west need to see a public transport system that delivers for our communities, one that is affordable and reliable.

This is a chance to make inroads towards environmental sustainability. That is why the Connecting Ireland plan must be accelerated. In Sinn Féin's alternative budget, we proposed an additional €195 million for the public transport system in the next year: to reduce fares, invest in new rail infrastructure, accelerate the roll-out of rural bus services and to ensure citizens have the access they deserve.

There are issues specific to the north west and to Donegal that must be addressed. Due to the lack of investment, our people are more reliant on commercial bus operators to travel, yet the 20% fare reduction that came into effect in April does not apply to commercial operators, an oversight that is clearly unfair. Sinn Féin has been calling on the Government to extend the fare reduction to commercial operators to ensure that citizens in Donegal benefit equally.

When it comes to students, we see the Government has introduced a 50% discount to young adults and student holders of Leap cards, but the discount does not apply to young people in Donegal who study or work in Derry or Belfast who go to Queens or to Coleraine, Jordanstown, Magee or elsewhere in the North. They are being discriminated against by the Government. The Government will tell us that the cross-Border trips cannot be included, yet a senior citizen going to Belfast is able to avail of the free travel pass. The Government must get its act together. This can be resolved by extending the scheme to commercial operators that provide routes to destinations in the North, and it should be done as soon as possible.

One of the first questions I was asked by a fellow Senator when I was elected to the Seanad many years ago was if I got the train up. I told him that the last time a train rolled out of Donegal was in the early 1960s. That must be addressed, especially in light of the climate emergency. The new all-island strategic rail review that is currently under way must have the north west at its centre. Extending access to rail services in Donegal is crucial to empowering communities and to unlocking the potential for the people of the north west.

Réada Cronin (Kildare North, Sinn Fein)
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Accessible, reliable, affordable and safe travel is what commuters want and need in north Kildare. Instead, we have workers from Prosperous and Clane receiving late warnings from work, with one constituent receiving a final late warning. Parents must take time off work to get their children to Maynooth University for lectures or laboratory work. Mothers - it is always mothers - in Straffan and Celbridge - say they are worried that they will have to give up work because there is no place on the school bus. Even after all the free places were announced, it turned out there were no bus places for their children at all. Commuters are either left on the side of the road in Leixlip or Maynooth when the bus grinds past full, or else it does not turn up at all.

A few weeks ago, I raised public transport with the Minister for Transport at the climate committee. I also discussed a Topical Issue with the Minister of State, Deputy Hildegarde Naughton, a few weeks ago. I raised the issue at the Joint Committee on Gender Equality. I also raised it with the Taoiseach again this morning. The reason for that is because public transport affects all aspects of our lives: how we get to work, how we get to school and how we get to health appointments. It affects people's job opportunities. It also affects every Department, yet there is no overall vision of how the Departments should work together to make people's lives easier.

We had youth leaders from across the State at a climate committee meeting last Friday in the Seanad. All of them mentioned the lack of public transport in their area. I asked them if they intended to buy a car in the next ten years or if they thought they would need a car. None of them said they would want a car, but that is not the way it goes if public transport is not up to the job. In contrast, our plan would make public transport the no-brainer option because it would make public transport accessible, affordable, reliable and safe. We simply cannot depend on the private sector to deliver a public transport system. We are in a climate emergency and the State must step up. Public transport is where it is at.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Is léir go bhfuil an-dúil ag daoine ina bheith ag úsáid iompair phoiblí ach caithfidh an t-infheistiú a bheith ann chun gur féidir le daoine a bheith ag súil leis go rithfidh seirbhísí in am agus go mbeidh na feithiclí sábháilte agus glan.

I commend the work my colleague, Deputy O'Rourke, has done in this area. The motion is testament to the ambition that this party has for the public transport investment that is necessary for recruitment and the scale that is there. People will take public transport. They will choose it over the car if they are confident that it is reliable, safe, clean, comfortable; that it gets them where they need to go, and that it serves their community in the way that is necessary. That is not just what people say; that is the reality, and it is what we have seen on the ground.

In Cork in recent years, we have seen an expansion of the public transport system in a number of localities. Where we put in the routes and services people will use them, provided they are of an adequate quality. Bus Éireann has expanded significantly in Cork. At this point, however, it does not have anywhere near the staff capacity needed to meet the objectives that are being set out for it in terms of BusConnects and the additional routes. Without additional recruitment, the State could end up looking at private contractors and tenders and all the kind of messing that we have seen in other places that we do not want to see in Cork. There is no reason that there should not be the required recruitment in Bus Éireann. It can and should happen, provided the Minister signs off on it. Bus Éireann should be running the additional routes and services.

I also urge the Minister of State and the NTA to be flexible and to engage meaningfully with local communities on BusConnects. I believe it can be a success, but in order for that to happen it must bring communities with it. It must make clear the benefits that can accrue and come to reasonable accommodations with communities. I urge that would happen, and it can be successful provided that is done.

The final point I want to make relates to school transport. It is the no-brainer to end all no-brainers. It reduces traffic at the busiest times. It also reduces emissions, and it reduces costs for parents. Whatever about what happened this year - there was good and bad in it in terms of costs, but the planning was inadequate - there needs to be a long-term objective of providing free school transport for everyone that wants a place. That is not just some kind of frivolous throwaway commitment. It makes financial, environmental and transport sense in the long run. That should be the objective. That is our objective, and it should be the objective of the Minister of State as well.

Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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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.

Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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Sinn Féin will deliver affordable, reliable and safe public transport. The reason we will do so is that we understand the necessity of affordable and accessible public transport in addressing social exclusion and climate change and to facilitate economic growth, in particular in the regions. That was nowhere more evident than last Saturday when West On Track organised a conference for the delivery of the western rail corridor and the development of the Atlantic economic corridor as well.

Sixty towns from throughout the region were represented at that conference and there were public representatives from right across the political divide. The western rail corridor has the potential to revitalise these western communities, provide alternative transport options for people and deliver the much-needed regional connectivity. It has been estimated that if the line is reactivated, 575,000 passengers could travel on it each year by 2030. The western rail corridor has become a byword for regional development and investment in the west, and it is a significant source of frustration given the repeated failures to progress the project. For Mayo regional development, it is no longer an option but an urgent necessity. The Minister of State knows this, as does the Minister for Transport.

As was noted last week, when Jim Fahy interviewed Monsignor Horan in Knock, he asked the priest what all the people were doing there. Monsignor Horan explained that they were building an airport but warned him not to tell the Department of Transport because if people with centralised and institutionalised thinking had had their way, Knock Airport would never have been built. We want the same to be done for the western rail corridor. We want it to be delivered on. It is a modest sum we are talking about and it will be a game changer for the entire region, as I know the Minister of State, coming from the region, understands. When will the all-island rail review be made available to us?

John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein)
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For public transport to work, it needs to be accessible, affordable and reliable. However, under existing Government policy and the previous Government's policy of privatisation, that simply is not happening. Four years ago, 10% of the Dublin Bus fleet was privatised and handed over to a private operator, Go-Ahead Ireland. Since that time, it has been a disaster. I have stood here in this House many a time, in front of the Minister of State and her departmental colleague, raising the serious issues relating to Go-Ahead, which has left communities completely isolated, abandoned and simply forgotten.

In Wicklow, three routes were privatised, namely, the 45A, the 185 and the 184. Not a day goes by when somebody is not in touch with me to complain that the bus simply did not show up or was cancelled or that the driver had changed the route, with the passengers on board, because it was running behind schedule and had to make up time. It simply is not working. Yesterday evening, for example, on one of those routes, the 45A, seven buses were cancelled. That was on just one bus route in Wicklow, but it is a daily occurrence. Privatisation simply has not worked; it has failed. I ask the Minister of State and her colleague the Minister for Transport to act now, revoke the licence that was issued to Go-Ahead, take it back under public control and ownership and let Dublin Bus do what it does best, namely, run the bus service that is fit for purpose and will serve the communities it is supposed to serve.

Wicklow is also a constituency that has been failed by the extension of the short-hop zone. The short-hop zone goes as far as Kilcoole. I have raised continuously the need to extend it as far as Arklow but the answer I get back from the NTA and the Minister is that it will not be considered because too many people would use it. That is absolutely crazy given people are sitting in their cars on the N11 in congestion. They should be incentivised to use public transport and the trains but, again, the failure of the Government will ensure they are confined to traffic in their cars.

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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I am taking this motion on behalf of the Minister for Transport. I thank Deputies for the opportunity to speak to the House about the importance of accessible, affordable and reliable public transport. I am confident we can all agree it is essential that the Government continue to invest in our public transport network and that we are supportive of the Government’s commitment to delivering an accessible, affordable and reliable public transport network throughout the country. While the Government will not oppose the motion and its overall objective is broadly in line with the principles of the Government, it contains some issues that require clarification and they will be highlighted in the ministerial contributions.

It is a key Government objective to provide all citizens with reliable and realistic sustainable mobility options and public transport plays a key role in delivering that. To support this objective, in budget 2022, the Department of Transport secured €538 million in funding for public service obligation, PSO, and Local Link services provided by State operators and under contract by the NTA this year. More recently, €563 million has been secured as part of the budget 2023 negotiations for the continuation of these services. To incentivise young people to use public transport, the Minister for Transport secured funding for the introduction of a young adult card, which allows anyone nationwide between the ages of 19 and 23 to avail of a 50% discount on all PSO services and since September, also on participating commercial services. This initiative was recently widened to allow 16- to 18-year-old third level students to apply for the student Leap card in order that they too can avail of the discount. Furthermore, to combat the rising cost of living being experienced throughout the country, the Government introduced fare reductions of 20% on average on PSO services. Funding has been secured in budget 2023 for the continuation of the young adult card on PSO and commercial services, as well as retaining the 20% average fare discount on PSO services. These fare initiatives are making a significant positive difference to people’s lives throughout the country and their continuation in 2023 represents a significant investment by the taxpayer in public transport.

With regard to short-hop zones, given the current cost-of-living crisis and various pressures on the Exchequer throughout the system, budget 2023 is focused on delivering the maximum benefit for all passengers. Funding was directed, therefore, towards the fare initiatives I outlined rather than any narrow application to specific issues that can arise with some fares at the edges of the current short-hop zones. These issues are acknowledged, however, and the NTA is examining what needs to be done to ensure the distance-based fare outside the short-hop zone is in line with the distance-based fare inside the short-hop zone to ensure the fares will be more equitable. This work is ongoing as part of a national fares review for rail and bus services.

The Government is committed to providing a comprehensive national transport network that connects our people and places throughout Ireland. For this reason, the Government has an ambitious vision to transform transport services and infrastructure nationwide, with one of the key priorities for public transport being the roll-out of the Connecting Ireland rural mobility plan. The House will be aware that Connecting Ireland will significantly increase both the number of routes and the frequency of existing services throughout the country. It aims to enhance existing services and introduce new public transport services. On 19 July, the NTA announced the Connecting Ireland programme’s phase 1 implementation plan, which has delivered a mix of new and enhanced bus services on routes and services serving areas in counties Cavan, Monaghan, Donegal, Clare, Sligo, Kildare, Offaly, Mayo, Laois, Limerick, Tipperary, Louth and Wexford. Over the coming weeks, the NTA plans to implement improvements to levels of service on a further 14 services throughout the State. Implementation of the programme at the pace outlined by the Government and in line with the funding and operational resources available.

Regarding our rail network, the strategic rail review being undertaken in co-operation with the Department for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland will inform the development of interurban, interregional rail on the island of Ireland over the coming decades. The review will set the type of strategic backdrop to rail investment in our regions and on our mainline network and is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

This review will also consider the potential scope for improved rail services along the various existing or future potential corridors of the network. That scope will include the potential afforded by disused and closed lines. It will be one of the most significant reviews of the rail network on the island in many years and will provide a framework to develop a much-improved rail network in the years ahead.

With regard to the Navan rail line, the NTA's draft transport strategy for the greater Dublin area is recommending the development of a rail link to Navan by 2042. This project will require significant planning and design before construction can commence. As it stands, the draft strategy proposes delivery of the Navan rail line in the latter half of the strategy period between 2031 and 2042.

With regard to the issue of establishing a dedicated public transport policing unit, as this House will be aware, antisocial behaviour is a broad societal issue we are currently facing to which public transport is not immune. The safety and security of both public transport passengers and staff, including arrangements to deal with antisocial behaviour, are important matters that first and foremost must be managed by every public transport company in conjunction with An Garda Síochána, where appropriate. It is important to note that any decisions regarding the establishment of a transport police unit and the allocation of Garda resources are matters for the Minister for Justice and the Garda Commissioner. That said, the NTA regularly engages with public transport operators on the issue of antisocial behaviour and has established a working group on antisocial behaviour that meets monthly to discuss any developing trends among public transport operators and to share best practices.

The Minister for Transport is fully committed to strengthening our public transport offerings and progressively making them accessible for all. This requires a whole-journey approach, which refers to all elements that constitute a journey from the starting point to destination. It also means applying the principles of universal design. As the House will be aware, the Department of Transport and its agencies are progressively making public transport accessible for disabled people by ensuring new infrastructure and services are accessible from the start and by retrofitting older infrastructure and facilities to make them accessible. Accessibility features such as wheelchair accessibility and audiovisual aids are built into all new public transport infrastructure projects and vehicles from the design stage. Newer systems such as the Luas are fully accessible, as are all new buses purchased by the NTA.

The public transport accessibility retrofit programme has increased from an average of €7 million over the past four years to €15.3 million for 2022. This will be used to ensure continued works to improve accessibility at train stations, bus stations and stops. A sum of €18 million has been invested over four years to replace or renovate the lifts at the train stations. All of the major public transport companies consult persons with disabilities, individuals and representative organisations through the companies' disability user groups. The user groups provide a forum for operators to consult and update disability organisations on accessibility proposals and developments and for disability organisations to raise operational and other accessibility issues.

With regard to the call for the NTA to exercise its regulatory powers to ensure punctuality, reliability and customer service standards are met by all public transport operators and providers, I would like to clarify that the NTA uses all the contractual and regulatory powers available to it to measure, report on and seek to maintain and improve standards across public service obligation, PSO, transport services. In instances where performance drops, financial penalties are rigorously applied unless the cause of the loss of performance is outside of the control of the operator, for example, high levels of Covid sickness absence. In recent months, all bus operators have faced challenges in maintaining adequate staff numbers to cover all requirements. The NTA has worked collaboratively with all operators to try to mitigate the impact of these staff shortages. However, the summer months were challenging, with performance deductions applied to a number of operators, as per all PSO contracts. In recent weeks, performance standards have improved although there remains a shortage of driving and maintenance staff, which will take some time to resolve fully. With regard to PSO contractual arrangements between the NTA and Go-Ahead Ireland, the current contracts with Go-Ahead are regularly reviewed by the NTA, as with all PSO contracts. Whether tendered or directly awarded, all decisions relating to contract extensions or renewals will be made following a detailed assessment of a number of factors, including the performance of the operator over the duration of the contract in question.

On behalf of the Minister, Deputy Ryan, this motion is generally in line with the principles of this Government in terms of prioritising investment in the public transport network. As I outlined, however, some elements of the motion do not properly reflect the progress to date in this area, the work currently underway or the Government's future plans for public transport.

Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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The proposals Sinn Féin have are for a detailed plan for a reliable public transport service. If we want people to use public transport, however, we first need to provide the proper infrastructure. I have raised the issue of bus shelters many times. Borris-in-Ossory and Castletown on the R445 need bus shelters. I raised this issue numerous times with the NTA and the Department. They are also needed at Ballyline, Newtown and Crettyard on the N77. In weather like we had over the past week or so, people have been standing in spilling rain waiting for a bus, which does not entice people onto public transport. It is an issue that needs to be addressed. Funding was approved earlier this year for five bus shelters at Ballybrittas in County Laois, Kilminchy in Portlaoise and two more at Mountrath. Laois County Council is ready to proceed but the NTA needs to engage with the council to get those shelters in place. I spoke to the council again about this no later than this morning. Funding has been approved. The NTA needs to engage with the council. This is fundamental infrastructure. Local authorities do not have the authority to procure and install it. I want the Minister of State to take this back. Under the local government legislation that was brought forward by the Minister at the time, Mr. Phil Hogan, that power was to be devolved down, not just to designate bus stops but actually to put bus shelters in place. It can be devolved down. It needs the Minister with responsibility for local government to act on it. It is too slow and cumbersome when a local authority has to go through the NTA to get a bus stop erected, which the Minister of State will appreciate. It is one of the things we can do.

We want to extend the 20% public transport fare reduction, which I welcome, to all commercial bus operators. That is not the case that the moment. This is important on rural and regional routes such as those to and from Laois-Offaly. Many people have to use the private operators, as I have done. People should not be denied the 20% reduction. That needs to be spread out across all providers. We are proposing that the Connecting Ireland scheme is provided with an additional €25 million to deliver the roll-out to rural areas. This will mean a reliable transport service for workers in counties Laois and Offaly. It is needed in the morning and evening to get people to and from work and to connect the smaller towns and villages with larger towns like Tullamore and Portlaoise.

Finally, we need a safe public transport system. We are calling for the establishment of a dedicated public transport policing unit. A recent report found that 77% of women outside of Dublin felt it was unsafe to use the train. The Portlaoise to Ballybrophy line to Dublin has been identified as having recurring problems. The security guards do not have the powers to arrest. We need gardaí. We need special dedicated Garda units with powers of arrest on those lines to make our public transport safe.

Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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I commend my colleague, Deputy O'Rourke, on bringing forward this motion. Public transport needs to be accessible, reliable and safe for people. Accessibility is certainly one of the issues raised in this motion with regard to the western rail corridor for people living in my region in the west and in the Minister of State's region. It is one of the big factors that could be a game changer for that part of the country. If it were complete, it would revolutionise the whole system across the west and north west to be able to provide public transport in that region.

A big issue we have, which we come across regularly, is the reliability of bus services, particularly the Bus Éireann service. People have to book online to get on the bus and then, because the bus is booked up, they arrive at a bus stop and wait. The bus comes driving up and they discover there are ten or 20 empty seats, but the bus driver says, "Sorry, those seats are already booked". The bus has to drive on and leave them on the side of the road. That is happening regularly throughout the country. That is a real problem that needs to be dealt with.

With regard to the issue of safety, numerous people in my area have contacted me about problems on the train going from Sligo to Dublin. On other train services, especially here in the city of Dublin, there is the whole issue of what is often termed "antisocial behaviour". It is much more serious than that, however. It is not antisocial behaviour. These are actually attacks. It is brutality that is happening to people. We have had issues of bus drivers being attacked. The real problem is we need to accept that if we are going to make public transport one of the main facets of our society, we have to make it safe for people. The only way that can be done is to have a dedicated public transport police service in place throughout the State, but particularly in our urban areas.

That needs to happen as a matter of urgency. I note the Minister of State mentioned this in her speech and said it is a matter for the Minister for Justice and the Garda Commissioner. The reality is it is past the stage of considering this now. We need to put that provision in place and do it as a matter of urgency.

Johnny Guirke (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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I thank my colleague Deputy O'Rourke for bringing this very important motion to the Dáil floor. Our island's public transport system is staffed by tens of thousands of hard-working men and women and I acknowledge that. The 2016 census recorded 13.5% of the population as having a disability. People with a disability or those with mobility challenges all too often face barriers using public transport such as broken lifts in train stations, limited wheelchair spaces or having to give 24 hours' notice to have a ramp in place. We need investment to make sure we have wheelchair access at all train stations, platforms and bus stops. This must be a priority for us all.

The transport sector accounted for 17.7% of our greenhouse gas emissions in 2021 and this must fall by 50% over the next eight years from the 2018 baseline if we are to meet our overall reduction target of 51% by 2030. About half of all transport emissions originate from the passenger car fleet, highlighting the urgent need to invest in public transport. In my own county of Meath we have the NX bus service covering Navan and Johnstown. Commuters who rely on these services are fed up to the teeth of the poor services being delivered. Late buses, no-shows, overcrowding, antisocial behaviour and generally poor service are commonplace on these routes. This is causing serious problems for people who rely on these buses and very little is being done to fix it. These ongoing issues, if not fixed, will drive people away from using public transport. Schoolchildren also struggle to get to their destinations as many have been left behind in the issuing of concessionary tickets. Bus Éireann has received more than 50 emails from me but only one has been answered. Mostly it sends automated responses. It is a joke.

Our motion also calls for the delivery of the Navan rail line. Re-establishing the rail connection to Navan will benefit commuters, businesses, tourism and the environment, ending the commuting nightmare for many, and will take thousands of cars off our roads each day. It has been estimated this line has the potential to facilitate up to 1.8 million passenger journeys per year. The Minister of State needs to come to Navan and meet me and Deputy O'Rourke. We will meet with commuters who cannot wait until 2031 for this project to start. Planning must start today, as we have allowed for in our alternative budget. A Sinn Féin Government would deliver the Navan rail line starting today.

Pauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Many people from rural communities such as my own constituency of Cavan-Monaghan who, through necessity, commute to the large urban centres such as Dublin, are heavily reliant on private cars due to the lack of public transport options in rural Ireland. Where they do exist, they can often be very unreliable, leaving commuters stranded in the rain and cold waiting for the next bus, hoping it will not be full. There is an hourly bus service from Cavan to Dublin but the issue is capacity, especially with the evening services. Regularly buses are at capacity when they reach the last stop out of Dublin at Blanchardstown and they have to leave people behind to wait an hour for the next bus, which often is also at capacity. People have told me they sometimes end up getting home two to three hours later than anticipated. There is a clear need for an additional service on that route. There is no proper shelter at that location either.

People living in more rural areas depend on the Local Link to provide public transport. It can be very sketchy across Cavan and Monaghan. I will acknowledge there are some areas well serviced by it. In my own area of Kilnaleck and Ballyjamesduff there are people constantly looking for a service into the county town. We have two services, one on a Thursday and one on a Saturday. It is not sufficient. Cavan-Monaghan Local Link has applied for resources to activate new routes from those areas but they have not yet been approved by Transport for Ireland. I am hoping they will be approved in the very near future. If affordable, accessible and reliable public transport infrastructure were expanded across the island, it would deliver social and economic benefits to all our cities, town and regions and would also meet our obligations in reducing our carbon emissions.

These issues are worse still for people with disabilities who face multiple barriers to using public transport such as broken lifts, having to give notice before their journeys so that a ramp is put in place, and limited wheelchair places on buses. For the State to align the public transport system with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, UNCRPD, there is a need to make it universally accessible. To this end, the public transport accessibility retrofit programme budget needs to be increased to ensure accessibility at all train stations, platforms and bus stops. There need to be annual targets for retrofitting of older public transport infrastructure with reports measuring progress against these targets.

My colleague Deputy Pearse Doherty referred to a rail system in Donegal and said the last train to leave Donegal was in the early 1960s. The same applies to Cavan. It was probably the same train service that used to go through Cavan and on to Donegal. Those counties are now all left without a train service for that length of time. The Minister of State said the Navan railway line would be extended in 20 years' time. That needs to be addressed in a much shorter period.

Duncan Smith (Dublin Fingal, Labour)
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I am delighted to speak on the motion, which has many wonderful and admirable asks which we have all been hearing from our constituents throughout the country, be it the western rail link to Donegal or rural transport in general. One thing I would like to focus on is the issue of security on our transport services. On social media in recent days we have seen an incident that took place on Amiens Street outside Connolly station or at the Amiens Street bus stops at the intersection with the Luas. It is a very busy transport node. There was an incident of what seemed like young men having a running fight. The video is 20 or 30 seconds long. It is another in a long line of videos that are quite disturbing and show a level of violence that would make anyone in the vicinity feel very frightened. I saw one of the videos was shot from a bus. People who were on public transport would have felt paralysed and, if these people had forced their way onto the bus, they would have been in a difficult situation. We have had calls for transport policing and the motion contains a call for a transport policing unit. We need to tease that out. What does it look like? Is this a unit of An Garda Síochána? If transport policing is to be part of the overall solution, it should be part of An Garda Síochána. On the Luas, for example, we have private security operators who are dressed like Robocop, as I would describe it. They do not add overall to a degree of security. They look quite militarised and like they are tooled up and generally I feel they add to feeling unsafe.

What I would like to see in the first instance all across our transport sector is an increase in ordinary transport workers, be they workers at train stations or inspectors on buses, which we used to have. They were good, well-paid, traditional transport jobs with good conditions. That is something we have seen shrink over the years. We have gone from stations that had staff to making a virtue out of staffless stations with an electronic unit where people can swipe their cards and all that. We need to get back to having staffed stations and transport nodes and having inspectors on buses before we get to the stage of having a tooled-up transport policing unit. Overall that leads to an increase of securitisation in our transport infrastructure when we should be looking at attracting workers to the traditional roles across Irish Rail, Dublin Bus and all our transport operators. Ultimately, if we have a transport policing solution, we will not be able to have security guards on every bus in every town and city in Ireland. It is a deeper problem. It is an easy thing to say we need a transport police and maybe there does have to be a role for An Garda Síochána and some kind of multidepartmental or cross-sectoral approach in terms of security.

We should start with hiring back staff and having better staff levels, having people working on our platforms who are able to assist those with disabilities when they find themselves, as they all too often do, unable to access trains or to get on buses. Another part of this motion is something my party and many other Opposition parties have called for, which is ensuring people with disabilities are prioritised in our transport system. Buses that are being purchased into our fleets now are required to have proper accessibility.

However, I have spoken to wheelchair users who still have difficulties accessing these modern buses. In some cases, their wheelchairs are so big and difficult to manoeuvre that, even if they can get onto a bus, it means that bus is full from another disabled person's point of view. We are getting fleets of buses that may be accessible for many people with disabilities but only for one of them at a time. If someone is waiting further down the line, that bus will drive past. There is much more to be done before we have a truly accessible public transport service.

Previous contributors spoke about the western rail corridor and the rail link to Donegal. I will speak about something a little closer to home, namely, the MetroLink project. I am delighted the railway order has gone to An Bord Pleanála and is out for public consultation. I have spoken many times about why this project is important and that point has been well made. I want to focus on another element, which is how these big projects are important, not just in and of themselves and not just to meet our climate targets but also in how they impact on the delivery of other projects. In the case of MetroLink - the same thing is played out in other parts of the country - the ramifications of a project that is so long in the pipeline is that other projects, including accessibility measures, transport measures and other things local authorities should be doing, are put on hold indefinitely.

Such projects include micro-local issues like the Pinnock Hill roundabout in Swords, which has no safe crossing such as a bridge over it like there is on other roundabouts, traffic lights or a pedestrian junction. There is a hole in the bush in the middle of the dual carriageway through which commuters trying to get from Swords village, where they have been left off by the bus, must make their way to get to work in Airside Retail Park. They have to dash across two lanes of traffic to get to the median and the hole in the bush. Coming from the other way, there are school-goers travelling from the Holywell estate, which has more than 2,500 houses and apartments, trying to get to the school on Main Street. Fingal County Council refuses to invest in Pinnock Hill roundabout because it is waiting for MetroLink to be delivered. It does not want to have to rip up infrastructure at a cost of a couple of hundred thousand euro, €1 million or however much it will be because it is waiting for the €1 billion project to come down the stream. Fingallians GAA Club is located a couple of roundabouts up from Pinnock Hill roundabout but it cannot expand its pitch because it is waiting for the distributor road for Swords. I know roads are very unfashionable at the moment but the need for a distributor relief road is part of the long-term planning for Swords. Again, that project cannot proceed until the big MetroLink project is delivered. These projects are important. It is not all about the statement projects on which a Taoiseach, Tánaiste or Minister for Transport will cut the ribbon down the line. They are holding up other, smaller but very important projects that are necessary to deliver accessibility, active travel and good community infrastructure.

The issues relating to Go-Ahead Ireland and the privatisation of our transport system, which affect commuters in Dublin, Kildare and north Wicklow, are something we have raised a number of times over recent months. They have been raised countless times by my colleague, Corina Johnston, our representative in Donabate-Portrane. Councillor Robert O'Donoghue, too, has raised the issues with the services in our area. I met with people from Go-Ahead Ireland a couple of weeks ago in Ballymount and expressed to them in person our utter dissatisfaction with the service that is currently being provided. They made their case in regard to staffing issues and all the rest but the fact is there are staff in businesses all over the greater Dublin area who are unable to make it to work on time because this service is failing at such a level.

As the Minister of State mentioned, the fines are large, they have been applied and the companies are paying them, but they seem to be able to afford to do so. They are not going any way to improving their services. In fact, the services seem to have deteriorated. All across public transport, in State companies, private companies and school transport providers, there is a difficulty in hiring and retaining workers, including drivers. Many issues are at play but one that is a common undercurrent to all of this, in transport, the health service and elsewhere, is that the ability to afford to live in and around Dublin and other major cities - indeed, anywhere in the country - is becoming so difficult because of the price of housing that people are unable to afford to take a job as a bus driver, whether for Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann, Go-Ahead Ireland or any other transport company. That is where we are at this point. What was traditionally a good, secure, well-paid job with good conditions, which enabled people to have a family, take a holiday, enjoy Christmas and run a home, no longer exists as a result of the suppression of wages and conditions. If we really are to improve our public transport system and our transport system in general, we need to value those workers and the jobs they do and pay them accordingly.

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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I thank Sinn Féin for bringing forward this motion. It is not possible to separate land use from transport planning and we must look over a long horizon to see what the trends are. In the mid-1990s, there was scenario testing for how the greater Dublin area was going to develop. It was intended that there would be a greater concentration of development in the city centre and, further out, there would be balanced regional development. In 1996, Dublin city accounted for 13% of the national population. The combined populations of the Fingal, South Dublin and Dún Laoghaire areas accounted for 15% of the population, while the combination of Kildare, Meath and Wicklow accounted for 9% of the national total.

That combination largely makes up the greater Dublin area and we can see how it has changed if we look at the 2022 figures. Dublin city has reduced its share of the national population from 13% to 11% over those 25 years. Fingal, South Dublin and Dún Laoghaire make up 16% of the total, up from 15% in 1996, albeit it is now a much larger population. The three outer counties of Meath, Kildare and Wicklow make up 12% of the national population in 2022. That is an increase from 9% in 1996, which is the converse of what was planned for from a transport perspective. This is what has happened following the big investments that were made over that time.

We are dealing now with the reality rather than the ideal. The reality is that housing policy is responsible for the change that has occurred. Unfortunately, we are seeing that some of the investments being made do not really recognise that reality. Some of that failure is operational and some is on the design side but largely it is about how we match land use and transportation planning. Major investments have been made in BusConnects, for example, with three spines rolled out so far. The second, the C spine, runs along the N4 and into north Kildare. While that works for some people, it certainly does not work for others. There are a lot of people back in their cars and very frustrated with what has been provided. This is not just a bedding-in issue. It is the situation almost a year after the project was delivered. I reiterate that it works well for some commuters but it is most definitely not working for others. The NTA does not want to hear that.

Other speakers referred to the services provided by Go-Ahead Ireland. That company got the contract in Kildare for the first group of Bus Éireann services that were privatised. There has been nothing but complaints since that happened. We have seen people have to change their jobs, be forced back into their cars and miss medical appointments and we have seen students miss examinations. I acknowledge there were problems with all the providers, with fines being issued across the board, but the worst offender by far was Go-Ahead Ireland. While the service was less than perfect before, the unreliability since that company took over has been absolutely disgraceful. The service has improved in Kildare in recent weeks following constant complaints.

We are nearly afraid to even mention it because it has been a constant problem. It is the same in parts of County Wicklow. Places like Enniskerry and Newtownmountkennedy need to be linked to the larger urban areas like Bray and Dún Laoghaire if public transport is to be viable. If the links do not work, public transport does not work. I do not know what kind of assessment was done in advance of that service being privatised. A capacity review certainly seems to be lacking. I do not know what the NTA was thinking about. From the complaints I have received, I know that it has been a huge source of frustration. It is going to be very difficult for people to ever trust that service. When people go back to using their cars, it is hard to get them on public transport again.

It was reported last week that 30% of students arriving to UCD from within 6 km are arriving by car. Why might that be? I met with representatives of the Union of Students in Ireland and the welfare officer on the day that report was published in the media, and I specifically sought to talk to them about public transport. One of the key issues raised was the unreliability of bus services, including the number 17 service, which is provided by Go-Ahead. I was told that it is a service that is there in theory, but is so unreliable that students have given up on it or they are taking a much more circuitous route to college, and perhaps driving there. We have got to look at what is not working there. Due to the housing crisis, students are often travelling form further afield to all colleges, so the availability and reliability of public transport has become a key issue. It has even become a welfare issue. While the 20% reduction in fares and an even greater reduction for the under 25s is very welcome, it is not much use if it cannot be used.

I return to the C spine issue. When delivering a spine on the BusConnects network, we must get it right before rolling out the next one. We decided to do a survey in north Kildare to see if the complaints we were getting were representative. Some 1,200 people took part in the survey, online and in-person. The in-person aspect was interesting because quite a few people politely refused to take part because they said the bus service no longer met their needs. We submitted the results to the NTA, but I do not believe it has the inclination to change anything, given the reply it sent to me. More than 100 people turned to a public meeting a few weeks ago, and I received dozens of apologies. We would really rather not be doing this, but we have another public meeting planned for the anniversary of the introduction of the C spine, to which the NTA and Dublin Bus have been invited. One of the key issues to be raised is that the peak time services, both morning and evening, need to be expanded. The evening peak ends too early and the morning peak does not start early enough. There are capacity and reliability issues, with people being left at bus stops, real-time information does not reflect the reality, and some buses do not show up at all. The real-time information is provided from Broadstone, the link buses are provided from Phibsborough, and the spine services are provided from Ringsend. They are not talking to each other. They do not match up. The bus stop on Wellington Quay is regarded as unsafe. People are not using the bus services because of that safety issue. There are also other bus stop safety issues. Buses are very overcrowded at peak times, with limited space. The fact that train times are not linked with bus times and are not synchronised makes public transport unattractive. The alternative services that were there previously were meeting requirements, but some of them are not currently. I accept that there are plenty of people that the services work well for, but they have to work well for people in general. We cannot have locations where they do not work.

I reiterate the points that have been made in relation to disability access to public transport. There is a real challenge for people, particularly on rail services, where the lifts are frequently out of order. Safety on public transport has to be assured. Otherwise, people will not use it. On the services that are currently provided through the NTA, a desktop exercise is done in relation to the service provision, where previously, the likes of Dublin Bus used to go out once a year and count the number of people who were left at the bus stops. That does not happen now. It is a desktop exercise. Counting the number of tickets does not provide the other information about who is not getting on the bus. There is also a need to look at how many people are getting back in their cars as a consequence of issues with the public transport services provided. I must say that some of the things that I would have expected to be improvements have not been improvements. It is a huge disappointment to someone like me, who is very pro public transport.

Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)
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I move amendment No. 1:

To insert the following after "reduce the cost of travel for commuters currently excluded": "— public transport fares to be abolished from the start of 2023, including for commercial bus and rail operators, and investment to ensure free public transport is also fast and frequent".

I thank Sinn Féin for bringing forward this motion. It is good to have the opportunity to talk about this hugely important issue. It is evident, from the contributions of all of the Deputies who have spoken, that we have a problem with the delivery of public transport. People do not make up these stories and moan about the NTA, the BusConnects or the trains just for the sake of it. These are real issues for the people that we represent in our constituencies. The first issue that I want to address from the motion is access and disability access. As has been said by many here, it is a hugely important issue. We have seen many people facing barriers to access to public transport, including broken lifts at DART stations, limited wheelchair spaces on buses, trains, and on the DART and the Luas, and the requirement to give 24 hours' notice before a journey in order for a ramp to be put in place. These are real live issues for people who struggle at the best of times with their mobility. I must congratulate the Access for All campaigners, many of whom I know. They are people with disabilities and the parents of people with disabilities, who are doing their utmost to shine a light on this very important issue.

The second issue I wish to raise, which is not really explicitly mentioned in the motion but is hinted at, and has been hinted at throughout the debate, is the role of the NTA itself. I worked for Dublin Bus. I remember that there were constant attempts by the State and the governments of the day to privatise the public transport system. It was a mantra of Fine Gael, in particular. It really wanted to see privatisation in public transport. It was met with huge resistance, mainly from workers like me and the good strong trade unions that we had. The NTA was brought in specifically to privatise public transport. That is the only role it has ever played. It had an elaborate structure of competitive tendering, just like we have for offshore energy for renewables, for our hospitals and for everything we do. It is a very neo-liberal idea that the only way we can deliver services is by privatising some of them and looking for the lowest tenderer. When you get the lowest tenderer, you get a company like Go-Ahead, a British company that is renowned over there for treating and paying its workers poorly. If the NTA had only done its research, it would have found that out. Stories have been told all around this Chamber today about what is wrong with Go-Ahead. There is a lot wrong with the NTA. What it has done with BusConnects is very interesting. From the time BusConnects was announced, as a councillor, along with other People Before Profit councillors, I engaged very strongly with the organisation. BusConnects will confirm that we had the representatives driven mad. We went to all the public consultations, met with representatives and had Zoom conferences with them. They produced very elaborate and beautiful documents, maps and files that could be plugged into a computer. There were interactive maps that showed us how BusConnects would work. I would say that millions of euro were spent on that. In fact, I think I put in a parliamentary question on the millions of euro that were spent on just planning the BusConnects network. Now that we have it, I welcome 24-hour transport and many of the spines that bring more frequency on the principal routes, for example, from west Dublin into the city. That is all very good.

However, those routes bypass large working class areas such as lower Ballyfermot. For years, the No. 79 bus would pass through the area frequently, every 15 to 20 minutes, picking up mothers, babies, people in wheelchairs, grannies and all sorts of people who needed the service. Those are genuine working class people who depend on public transport because they do not have the option of using cars and do not have sufficient mobility to walk for 15 minutes to the main road to catch the G1 or G2 buses. This new route is wrecking some of their lives. I have heard reports of women who have struggled to make it into work on time because of the bottleneck created by the No. 60 route which replaced the No. 79. They are delayed in waiting for the bus to come and also by the bottleneck that is created in Kilmainham, which adds 45 or 50 minutes to the journey. Many of those women are arriving into work so late that their wages are being docked. It is unacceptable. I would like the Ministers and those sitting on the Government benches to provide instruction to the National Transport Authority to the effect that where the system is not working, it must try to fix it. Trying to fix it means consulting local people and their representatives, including Deputies. The NTA must try to fix the problems and it must listen.

When I worked in Dublin Bus, workers were consulted regularly about how the routes should work. We knew what time the factories and schools emptied. We knew what time the women came out to go into town and clean the offices. We knew when old folks would need buses to get to hospitals. There is no longer any consultation with local people on these issues. There is a plan in the heads of these people, a layer of whom come to those Zoom meetings. Loads of different people attend. They are well-paid experts who can tell us about this route which runs however many kilometres. The talk about this, that and the other, and all the computerised technology they have. However, delivering a proper transport service requires listening to local people.

I have moved the People Before Profit amendment to provide for free public transport. For years, People Before Profit has championed the idea of free frequent public transport. I hope Sinn Féin will accept our amendment and vote with us on it because free public transport is not only people asking for more stuff for free, as some neoliberals would say. They would say it is just the socialists again for whom everything must be free and ask who will pay for it. Free public transport is a modern, global and well caught-on concept. Where it has been introduced, the intention is to reduce emissions, improve air quality and get cars off the road. It is a crucial tool for reducing CO2 greenhouse gas emissions. We must think long and hard about such a measure. We are pushing for that. It would not cost a fortune to introduce. We have priced it and included it in our alternative budget several times. To introduce it now for the current level of transport would require an additional amount of approximately €600 million in the budget. Of course, transport must be more frequent, timely and accessible. It must be democratised in consultation with local communities and responsive to their needs. It should not only be a matter for what is in the heads of bureaucrats with good jobs in the NTA or Transport for Ireland. There is a problem here and I hope the Minister acknowledges that.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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I welcome many aspects of this motion, in particular the call for privatised routes to be renationalised. This should start immediately with the pathetic excuse for a service being inflicted on ordinary people by Go-Ahead Ireland. I have been inundated with complaints from people who have been stranded as a result of the No. 175 bus not turning up. Go-Ahead Ireland was recently fined €500,000 by the NTA for failing to put on bus services at all - not because its services were late but because they did not turn up. These are services paid for by the State and advertised to people who rely on them to get to work, school and hospital appointments. The problem is that I doubt Go-Ahead is very bothered, given that its Irish subsidiary made €2.6 million in profit last year. Even after the fines, Go-Ahead Ireland is still raking it in at our expense.

Why is this taking place at Go-Ahead Ireland? I was talking to a worker only last night. He told me that the fundamental issue is that the company is skimping on staff. That is the logic of privatisation. It is a race to the bottom. The company is not investing properly in staff and, therefore, we are left with the problems we have. That worker told me the situation is due to get even worse with the new rosters that are being introduced. It will be even worse for the workers. He told me that the workers are describing the new roster as the divorce roster because it means that many workers will not be home for three or four weekends in a row to spend time with their families. Those rosters should be withdrawn. Go-Ahead Ireland should be put out of business, its routes renationalised and all its workers transferred to Dublin Bus.

We should not stop there. We need a properly integrated, planned out public transport system and not a hodgepodge of disconnected privatised services that do not join up with each other. We need massive State investment to extend public transport to the very many parts of the country that have no usable service. Not just the western rail corridor and the Navan line but the whole country needs a vastly improved public transport system.

I have a question as to why Sinn Féin did not call for free public transport in this motion. Three weeks ago, Malta became the second EU country, after Luxembourg, to make public transport free. Scotland brought in free bus travel for everyone under the age of 22 last January. More than 100 cities around the world already offer some form of free public transport. All the evidence shows that abolishing fares significantly increases public transport use, thereby reducing carbon emissions. Ask the pensioners in Ireland who avail of the free travel scheme if they would still use public transport to the same extent if it was not free or if instead they would drive more. We must get people out of cars and that means free, frequent, expanded and accessible public transport. I hope our amendment will be supported.

Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent)
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I welcome the opportunity to speak on this important motion. I welcome its introduction. As the Minister knows, public transport is a rare species in the west of Ireland. We know all about it. I listened to some of Deputy Bríd Smith's comments about a 24-hour service and thought how happy people in parts of rural Ireland would be with a five-hour service.

There are many things I could say about the rights and wrongs of public transport. In my constituency, many people travel from the east and north of the county to work in the city. Every day, approximately 40,000 cars pass through Claregalway, trying to get into the city. As we know, the situation in respect of the city's outer ring road has now gone back in time. We have spent more than €32 million doing nothing other than creating paperwork. We have to ask what in the name of God we are doing about transport in our own areas.

I will give the Minister a small example. Back in 2007, the then Minister for Transport, Noel Dempsey, opened a bus lane between Loughgeorge and Claregalway. The plan was to build a bus lane from there into the city. The bus lane did not require the acquisition of any land. The space is there between the two walls and the road. Everything is fine. Lo and behold, we are almost into 2023 and we still do not have a word as to when this bus lane will be provided. The NTA has not got on with the job in all those years. Private bus operators are trying to get people into work but the buses are sitting in the same traffic as the cars. There is no real incentive for commuters to get out of a car and into a bus if they are left sitting in the same traffic. I do not know why that bus lane has not been provided. We get reports, research, feasibility studies and everything, but we get nothing at the end of the day.

There is much to be done for public transport in rural Ireland. There is an enormous amount of work to be done with Local Link, creating services that connect to the bigger operators and connecting them in a timely way so the Local Link bus can meet the bus going into Galway, or wherever else, and so the buses going into towns will meet the trains.

Speaking of trains, the Minister knows that we had a great conference in Tuam on Saturday at which we discussed investment in the west of Ireland. The conference was organised by West-On-Track. We have a campaign to reopen the line on the western rail corridor, under phases 2 and 3, to join Claremorris to Tuam and on to Athenry. The intention is to create a corridor of rail infrastructure that will help us deliver our carbon targets in respect of rail freight and passengers. We know that the line from Galway to Limerick is the fastest growing passenger line in Ireland. At the conference on Saturday, people were talking about crowded trains with people sitting on the floors of carriages. It is working, despite the fact that Irish Rail has not put on the proper schedules that were intended for phase 1 of the line.

I welcome the fact that we are putting in a passing loop in Oranmore to create more opportunities to get trains in and out of the city. Galway station is right in the heart of the city. It is well located to be of help to the city but we seem to be dithering about it and I am not sure why. If we are going to change the transport landscape from a political point of view, we have to start with the jobs we can do. Phase 2 and 3 of the western rail corridor is a project that is shovel-ready. It is ready to go. I know that the Minister of State and many of his colleagues support it. In fact, 110 Deputies and Senators in these Houses support the project so we will continue to work on it . We need to ensure that we do not leave anything to chance and that we get these projects delivered.

While I am talking about the rail service, I must note that there are bus services which are being cut out, for example between Gort and Limerick. Bus services were taken out of Kilreekill and the bus stop was removed from there. There are many mixed messages being delivered at the moment with public transport in Galway and further afield. If we are going to make life easier for people who are travelling to work in Galway, we need to grasp this nettle. We must ensure we provide a form of public transport which people can and will use, and provide the frequency it deserves and the people in the west of Ireland also deserve.

Peter Fitzpatrick (Louth, Independent)
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Due to the lack of public transport options, the current system has been orientated towards car ownership and use. Many workers and families, especially in rural Ireland, are completely reliant on private car use for education, work and leisure. The transport sector accounts for 17.7% of our total greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, investment in public transport can play a central role in helping to reduce our carbon emissions. While it must be acknowledged that the Government is now acting to reduce emissions and deliver environmental, social and economic benefits to all cities, towns and regions, it must also be said that we have not invested enough in public travel and active travel in the last decade. I wish to raise a number of items specifically related to disability access, the lack of public transport in rural parts of Louth and east Meath, and the affordability and reliability of existing services.

When the 2007-13 national development plan, Transforming Ireland - A Better Quality of Life For All, was launched, it provided for investment in infrastructure and social inclusion measures. Its key objective was to tackle structural and infrastructural barriers which impact on regional development and the quality of life of the older and disabled population. In 2021, this Government launched the renewed national development plan, which covers the 2021-30 period and places a particular focus on a cleaner, greener, connected Ireland. Now there is no question of a lack of investment in this renewed plan, but it is imperative that the Minister for Transport monitors and periodically audits progress on improving accessibility for all.

With regard to disability access, we need to consider the challenges faced daily by people with disabilities, the visually impaired, our senior citizens and those with mobility issues. Some 13.5% of the population have a disability, so ensuring universal access for all on public transport must be a priority. A constituent recently visited my office in Dundalk to complain that only one taxi is kitted out for wheelchair access in that town. The same man faced barriers in accessing public transport to get to the airport, even after making contact prior to his journey to ensure there was an access ramp and sufficient wheelchair space. This is unacceptable and is resulting in exclusion. Are our disabled constituents to stay at home? Transport solutions and mobility supports for those with a disability must be targeted immediately.

I agree with the motion that the timeline for the delivery of the Connecting Ireland rural mobility plan must be accelerated. Connectivity through rural connected hubs, as well as connecting rural communities through transport services, is crucial to keeping our rural communities alive. While it must be acknowledged that the newly announced Pathfinder programme will provide critical links for cyclists commuting to work and schools in my constituency of Louth and Meath, it will only benefit those living in close proximity to work or college who can cycle or walk.

Because Louth is located along the commuter belt, I welcome the new regional connections between the midlands and north-east regions linking Dundalk and Ardee, Drogheda and Trim, and Athlone and Longford. However, it must also be acknowledged that there is a lack of public transport infrastructure and public transport routes from rural parts of the constituency to larger areas, such as Dublin, with a high reliance on private commercial bus operators or cars.

With regard to the affordability and reliability of services, while the commute for those using public transport is perhaps more affordable than before due to the Taxsaver ticket price reduction, commuters in Dundalk and Drogheda are heavily dependent on commercial bus operators to provide these necessary routes to work or college in Dublin. The Government's failure to extend the 20% public transport fare reduction to commercial operators means that this initiative does not provide any relief to commuter costs amid this cost-of-living crisis.

Spain has recently implemented measures offering free travel on state-owned suburban and regional public transport from 1 September to 31 December 2022, thanks to a windfall tax. Germany introduced a nationwide ticket costing €9 a month offering unlimited travel on most public transport, apart from express intercity trains. Such initiatives will provide relief to commuter costs amid the cost-of-living crisis, while encouraging less car use and a reduction in fuel emissions.

The solution to transport emissions, which relates to cities as well as transport between cities, is to change our system to encourage public transport and active travel. It is not against motorists and does not say that we will not have or need additional roads, as we will need them, but that must be part of an overall plan that sees us meeting our emissions reduction targets. We need to ensure rural and urban transport is completely frequent, flexible, reliable and accessible. If we create that system, more and more people will use it and there will be less and less demand for people to have a car.

I am one of the lucky people who invested in an electric car two years ago. I have to be honest when I say it is by far the best car we have ever had. The simple reason is that I have electric charging points in my home and when I have to go to work I can charge it. I know many people who want to buy electric cars and cannot do so because of this. Electric cars are expensive. I know there are grants but it is a win-win for everybody if we can get the proper services for electric cars.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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We now move to the Rural Independent Group. Deputies Mattie McGrath, Danny Healy-Rae, Richard O'Donoghue and Michael Collins are sharing ten minutes. They had two minutes each but now they have two and a quarter minutes each because Deputy Michael Healy-Rae is not present. They have gained some speaking time.

Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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I believe it is two and a half minutes each.

Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent)
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We have two and a half minutes each. Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach Gníomhach agus tá an ceart aige i gcónaí.

I compliment Sinn Féin on this motion. It is very important one because of people with disabilities and people who are unable to access transport. When we talk about equal access and opportunities, we must bear in mind that these people are completely hindered. I support the bones of the motion from that point of view.

As a Deputy for rural Ireland, I want to say that we have no services. Fares have been reduced since Covid for all of the urban services and for the few services we have in the country. However, those who have no services cannot get a reduced rate. It is as simple as that. If services were not being provided by companies like Kavanaghs of Urlingford, Lamberts of Ardfinnan, McCarras and O'Donoghues of Clonmel, we would be in a bad way. Another issue is that the town transport bus in Clonmel was taken away because of Covid and it has never come back. It is like the snow up in the Nire; it went after the winter and we have not seen it since.

There are many things to be made up and restored here, but having to book a train or a bus 24 hours in advance is an insult to the person in a wheelchair or whatever situation the person is in. That is scandalous.

I want to salute the voluntary boards up and down the country. I was a member of the board of Ring a Link, which provided an excellent service in Kilkenny, Carlow and south Tipperary. We were the motivators and initiators, as these boards were in many counties. TII has now taken them over. I know that the services are running well and we welcome them, but obviously we want more. We have tried to run night links and different things, but they do not actually work.

The Taoiseach is claiming today that people who cannot get a house can stay in a pub drinking all night. They will have heat and light inside in the pub and will have a roof over their head. Is opening pubs and bars in the middle of this deep recession all that the Cabinet has to discuss? Thank God the Minister of State is not part of the Cabinet, and I do not mean that comment in a bad way. I believe he would have been a voice of reason. It seems that this nonsense is all the Cabinet has to discuss now. I do not know who it is playing to. Who wants to be inside a pub at 5 o’clock or 6 o’clock in the morning? I heard a publican this morning saying that people could have two nights' enjoyment in one night. Did one ever hear such talk when people cannot get a house, public transport or access to these services? Of course it is different for Ukrainians or some other non-nationals. When Irish people ask for more from the national budget, the answer is "No". We have to go back to the end of the queue. The Government has gone from the ridiculous to the sublime and back again to the ridiculous. I think it is a shameful situation.

Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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I thank Sinn Féin for this important motion but there are many parts of rural Kerry that do not have public transport at all. If we are honest, there is not enough money in the Central Bank to service all of rural County Kerry with public transport because it is so expansive and places are so remote. However, we want people to live there and we want to assist in whatever way we can. There is certainly a problem with hackneys and taxis in rural towns and villages during the week and even at weekends because, if drivers are busy in the likes of Killarney or Kenmare, smaller places like Kilgarvan and other rural places have a problem getting public transport. I honestly believe that taxis and hackneys should be subsidised during the day. There are no taxis or hackneys working during the day in many parts of rural Kerry. We appreciate the Local Link service, which does wonderful work, but it does not catch everyone. In that regard, there should be some scheme to facilitate taxis and hackneys to help rural people do their shopping or other things they need to do to take the monotony out of their lives. When the Government brought in the most recent drink-driving laws, which affected many rural people in many ways, it said that it would find a way to transport them to and from the local pub. However, I am sad that the only place you would see a queue or crowd that has anything to do with drink is at a bottle bank because most drinking is now done at home. You may not be sure of meeting many people in the pub but you will meet them around the bottle bank. That is the effect of the Government's laws. It is now talking about opening pubs or discos later.

Richard O'Donoghue (Limerick County, Independent)
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The Local Link service has been a help with regard to local transport issues. Its remit within the national bus service is to provide links from west to east County Limerick through Castlemahon, Kilteely, Feenagh, Dromcolliher, Foynes and Glin. I am delighted to work with it to provide the bus for rural areas from stop to stop. It also provides pick-up at the door for people who need it for different services. A route was recently approved from Granagh to Limerick. This will provide for second and third level students who cannot get accommodation around their institutions and who are staying at home and need transport. The issue we are having is that it can often take three or four connections to get to the likes of Limerick Institute of Technology and the University of Limerick. The Local Link has also done well in organising a route from Croom to Tarbert, which is also welcome. This also brings in my own local area of Ballingarry, Foynes and Glin. As a result of a recent campaign, there is a new bus coming from Charleville. We will welcome something from Cork because it comes through Limerick and gets students to the bus station. That routes starts at 7.30 a.m., which means students can get to their colleges on time. That will again feed into places like Bruree, Feenagh and Kilmeedy as people can get to the likes of O'Rourke's Cross and other areas that are approved for pick-up. They can then at least get to school even if they cannot afford a car or the insurance on one. That, at least, is helping.

There is an issue in Dromcolliher. The Government is talking about free buses for students to go to school. In Dromcolliher, 50 students require a bus. We have been on to Bus Éireann, which has told us that, if we can provide a bus driver, it will provide a bus. We have provided five, six or seven bus drivers. We have even provided a bus company but Bus Éireann will not come back to us and provide a business plan. We could get 50 students to school, which would stop at least 30 cars driving to school, which would help the environment. Will the Minister of State please intervene?

Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent)
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Affordable and reliable public transport is a lovely idea and a lovely dream but it is not happening in rural Ireland. I have had many debates with the Minister for Transport as to why it is not and he says that he does not have the money but suggests that something from Castletownbere into Bantry and Kilcrohane in west Cork might be possible. It is a matter of kicking the can down the road. I keep pushing for that to happen and I hope it will happen along the Durrus line. He is also talking about services from Skibbereen to Killarney but there is nothing there. He has been in office for two and half years and has not delivered. I ask him what he is doing with the carbon tax money. I do not begrudge that but if you go down to Wicklow or anywhere around here, you will see a bus every five minutes. However, in west Cork, a bus leaves Goleen at 7.30 a.m. and returns at 6 p.m. and that is it. That is the service. If I need to use public transport to come to Dáil Éireann I have to plan two days ahead. It might get me here at some time in the evening but it will not get me here on time. It is simply not good enough for the people of Kinsale, Belgooly and Riverstick who have no proper continuous bus service to and from Cork. It is not good enough that a company like West Cork Connect that wants to provide a service on the hour every hour is being blocked from doing so.

I commend the likes of Cork Local Link. I have a conflict of interest in that I am on the board but I am proud that I am a volunteer and have never taken a brown cent in expenses or anything else to attend my meetings. I drive down from Dublin especially to be at those meetings because, with the little money it has, the Local Link service delivers to as many people as it can. It is a fantastic company, as are all Local Link companies. Regardless of who funds them, they are not funded enough to deliver. Why are people from Dunmanway to Clonakilty not being looked after? Why is there no service there? Why are we in west Cork treated as second-class citizens when the people of this country can get a fantastic service because of the carbon tax and whatever else? We in rural Ireland pay for it but it is delivered everywhere else.

In the little bit of time I have left, I will commend the people behind Cancer Connect. It is a fabulous service set up under Local Link a number of years ago. It is a voluntarily-delivered bus service but it needs funding from the State. It is a fabulous service but it is being funded by the people of west Cork when it needs to be funded by the State as well. It is a disgrace that has not happened. Promises have been made and need to be delivered upon.

If we are paying the most in carbon tax, we need a proper public transport service to be delivered. It is only fair.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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I call on Deputy Connolly on behalf of the Independent Group. Is she taking ten minutes?

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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This Independent is entirely on her own for ten minutes. I thank Sinn Féin for bringing forward the motion and giving us an opportunity to put the spotlight on public transport. I welcome the amendment proposed by Solidarity-People Before Profit. I hope Sinn Féin will consider it. I will come back to the western rail corridor, which is given the thumbs-up in the motion, and that is welcome. I did not see the motion in time to propose an amendment regarding light rail for Galway and a feasibility study in that regard. I am sure Sinn Féin would have no difficulty with that but, unfortunately, I did not table it in time.

I will preface my remarks by quoting a Minister who said: "We are losing biodiversity around the globe at a rate unprecedented in human history." Those are not my words or those of somebody on the radical left but those of the Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, on 29 May 2019. She also said:

We are losing biodiversity around the globe at a rate unprecedented in human history. The number of plants, insects, mammals and birds that are threatened or endangered grows every year, while the land, ocean and atmosphere are being altered to an unparalleled degree.

That is a Fine Gael Minister of State talking about what is happening with our world and biodiversity is just one aspect of it. It seems that we have no choice but to embrace public transport as only one of the significant aspects of dealing with our obligations in respect of climate change. I find the manner in which, here in the Dáil, we regularly demonise people who take court cases disturbing. I will refer to two court cases taken by Friends of the Irish Environment. We have no choice. Notwithstanding those wonderful words from the Minister of State or the Minister for Finance's earlier acknowledgement when I said the planet was burning - he nodded his head having said that himself in his budget speech last year - we are utterly dependent on these people. What do we do if the planet is burning?

We want to take what the children told us. They embarrassed us into declaring a climate and biodiversity emergency. I welcome that. I welcome what the Government did there but really we were forced into it. We repeatedly ignored all of the reports, going back to Rio de Janeiro. We have persisted with development that is completely out of keeping with our obligations.

Deputy O'Connor had some words about the recent decision on the outer bypass with which I do not agree. I was elected in 1999. Since 1999, I and a number of other voices, including the now President of Ireland, were part of a group called Hands across the Corrib. It was not NIMBYism or anything like that but because the bypass was wrong. This outer bypass is wrong. We knew it was wrong but even worse was the fact that it was the only egg in the basket, as it were. It was the only thing the city and county councils pursued and it precluded any other solution. Since 1999, I have continuously lost votes on this issue. I am not going to change. I fundamentally believe that that road and the N6 are wrong. It is completely out of keeping with the type of development we need. Both routes have now gone down a cul-de-sac. We choose to demonise as opposed to grasping the opportunity that has been given to us now. The decision by An Bord Pleanála to agree with Friends of the Irish Environment that the board's decision should be quashed is a wonderful opportunity. That is what it agreed. We should embrace that and the Government should take a hands-on approach to what is needed in Galway city.

The Minister of State has been in Galway many times and been subjected to traffic congestion. We have no park-and-ride services, as he well knows. I am repeating myself at the risk of boring people. In 2005, when I was mayor, the council and I led in putting in park-and-ride objectives. That has remained in the city development plan and never been rolled out. The NTA is now telling us that it is looking at it. Imagine that. Some 17 years later it is going to look at park-and-ride services on the east side of the city. Quite incredibly, it is telling us that they are not needed on the west side of the city. That is what it told us. It is not looking at any site on the west side of the city, notwithstanding the traffic coming in from Connemara. Somebody who works in my office has to come in in that traffic.

There was the decision from An Bord Pleanála. I made a submission so we all got copies. There were three sets of precedents but I am focusing on the Friends of the Irish Environment. The letter from the solicitor tells us, "The board held five meetings to consider the application before making its decision at its fifth and final meeting on November 8th, 2021". Quite incredibly, the board granted planning permission even though it was not aware that the new climate action plan had been adopted four days previously. It went on to say it had not been informed. One wonders what world the board members are living in. The Government itself promoted the climate action plan way back in March of that year. It set out clearly what it intended to do in the climate action plan, which An Bord Pleanála was simply unaware of. It is quite incredible. Add to that the response of the two local authorities, which once again put their heads in the sand and said they were disappointed that the decision to quash the consent for the N6 project was done on narrow grounds. Can the Minister of State imagine that? They say it was done on a very limited ground, that is, their utter failure to consider the climate action plan. I am going around in a circle to come back and say our words mean nothing.

An Bord Pleanála and the two local authorities are now interpreting that decision, saying it was narrow grounds when they utterly failed to consider the climate action plan. Prior to that, An Bord Pleanála must have been completely asleep because back in 2020 the Friends of the Irish Environment brought a case to the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court held that the national mitigation plan for climate change was too vague. It quashed that plan. That is what led to us having a new plan. It said citizens were entitled to know what was in a plan and what the Government intended. It seems An Bord Pleanála was not aware of that either and was not aware of any of the reports that showed the substantial emissions from transport. Perhaps there might be a different way with a combination of solutions. When the decision was made in March, there was a major press release from the Government regarding the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021.

I fully support the amendment relating to free transport. Perhaps it is not feasible to introduce it in January 2023 but we have no choice but to go down that road. We should look at the countries that have already been mentioned. Luxembourg became the first country to introduce it on 29 February 2020 and on 1 October this year Malta became the second country to make public transport free for all residents. Germany was overwhelmed when it introduced a fare of €9 a month, such was the demand for it. I welcome the changes that have been made by the Government through public transport fare reductions. In fact, I am back on the bus myself. I was always on a bus but I went to a car when I got the extra job and am now back on a bus again. People want to use public transport. People in Galway want to use public transport. I certainly do not want to punish the motorist in Galway who has no option because we have failed to bring in park-and-ride facilities. We have failed to lift the school transport of the city. We have failed to listen to the people of Galway. Around 25,000 people signed a petition so long ago I cannot remember. We stood in the rain asking the Government to please carry out a feasibility study. We still have no study. We have a thriving city, a beautiful city that is positioned between the beautiful Corrib and the Atlantic Ocean and Galway Bay. Within that, we need to lift the traffic off the road.

There was duplicity about the western rail corridor. Hypocrisy has gone on while the north west has been demoted yet again, for the second time, by the European Commission. I did not have the chance to go to that wonderful conference on Saturday. The Minister of State was there. I have read all the blurbs relating to it and so I know they laid out exactly what was possible and the vision for it. I fully endorse that. If we are seriously interested in regional balance and if we are seriously interested in tackling climate change and biodiversity, we need a transformative vision and transformative action. It is too late for any other type of piecemeal approach.

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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On behalf of the Minister for Transport and the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, I thank all the Deputies for their contributions to this debate on accessible, affordable and reliable public transport. In both the motion itself and the contributions I have heard from individual Deputies during the debate, we can see the range of challenges and opportunities but also the progress that has been made to date. I believe we are all in agreement about wanting to provide a comprehensive public transport network that serves the needs of all members of society in both urban and rural areas and one which addresses, as a number of Deputies have spoken to, our climate challenge.

As the House is aware, the Government is strongly committed to providing all citizens with reliable and realistic sustainable mobility options, and public transport plays a key role in the delivery of this goal. The recently agreed budget 2023 helps support this objective and is a further positive development for public transport passengers across the country. We have extended the 20% fare reduction on PSO services until the end of 2023 so that everyone will benefit. Equally, we have extended the 50% reduction available for young adults on both PSO and commercial services until the end of 2023. We are supporting new and enhanced bus and rail services throughout 2023 as well. These are all part of a €563 million funding package to support PSO services. That package was hugely significant in the context of providing accessible and affordable transport options. With regard to PSO contracts, I reiterate that any issues relating to punctuality, reliability and customer service standards are dealt with as part of the contractual arrangements between the NTA and the operators.

Furthermore, any issues of poor reliability or punctuality performance could result in financial penalties for those operators, and this has been acknowledged this evening. In incidences where operators have not met the minimum standards in recent months, the National Transport Authority, NTA, has applied significant penalties to those operators, and has engaged extensively with the operators with a view to improving service reliability.

With regard to transport provision in rural Ireland, the Connecting Ireland rural mobility plan is a key component of the Government's ambitious plans in this area and will significantly increase the number of routes and the frequency of existing services right across the country. Connecting Ireland proposes to specifically to expand the public transport network in rural areas, and to increase service levels. For instance, under Connecting Ireland the NTA proposes an overall increase of approximately 25% in rural bus services as part of the five-year Connecting Ireland plan. Hundreds of rural villages and areas will, for the first time, be served by viable public transport link. Service improvements are already being rolled out under Connecting Ireland, with more planned before the end of the year. I endorse all of the remarks about Local Link this evening around its success and its efficacy on the ground. For the benefit of those Deputies who do not realise it, I must point out that Local Link is funded by this Government.

At present, routes that are identified through the Connecting Ireland consultation process are being prioritised to provide emergency public transport services to areas where the population and transport demand has increased due to the requirement to house Ukrainian refugees in rural locations. This is being achieved by accelerating network improvements, including additional stocks, route modifications, and more services to increase connectivity.

The Government also has ambitious plans for public transport infrastructure nationwide. The programme for Government commits to a fundamental change in the nature of transport in Ireland. This is supported by the national development plan, which has allocated €35 billion to maintain, enhance and improve transport infrastructure across the country over the next ten years. The substantial investment in transport in recent years, and the planned ramping up of major projects such as BusConnects in every city, Connecting Ireland in rural areas, the Cork area commuter rail programme, the DART+ project and MetroLink means that the national public transport landscape will continue to transform for the better in the coming years.

Under Project Ireland 2040, spatial planning and capital investment are being linked together in a meaningful way, while significant levels of investment are being put forward towards new public and sustainable transport initiatives, as well as major new road projects. Further capacity on the Kildare-Maynooth and northern rail lines will be increased by more than 30% compared to today, and the new rail cars required to achieve this increase have already started to arrive on the island and will enter service next year.

The third phase of BusConnects was rolled out in May this year and introduced two new northern orbital routes: the N4 connecting Blanchardstown to the Point Village; and the N6 connecting Finglas with Howth Junction. Most recently, phase 4 of BusConnects commenced on 16 October, with the introduction of G spine routes G1, G2, and route 60 operated by Dublin Bus. The routes will serve areas such as Ballyfermot, Liffey Valley, Clondalkin and Islandbridge. I have listened to Deputy Bríd Smith'scomplaints about the lack of local connection to these G routes and I will follow this up.

To help us achieve our climate targets, it was decided that from 2019 no new diesel buses would be purchased for urban public service obligation bus fleets. Deputies will be aware that as part of BusConnects the current fleet of buses in Dublin will be increased and converted to a zero-emission fleet by 2035, meeting rising demand and saving the equivalent of nearly 85,000 tonnes of CO₂per year, in line with our climate action plan targets. Buses and shelters will be modernised, increasing accessibility, and ensuring safe and enjoyable trips for passengers. Public transport investment, including bus and rail, can play a major role in decreasing CO₂emissions from the transportation sector, and provide workers, families and communities with an alternative and sustainable mode of transport.

I reiterate that the Minister for Transport is fully committed to strengthening our public transport offerings and progressively making them accessible for all. This requires a whole-journey approach, which refers to all elements that constitute a journey, from the starting point to the destination. It also means applying the principle of universal design. In addition, the sustainable mobility policy and some of the other key guiding policies include the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the national disability inclusion strategy, and the comprehensive employment strategy for people with disabilities. The public transport accessibility actions across these and other national strategies have been combined into the Department of Transport's accessibility work programme, which provides a fright framework for prioritising projects and programmes to progressively make public transport accessible. The Department of Transport will continue to engage with all stakeholders, particularly people who are disabled, to continue to work and make public transport more accessible for all.

As outlined earlier, the strategic rail review will examine the role of rail in supporting relevant policy objectives on the entire island of Ireland. We need this type of strategic analysis to inform our consideration of specific projects, and in this regard the House will be pleased to know that the review will consider the potential scope for improved rail services along various existing and potential future corridors of the network. That scope will also include the potential afforded by disused and closed lines such as the western rail corridor. I acknowledge Deputy Canney's work on the ad hoc all-party group in relation to the western rail corridor in advance of all the all-Ireland rail review. The review will be one of the most significant reviews of the rail network on the island in many years. It will provide a framework to develop a much improved all-island rail network in the years ahead. The Department of Transport expects the review to be completed by the end of this year.

In conclusion, I assure the House that the Minister fully recognises and emphasises the hugely important role that public transport plays in all of our lives and is acutely aware of the concerns that have been raised in relation to making public transport fully accessible, reliable, and affordable to all. The ambitious investment programmes in the public transport sector over the coming years, such as BusConnects and Connecting Ireland, will go a long way towards achieving these goals by helping to improve people's quality of life and helping to grow the economy in both urban and rural areas through the provision of improved transport links. I believe that with the work that has been done in recent years and with these plans, which all contributors here today have agreed are essential to achieving a comprehensive public transport system that we wish to provide, we will achieve the goal to build a more efficient framework for the provision of public transport in Ireland.

Deputy James O'Connor has asked me to clarify his remarks on the planning process, which were referred to by Deputy Catherine Connolly. Deputy O'Connor had referred to the White Paper response on page 2 and his concerns about the delivery of major transport projects. Indeed, the planning framework around major infrastructural projects is also the subject of a review, which will conclude in the coming weeks.

I thank all Members for their inputs this evening and I look forward to pursuing the issues that have been raised.

Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Having listened to some of the Government representatives tonight I believe they either come from very different places than I do or they are not being forthright in the context of the reality of many people. I come from a county that has no real transport network whatsoever. It has a bus service that has actually deteriorated since this Government came into office. It is astounding that not only did the Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan, not participate in this debate, not a single member of the Green Party decided to grace us with their presence tonight.

Under the current framework of this Government the only things that the people in County Monaghan see in the lived reality are increased charges through carbon taxes, which are essentially penalties, for not using services that do not exist. People must pay more to this Government to get to work in their cars because there is no option but to use their cars. They must pay more to this Government to go to college because they cannot find accommodation in the places where they go to college. Increasingly this year they must pay more to this Government to drive with their children every morning behind the school bus to the local school and collect them every afternoon because the Government made such a hames of the school transport system for many families this year. This is simply not fair.

It is simply not fair to always spout rhetoric about just transition, public transport and moving away from the car, and then penalise people for using their cars when the Government refuses to put alternatives in place. That needs to be called out and this motion calls it out. I commend Deputy O'Rourke on tabling it. If the Government is serious about moving away from fuel-powered engines, it needs to put in place the infrastructure, not through petty removal of funding for roads like the Clontibret to the Border road scheme, as the Minister did this year, without a whimper from his Government colleagues in Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, but by providing investment to ensure people can get buses to places other than O'Connell Street. At the minute, you cannot get a bus to anywhere else from my county. We must put in place a blueprint that will deliver a rail network and allow us to have a sustainable route to living, working and rearing our families.

Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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In Limerick, I drive a car, cycle my bike, walk to work and take local buses where I can, and I mostly take a train when I come to Dublin. The train to Dublin, which I have been taking for seven years, is almost always on time. Unfortunately, the buses in Limerick are a different story. Public transport needs to be safe, reliable and affordable. If it cannot meet these three crucial criteria, people will not leave their cars at home and avail of public transport. It is as simple as that. Without a significant decrease in the number of private car journeys, we will struggle to meet the 2030 emission targets. In our alternative budget, we proposed an €195 million investment in public transport, cutting fares, investing in a new rail infrastructure and making public transport safer and more accessible. Our progressive proposal shows we can cut emissions while delivering social and economic benefits for citizens.

I thank the thousands of public service workers who work in our buses and trains, providing a vital service every day of the week.

Prior to speaking today, I asked in my constituency for feedback on public transport in Limerick. Constituents came back with a huge number of comments, queries and suggestions, mostly about buses:

Caherdavin [bus] 302, late a lot of the time, need extra buses to deal with the crowds at L.I.T. stop and no early Sunday service.

305 St Marys Park [bus] there is days where the bus is a no show - St Marys Park bus stops at 5.30pm how is that fair to the people down here?

304 ...[I] have to always get the earlier bus in case the one that would have me on time doesn't arrive

303 ... is shocking bus is never on time and more than likely doesn’t come or 2 show up together [I] have been sending complaints for weeks and haven't heard back once for something that is so highly recommended because of the cost of living its not reliable

Mainly use the 303 and 302 main problem is the buses not turning up either on time (late or early, early often causing someone to miss the bus) or buses not arriving at all

I use the [bus] 304 or 304a from Mary I to Garryowen and vise versa. It's a[n absolute] nightmare. Faster walking most days because the bus is never on time and then 2 or 3 [buses] come at the same time.

30[3] in weston is beyond a joke countless emails sent to them u have to get the bus well over an hour beforehand ...[Often] if ur waiting in patrick street the out of service sign is put on and no bus after half 6 no consideration for working people [whatsoever.]

306 bus never on time and often doesn’t show up at all, only one per hour its a disgrace especially for elderly and disabled people of Ballynanty or for any[body] in fact living there.

I use the 306 [bus on the] Ballynanty route all the time when it turns up. Every second bus doesn’t turn up. The bus route needs to go back to the way [it was] before and we need 2 buses an hour like all the other routes...

I got the 304 bus for 5 days a week for 5 years. I don’t think it ever came on time. The frequency was so bad it would often take a [supposedly] 20 minute trip over an hour.

304/304A will pass out passengers in UL or go as far as town and let passengers off in town as no drivers to continue journey this is on a daily basis.

Waited 40 for the 303 yesterday in Delmege park, a bus service that is meant to be every 15 minutes, not the first time it happened

The Westbury bus is rarely on time one time I was only seconds from the bus and he pulled away

That is what people are telling me. The bus service does not work. People cannot rely on it or get to work on time. It is always delayed or does not turn up.

Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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I thank everyone who contributed to the debate. The Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, stated that some elements of the motion "do not properly reflect the progress to date in this area, the work currently under way or the Government's future plans for public transport." I do not know what that means. We have set out, for example, in the area of Connecting Ireland, the rural bus plan which is supported by the Opposition, that the Government is not investing enough in it and not rolling it out at a suitable pace. The Minister of State also said implementation of the programme would continue at the pace outlined by the Government and in line with the funding and operational resources available. The reason we tabled the motion is that we are not satisfied adequate progress has been made on Connecting Ireland. We have spelled out what we believe the Government should do, which is to increase the investment in it.

I can give examples from my county. Some months ago, the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, informed the House that Kentstown would have a service this year, after 40 years without one. It will not have it this year because the commitment is not being delivered on. The same applies elsewhere. Invest in the Navan rail line now, not post 2031 as the Government reaffirmed tonight. The same goes for the dedicated public transport policing unit. It has to happen in order for workers and passengers to feel safe to use public transport. Services must be expanded, costs and fares driven down and the people working on and using our public transport system protected.

We also need accountability. The Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, made the point, which the Minister of State, Deputy Calleary, echoed that the NTA engages in contracts with providers and it is a matter for them. The Minister for Transport is responsible for the delivery of the public transport network. I have sat in Opposition for at least four hours of debate on public transport in the last couple of weeks and the Minister has not been here for one minute of it. I and others have discussed with the Minister of State and others Go-Ahead Ireland and the lack of accountability for its service, and the senior Minister has not been here for any of that discussion. We want to see accountability for the provision of public transport services. There is significant room for improvement there.

We are lucky with the huge effort and work that workers in the public transport service provide and deliver. They need to be supported and resourced. There are a huge number of issues to be tackled in terms of licensing, rostering, pay and terms and conditions that should reward those people and encourage more to go into that sector to deliver the scale and number of services the people of Ireland need and deserve.