Mary Fitzpatrick (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will talk about Dublin Bus. It is an essential public transport service for those of us who live, visit and work in the city. For it to operate to the best standard, it has to be available, reliable and safe. I welcome the fact that Dublin Bus has taken on board the findings of the Fianna Fáil public transport survey on antisocial behaviour and crime and has commenced a 20-week pilot where it has deployed private security guards on its services in order to try to increase public safety on and public confidence in those services.

I draw attention to the short-changing that us northsiders are getting from the NTA when it comes to the provision of bus services. I specifically refer to the 11 bus route. The NTA in its infinite wisdom has decided to change that cross-city bus route in order that people in Sandyford on the city's south side can travel all the way to the northside to visit our beautiful Phoenix Park, which they are very welcome to do. However, it is egregious and unacceptable that people living on the northside from Ballymun, Glasnevin and Drumcondra who are coming into town, are being deprived of their cross-city 11 bus route, which they use to go to school, work and college. The 11 bus route from Glasnevin through Home Farm Road, Drumcondra, all the way across town, has brought students to schools such as CUS, to UCD, to the National Concert Hall for entertainment, and into the city. We are now being left with a truncated bus service. We are told we are being given a 19 bus route that will bring us as far as Parnell Square. It really is not good enough. It is not acceptable to those of us on the northside who value our bus service. We value the cross-city 11 bus route. We want a guarantee from the NTA that an 11 cross-city bus route will be retained into the future. We should not be reducing the service. We should be increasing service availability, reliability and safety.