Fiona O'Malley (Independent)

I am glad to have the opportunity to contribute on this subject because transport is the lifeline of a city or a community. We are all of focused on our own areas. Senator Carroll was very much focused on population growth and so on while my focus will be on the Dublin area. The motion is a fine one which has given us the opportunity to discuss what progress the Government has made in various areas. However, I was somewhat disappointed with it too. My good friend, Senator Donohoe, would agree that it complains that Dublin Bus is taking more buses off the road and reducing routes and, therefore, cutting services to local communities. I am sure he would agree it is not only Dublin Bus which provides public transport services, nor should it be. I am sure he would also agree that just because it is cutting back on buses or realigning its routes, does not necessarily mean public transport services are being curtailed in areas. We want to have competition and ensure Dublin Bus is not the exclusive provider of bus transport. It is not correct that a private transport company does not provide a public service. Such companies should be encouraged to provide services. I am sure the Senator concurs with me that the more competition we have in the provision of bus services throughout the country, the better the service will be for everybody.

I am pleased the Fine Gael Party has acknowledged the billions of euro spent on transport. Day in and day out we hear people complain that billions were squandered and there is nothing left to show for the good times. Any trip down any road will show that we have brought our road network up to European standards. It is a pleasure to travel from place to place now. I take my holidays here and hope, following the events of last week, that more people will start taking holidays at home. They will be able to move around the country much faster than previously.

The motorway network is a great benefit and it is not in anyone's interests to neglect consistently to mention it. We should be proud that our road network is finally coming up to standard. An even more important aspect of the improvement in our road network is its impact on safety and the significant decline in road traffic deaths and accidents.

I share the concerns expressed by previous speakers, specifically Senator Donohoe, on integrated ticketing in Dublin. Having waited for a long time and spent a substantial amount on the project, we must ensure progress on introducing the system is made quickly. This has not been our finest hour.

Although I am an avid cyclist, I am not a member of the Dublin bikes scheme. I would like to support the scheme, however, and I am sure I will join it at some stage. Those of us who live in the central area of Dublin city do not use cars much. Last Sunday, I visited a friend on the North Strand. Often, when I want to get home on a Sunday I take a taxi and more often than not because I do not have patience I will walk rather than wait for a bus. However, when I left my friend's house I saw that an approaching bus was headed for Rathmines, which happened to be my destination. As I did not have my bicycle with me, I thought the only way to get home would be to walk or take a taxi. It did not occur to me that the bus service in Dublin would be good enough to get me home. Lo and behold, however, not only did I not have to wait for a bus - I admit this was fortunate on a Sunday afternoon - but the first bus to arrive was travelling to my destination. This experience changed my mind to a certain extent and is an example of what public transport should be about.

I am an independent person in so far as I travel by bicycle to avoid having to take public transport. It was an absolute pleasure to find a bus that would take me to a relatively obscure part of the city. I did not expect there would be strong demand for a route from Fairview to Rathmines. For this reason, I welcome the new network of routes around the city provided by Dublin Bus.

I hope Dublin ends up with a public transport system comparable to the system in place in Paris. We are well on the way to achieving that objective. One swallow does not make a summer, however, and I will have to test the bus system again when I want to travel somewhere else. Dublin Bus is at least responding to customer and passenger needs with its new network. Rather than every route taking in the city centre, it has introduced routes which criss-cross the city. This is a sign of tremendous progress.

I live near the Luas line and while I do not always use it because I cycle a great deal, I took a tram this morning. On my way to the stop a tram passed by and I thought I would have to wait for some time for the arrival of another one. I did not have to wait for long, however, and although it appeared to be packed, as I had expected, I soon realised that most passengers congregated close to the doors and the centre of the carriage was relatively free. When I moved further into the carriage I found a seat. I often hear people complain the Luas trams are overcrowded. Within one stop, I was able to get a seat. People jump to conclusions very quickly. I almost decided not to board the tram because it appeared to be too crowded. I decided to take it, however, because I thought the following one would probably be crowded as well.

We have made tremendous progress. I am pleased to have this opportunity to discuss good transport initiatives. As a result of the Dublin bikes scheme, one often sees people in suits or other attire not normally associated with cycling on a Dublin bike. Clearly, the scheme is being used for short journeys across town by people who otherwise would not consider cycling in Dublin. I am very pleased with this development because Dublin is a great city in which to cycle. What I appreciate most about the scheme is that drivers now know to watch out for cyclists because there are so many people of them on the roads. The roads are becoming much safer for cyclists and parents will be less frightened about their children cycling to school or to visit friends and so forth because other road users are much more aware of cyclists.

There have been many other transport initiatives, including walking initiatives. I am pleased to have an opportunity to discuss the progress made in this regard. I caution, however, that more work is required on the integrated ticketing initiative.