Results 221-240 of 11,242 for speaker:Noel Dempsey

Written Answers — Departmental Bodies: Departmental Bodies (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: The Railway Safety Advisory Council met once in the years 2007, 2008 and 2009. I expect the Council will meet shortly under its recently appointed Chairman, Mr. John Power, Director General, Engineers Ireland. The function of the Council, as set out in the Railway Safety Act 2005, is to consider issues relevant to railway safety and to make recommendations, as appropriate, to the Commission...

Written Answers — Rail Network: Rail Network (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: The Deputy will be aware that the approval of the National Transport Authority (NTA) is required before any Public Service Obligation (PSO) funded service, such as that on the Limerick – Nenagh – Ballybrophy line, can be discontinued. I am advised by the NTA that no such request has been received. The amount of money that is spent on individual rail lines including the...

Written Answers — Airport Charges: Airport Charges (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: As I have previously informed the Deputy, the Commission for Aviation Regulation (CAR) regulates airport charges levied at Dublin Airport. Airport charges at Cork and Shannon Airports are set by the relevant airport authority while charges at the six regional airports, which are owned and operated independently, are a matter for each airport concerned. In relation to comparative charges at...

Written Answers — Road Safety: Road Safety (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: The Revised Estimates Volume (REV) sets out the annual budget for all Departments. The following amounts, as published in the REV, were provided to road safety agencies (Road Safety Authority and the Medical Bureau of Road Safety) in recent years under Subhead B3 of the Transport Vote: 2007 - €37.035 million 2008 - €44.152 million; 2009 - €37.198 million; 2010 - €33.303 million....

Written Answers — Penalty Points System: Penalty Points System (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: The records of my Department's National Vehicle and Driver File (NVDF) indicate that 683,261 drivers currently have penalty points. Under the Road Safety Authority Act 2006 (Conferral of Functions) Order 2006 (S.I. No. 477 of 2006) responsibility for the driver testing function lies with the Road Safety Authority.

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: It is widely recognised that investment in transport infrastructure projects contributes to our economic growth. All transport projects are subject to cost benefit analyses, which must clearly demonstrate the returns and value for money of the investment. The Review of Infrastructure Investment Priorities for the years 2010-2016, which was published by the Department of Finance in July...

Written Answers — Road Safety: Road Safety (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: Under the Road Safety Authority Act 2006 (Conferral of Functions) Order 2006 (S.I. No. 477 of 2006) responsibility for the collection of structured information on road collisions lies with the Road Safety Authority. Road fatalities and road collision statistics are available on the Road Safety Authority's website www.RSA.ie.

Rural Transport Services (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: Many rural transport groups use private transport and Bus Éireann is hardly involved at all in the provision of these services. Pobal makes the specific funding available to individual rural transport programmes and contracts services. In some cases, rural transport programmes may have their own vehicles but the one of which I am aware in Meath does give facilities and business to the...

Motorway Service Stations (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding in regard to the national roads programme element of Transport 21. The implementation of individual national road projects, including service areas, is a matter for the National Roads Authority in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. Section 54 of the Roads Act 1993 specifically provides for the NRA...

Motorway Service Stations (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: He is not in my constituency.

Motorway Service Stations (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: That is precisely what I asked the NRA to do, and I asked it to come back to me with proposals for service areas along these routes that would not cost the Exchequer anything. I agree with the Deputy that the private sector should be in a position to do this, although the NRA has informed me that part of the reason service areas were not provided for initially was that it thought the private...

Motorway Service Stations (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: As the Deputy knows, while all of the routes are now being finalised, many of them had gone through the planning process in 2005 and the ones that had not, namely, the M1 and M4, have service areas. It would be unfair to characterise the NRA as not being in favour of providing the service areas as it certainly is in favour of it and it understands the arguments in this regard. It is a...

Motorway Service Stations (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: The NRA has allowed for signage for offline services and this has been provided on all of the major inter-urban routes. There are criteria in this regard and in regard to identifying the appropriate locations. It is based on the proximity of a particular premises or facility to an interchange and on an indication of whether the operator can provide the facilities to which Deputy Coveney...

Metro North (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: Since 1 December 2009, the implementation of Metro North is a matter for the National Transport Authority. My Department's policy on the release of cost and economic information on transport projects is designed to protect the taxpayer's interest. There is a balance to be struck between promoting public transparency and ensuring value for money in this regard. The Railway Procurement Agency...

Metro North (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: It is wonderful that no matter how often a Minister stands up and says a project is going ahead, all it takes is one newspaper article for someone to say it is not going ahead.

Metro North (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: I stand clearly on the record as recently as last Friday down in Gort.

Metro North (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: The Deputy is correct to note that An Bord Pleanála made a change to the terminal for metro north and has not allowed the depot to go ahead at Belinstown. However, he is not correct to suggest that a new railway order will be necessary. A planning issue must be dealt with for the depot. The NTA and the RPA have estimated that because of the way the planning permission is worded there will...

Metro North (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: I will send the Deputy the blacks of all the times I have stated that I believe this is a very good project which should go ahead. The situation is that we have got the railway order for it. The next procedure is to get the bidders. When the bids come in-----

Metro North (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: Let me inform the House of the procedure because I have no wish for the Deputy to come to the House at the next Question Time and state, "You said it was going ahead".

Metro North (16 Nov 2010)

Noel Dempsey: When the bids are finalised I must bring a cost-benefit analysis to Government and, once that is done, the Government will make that decision. However, provision is being made for metro north in the capital programme into the future.