Results 16,261-16,280 of 31,374 for speaker:Eamon Ryan

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Transport Policy (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: The National Transport Authority, NTA, is the statutory body tasked with the regulation of the small public service vehicle sector, SPSV, and it is responsible for the regulation of vehicle age limits under the provisions of the Taxi Regulation Act 2013. The Deputy may be aware that the NTA has extended age limits for taxis and hackneys three times since the start of the pandemic. The...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Transport Policy (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: I will come back to the rest of the answer.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Transport Policy (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: Last week we stated that a further €3 million is being provided to waive licence renewal fees for this year. We also announced a further allocation of €3.5 million to operate a scheme to refund the cost of national car tests, NCTs, and motor tax, so that is a further €6.5 million. Critically, the most important thing for taxi drivers was the ability to earn income while...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Transport Policy (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: I would like there to be 26,000 taxis because one of the things I want to do is switch the way our cities work. That is going to take time, support from this House, budgets and funding. It will also have to get through the planning system. One of the big changes coming to our cities is bus corridors and BusConnects schemes that will radically transform the city and give taxis a huge...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Rail Network (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: I am very glad to talk about the expansion of public transport in the south Wicklow area. I am not just talking about rail but also the wider context. It is important that we take a multi-modal approach to transport planning and the provision and integration of public transport services and infrastructure. That approach is evident in the statutory transport strategy for the wider greater...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Rail Network (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: I will speak to Irish Rail about the Avoca train station and see what the possibilities are. With regard to rail, and particularly the Wexford line going into south Wicklow, there are developments going on across the country. This strategic rail review will look at how we can extend commuter services and I would do that as we electrify. The DART will be fully electrified on certain...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Rail Network (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: I agree with what the Deputy said about the multi-modal approach and the potential for battery electric trains. Regarding the area south of Greystones, I had a meeting with Geological Survey Ireland, GSI, recently and we looked at coastal erosion risk maps. The south of Greystones jumps out like a red beacon. We have a perilous situations with the line and significant engineering works...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Rail Network (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: As the Deputy is aware, the issue of a rail connection to Navan is being re-examined as part of the NTA’s review of the transport strategy for the greater Dublin area, GDA. The strategy, as we all know, is a multimodal, 20-year transport strategy for the region and one that must be reflected in relevant land use strategies across the GDA. The relevant Act requires the NTA to review...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Rail Network (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: It will take additional funding and I appreciated Sinn Féin's support yesterday. It is conditional support and there will be hard choices that will have to take place over 30 years when we have to get net zero. We will have choices because we will be looking for funding for the rail extension in Wicklow as we have just heard. We will be looking for the likes of the extension of the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Rail Network (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: The national investment framework for transport in Ireland is our assessment of transport infrastructure and it is based on a hierarchy of supporting active travel first and trying to reuse existing assets second before getting down to new assets. This rail line is new in that it is laying new track and we do not have an existing line. We cannot use the other lines into Navan with...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Development Plan (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 5 and 71 together. As the Deputy knows, the NDP is under review and discussions are ongoing in respect of to finalising the review and agreeing a new NDP. It is important to say at the outset that my approach to this review has been based around the sort of outcomes I want to see this NDP deliver. I would like it to set the groundwork for a fundamental...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Development Plan (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: I am sure the Deputy would agree that the first priority is twin tracking from Athenry to Galway because it would give all sorts of potential for increasing transport-led development and development in Oranmore and new areas in Galway. Down the line, when the western rail corridor is reopened, it would give greater possibilities to run services but first things first. The first project will...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Development Plan (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: If we think of the scale of what we are spending, this is the challenge we have.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Development Plan (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: It is existing infrastructure that would require a fair bit of upgrade. We would have to cross the N17 again. It is an existing line but we all know from looking at the line in close detail that it would require a fair amount of investment to bring it back to good quality status. I keep coming back to the fact that I do not think we can look at this on its own. We also have to reintroduce...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Road Projects (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for overall policy and securing Exchequer funding for the national roads programme. Under the Roads Acts 1993-2015, and in line with the national development plan, the planning, design and construction of individual national roads are a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. TII...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Road Projects (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: The existing NDP has approximately 45 different road projects. A project being in the NDP does not necessarily mean it is guaranteed to go to construction. Similarly, just because a project is not in the NDP does not mean that it will not happen. There is also flexibility within local authorities. For example, the proposed Castlemartyr bypass we are examining at present is very much led...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Road Projects (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: We all know there is an issue with that bridge. I understand that, first and foremost, the council is going to look at what the options are there. It is a historical bridge so we must be sensitive and examine various options. We must recognise, however, that in the context of the European recovery and resilience fund, from which we are getting a total of €1 billion, we earmarked...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Driver Test (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: During the pandemic, the Road Safety Authority, RSA, has delivered 52,569 driving tests, with no case of Covid-19 transmission attributed to a driving test. In line with the gradual reopening of services, driving tests for non-essential workers for those eligible to take the test and who have been waiting longest have recommenced to a limit of 2,000 per month. This relatively small number...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Driver Test (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: This is critical for younger people waiting for both the theory test and the driving test. On the theory test, I am glad that we have been able to reopen the test centres. They will be permitted to conduct 25,000 driver theory tests this month. We have also opened the new online theory test service and we expect 4,000 of those to be carried out in June and a further 6,000 to be carried out...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Driver Test (17 Jun 2021)

Eamon Ryan: Were the Deputy to send me a letter to that effect, I certainly would follow up. I will say a "Thank you" as well. Various people have kept working. While everyone has kept working in their own way through this pandemic, the staff in driving testing were able to do those 52,569 driving tests for essential purposes. That was an important part of keeping the country and the economy going,...