Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It has improved out of all measure in the past year. I should add that one can also get the daily newspaper on the train, so things have improved. The elephant in the room, however, is that it is losing a substantial amount of money, so it has to become competitive. Some areas have improved, and well done to them, but there are significant areas where substantial improvement is required. We will start with the basics. Rail and bus stations throughout the country could have many more services available than at present. There is no reason each railway station with more than six or seven daily services should not have some form of coffee shop. There are plenty of people who would take a realistic lease to run a café in a railway station. There is no reason one should not be able to buy a newspaper at each station, as well as having other ancillary services to generate much needed revenue. Heuston and Connolly stations are classic examples, as is Kent station in Cork, of where good services are available. There is room for improvement in many others, however, which should be considered in formulating any business plan. Magazines, newspapers, confectionery and other products should be more widely available on board trains.

I understand the catering service has been contracted out. Perhaps Iarnród Éireann might consider providing this service, although I understand it had bad experiences in this regard. Ryanair is making significant money from its on-board catering facilities. One way of increasing revenue is to encourage use of the service. One wonders sometimes if the policy of having an airport in every county augurs well for rail and bus services. There are airports in counties Donegal, Sligo, Mayo, Galway, Clare, Kerry, Cork and Waterford, among others. It is unfortunate that all Governments and parties did not have a coherent focused policy on international and domestic travel. What also does not help is that it is possible to get from Galway to Dublin quicker by car than by train. Perhaps speed restrictions, where safety issues are not of concern, might be examined in the context of assisting transport services to complete journeys to Dublin quicker. The more stops one has to make the slower the service. The 5 p.m. service from Dublin to Cork only stops at Limerick Junction, Charleville and Cork, while a number of other services stop at myriad stations which, ultimately, slows down journey times. People are in a hurry and want to get places quickly. We need to respond to this need.

In terms of bus services, integrated timetables and so on were mentioned. If on a Thursday I were to take the 3.25 p.m. train service from Dublin to Ennis, I would not arrive in Ennis until 6.45 p.m., which means I would miss the bus service to Ennistymon, where I live, by ten minutes. These are issues that could and I am sure will be looked at. Perhaps there is a good reason the bus leaves ten minutes before the train arrives.

Approximately six weeks ago I decided to travel to Dublin by train which was half an hour late leaving Ennis station and travelled to Dublin via County Galway. However, when we reached Athenry, we had to be taken by bus to Athlone because the decision was taken that the Galway to Dublin train service could not wait seven minutes for the late train service from Ennis. This resulted in the additional cost of providing two buses to ferry passengers to Athlone to catch another train. I accept that there are crises and emergencies. However, decisions made at local level must be cost conscious. I telephoned Mr. Barry Kenny and told him what had happened did not make sense. The likelihood is that the Galway to Dublin train service would have made up lost time on the way to Heuston Station. Everybody, from senior management down to station masters, area supervisors and managers, must be conscious of the consequences of decisions made on the spur of the moment. While they may have the authority to make such decisions, they must be conscious that they are spending taxpayers' money.

Many of the company's management structures can be improved. Senator Sean D. Barrett is a professor of transport economics. As such, much of what he says should be taken on board. He is possibly one of the most, if not the most, eminent transport economists in the country and his views should feed into any thought process in Iarnród Éireann and CIE.

Significant advances have been made, including in the availability of WiFi on trains and buses, which is welcome. I also welcome the Leap card, which is innovative. The job of the Minister of State is not an easy one, as is the case in respect of the Minister, Deputy Leo Varadkar. However, they are two young and enthusiastic Ministers who have embraced information technology and, in turn, will drive Iarnród Éireann and CIE to ensure the service they provide is efficient and more cost effective than in the past. I wish the Minister of State well.