Seanad debates

Wednesday, 27 January 2016

Public Transport Bill 2015: Second Stage

 

10:30 am

Photo of Trevor Ó ClochartaighTrevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim céad fáilte roimh an Aire. Ní minic a bhímid ag caint lena chéile anseo, but it is pleasure to be here. I do not normally take the transport brief but I look forward to raising a few points with the Minister. This is a mainly technical Bill dealing with a number of technical aspects with which we do not have any great issues, but I wish to use the opportunity to raise a number of other issues regarding transport.

At present the public transport services owned by the State are CIE, Bus Éireann, Dublin Bus and Iarnród Éireann. These companies have struggled through and survived the worst of the economic downturn but they now face many new challenges. Some of these challenges are positive. For instance, it is important that public transport companies are challenged by their service users to become more accessible, intuitive and reliable through the use of innovation and technology. Despite a slow lead-in in the past few years, these companies have embraced the use of technology to make their services better. Very few Dubliners under a certain age do not have the Dublin Bus app on their telephone or a Leap card in their wallet, and most people have used online features provided by Bus Éireann and Irish Rail. The one failing we see is in the integrated information apps developed by Transport for Ireland, which feel like something created by someone who has never had to depend on public transport in Ireland. Most people to whom I have spoken about these integrated apps have said they are not worth attempting to use. Bizarrely, there are two apps provided by Transport for Ireland rather than one integrated app combining real-time information with journey planning. The addition of the recent mobile top-up for Leap is welcome, but I have heard that many people have installation problems after card details are put in.

High fuel costs are being tackled to a degree by the use of other fuel sources and technological innovations in vehicles but more could be done. Public transport could be given a proper fuel rebate, for instance. A major challenge is the Government's attack on the pillars of Irish public transport. Subsidy for public transport, which was already far too low compared to other European states, has been cut by over 20%. Rubbing salt into this wound, the Government has aggressively sought to undermine public transport companies by ignoring the concerns of workers and putting in motion a privatisation plan which will act as a thin end of the wedge. Fine Gael and Labour have now driven through their privatisation agenda by planning the tendering to private companies of 10% of public bus routes and 100% of Bus Éireann routes in Waterford. This will not happen for some time but already it has damaged public transport provision. Earlier this year Bus Éireann began the process of removing some routes which received no subsidy from the State but were important in linking rural communities. It did this because the company is attempting to streamline its services as much as possible so as to protect its public service obligation, PSO, routes from going into private hands in the coming years. Bus Éireann and Dublin Bus know that the loss of one subsidised route will endanger another route and that with every route lost-----

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