Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I join Senator O'Loughlin and the Cathaoirleach in welcoming our distinguished visitors to the Public Gallery. Today is very special. It is the first day of spring and St. Brigid's Day. It is great that it is now being recognised as a bank holiday, and so it should be. We all look forward to having Monday off, relaxing and remembering St. Brigid.

I would also like to congratulate Vision Ireland, formerly known as the National Council for the Blind of Ireland, NCBI, on the official launch of the Wayfinding Centre in north Dublin yesterday. The Wayfinding Centre is a space where people who are mobility impaired, irrespective of whether it involves their vision or their limbs, can go to undertake mobility training in the context of using public transport and negotiating the public realm. It is a fantastic facility. I would like to thank the Ministers, Deputies Paschal Donohoe, Eamon Ryan and Roderic O'Gorman, and the Minister of State, Deputy Anne Rabbitte, who all attended the opening, along with the chief executives of Irish Rail, the NTA and the HSE. The fact that all of those key stakeholders were there reflects the importance of this facility, which is the first of its kind in the world. People from all over Europe and further afield will come to this centre for mobility training. It will also be a space for academics, engineers, architects and those who specialise in creating accessible terrains including footpaths, roadways and so on. It will also be an area where staff from organisations like Irish Rail, Bus Éireann and so on, will go to undertake mobility training and disability awareness training. It is an outstanding facility and I thank the Government for the multimillion investment in it. When it is open to the public, I recommend that as many Senators as possible go and see it. There is a plane, Luas, DART, and Irish Rail carriages, and buses, as well as elements of the public realm. It is an outstanding facility and I congratulate and commend everybody who made it happen.