Pat O'Neill (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There has been an 87% increase in the number of people cycling. There has also been a lot of controversy about cyclists and people cycling on blue bikes. If people want to cycle around this city then they must observe the rules of the road, the same as anyone else. Dublin City Council, the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government or someone should provide a course to teach cyclists how to behave properly on the roads because motorists, bus drivers and everyone else must observe the rules of the road.

If we want to integrate Dublin city centre then we must tackle land use. There is 67 ha available to Dublin City Council to do something with either for residential or other purposes. Submissions are being taken again for the upcoming development plan for Dublin city. We must look at land use like parking. If one brings cars into the city then one must allow them to be parked. Are we going to allow them to park at a cheap rate? Are we going to charge exorbitant rates to park in our city? Are we going to have a system of stacking cars like in Tokyo and other cities? A stacking system means a car goes into a lift and is raised high up in the sky which is another way of conserving space.

I wish to raise one of the biggest issues. I remember coming to Dublin on the train as a kid and going to matches in Croke Park. At that time the train used to travel from Heuston Station to Connolly Station via a tunnel. A tunnel system is the future for Dublin city transport. We must ensure the Phoenix Park tunnel is upgraded and can be used. The majority of the people who travel to the city use public transport that starts off in suburbia, from Kildare, Meath, and so forth. As well as this, people use a light rail system and rail transport is not just about the Luas.

I am very proud of Dublin city but I want to know how we can improve it. We are not going back to the Dublin featured by Pete St. John in his song "The Rare Ould Times" so we have to build a modern city.