Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Lombard for raising this issue. I know his interest in the area of disabilities and he regularly raises the matter, and quite rightly so. I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Ross, who has responsibility for policy and overall funding for public transport. Under the Dublin Transport Authority Act 2008, the National Transport Authority, NTA, has strategy responsibility for promoting the development of an integrated and accessible public transport network. Approximately 86% of the Bus Éireann regional intercity coach fleet is wheelchair accessible, and this figure will increase as the coach fleet is replaced.

I am advised that the operation of a wheelchair accessible bus service requires the provision of wheelchair accessible buses and wheelchair accessible bus stops. The wheelchair accessible coaches in the Bus Éireann regional intercity fleet are fitted with either an external hydraulic lift or a ramp. While all bus stops in regional cities are wheelchair accessible, that is not the case in regional and rural areas.

In urban areas, the use of low-floor buses with wheelchair ramps means that almost all bus stops are accessible for wheelchair users without the need for modifications to footpaths. These low-floor buses are not generally suitable for use in non-urban areas. At the current time, most services in non-urban areas are delivered by high-floor coaches, which use wheelchair lifts rather than ramps. I am advised that a large flat area of adjacent footpath is required to operate the wheelchair lift, typically 3 m wide and 3.5 m in depth. However, most bus stops in rural areas do not, as Senator Lombard knows, meet those requirements.

To address these infrastructural legacy issues, the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport funds a programme of accessibility improvement grants, managed by the NTA, to upgrade existing and older infrastructure and facilities, including the installation of accessible bus stops in rural and regional areas of Ireland. The Minister, Deputy Ross, has secured €28 million in funding for the retrofit programme for the period 2018 to 2021.

I am advised that in 2018, the NTA engaged engineering designers to undertake accessibility audits of towns with a population of more than 5,000 that have bus stops serviced by high-floor coaches. It identified 43 towns that required accessibility enhancement to accommodate two stops, that is, one in each direction, for coaches, giving a total of 86 new accessible bus stops. I understand that, subject to local authority agreement and input, the NTA plans to have accessible stops in all 43 towns on public service obligation routes by the end of 2021.

Senator Lombard raised the issue of accessible bus stops in Cork. The NTA has advised that it is engaging with Cork County Council on the provision of wheelchair lift accessible stops. I am advised that Cork County Council awarded the contract to complete works at Carrigtwohill, Midleton, Castlemartyr and Youghal. Works have commenced in Youghal and all works are expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2020. The NTA hopes to expand this programme to additional locations during 2020 in co-operation with Cork County Council. Furthermore, it is planned to supply 38 low-entry coach-style vehicles to Bus Éireann in the first quarter of 2020. The allocation of those buses to routes in County Cork is an operational matter for Bus Éireann.

The NTA also has national responsibility for integrated local and rural transport, including the management of Local Link services, which are managed by 15 Local Link offices, including Local Link in Cork, on behalf of the NTA. One of the key objectives of Local Link is the integration of its services with other public transport services, including Bus Éireann services. Approximately 80% of the fleet in use on Local Link services is already wheelchair accessible, and the target is to have at least 95% fully accessible trips by the end of next year. Such services generally operate without the need for accessible bus stops.