Tom Morrissey (Progressive Democrats)
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I thank the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Deputy McDaid, for coming before the House to address the subject I raise again tonight. On previous occasions I have raised the issue of the licensing of new bus routes and extensions of existing routes by both Dublin Bus and private operators, citywide and countrywide. There appears to be an inordinate delay within the Department of Transport in processing applications. At a time when this Government has a laudable policy under which it is proposed to franchise some 25% of the Dublin Bus market — comprising a great number of routes — a system needs to be put in place to deal with applications in a manner akin to the way planning applications are dealt with by county councils. For example, if one makes an application for an extension or retention, one should be confident that it will be dealt with within four to eight weeks. It is a considerable outlay if one is investing €300,000 in a double-decker bus and €150,000 per annum in maintaining and driving the vehicle. One needs to be certain how long it will take to set this up. Also, under the current system, licences are being granted for only 12 months. We need to move to the UK model. People are investing large amounts of money in this area. It costs €300,000 to operate one bus on a particular route. If a private investor or the Government, through the NDP, was investing in Dublin Bus to that extent it would want licences to be valid for more than 12 months. We must provide incentives to private operators to develop and invest in good management of those routes.

Perhaps a way to end the backlog in the Department would be to introduce a three or five year licensing system to include a level of examination to ensure that if the operator was not meeting certain standards, the licence could be revoked. We should examine that possibility. We cannot continue in a situation where 25% of the licences of the entire Dublin Bus market is franchised under the existing regime because private operators will not be encouraged to come into the market.

I understand that private operators wishing to obtain a rebate on fuel must provide Revenue with their renewal notice. In certain circumstances, it is taking up to six months to renew licences thereby resulting in fuel rebates being withheld. If the Government is serious about dealing with this issue, it will have to examine the internal difficulties of the Department. I suggest the Government consider the introduction of a long-term licensing system given the investment being made in this area. I welcome the Minister of State's comments on this matter.

Jim McDaid (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Senator Morrissey for tabling this motion. Private operators are required under the Road Transport Act 1932 to apply to the Department of Transport for a licence to operate a passenger road service or to amend an existing licence. All applications for new licensed services or amendments to existing licensed services are considered on an individual basis.

The mechanisms and procedures for the processing of applications are governed by the provisions of the Road Transport Act 1932. In response to a motion on the Adjournment of the House on 17 December 2003, I explained that the Minister is required, under section 11(3)(a) of the 1932 Act, to apply a public interest test to applications for licences. The Minister must consider whether the service proposed is in the public interest having regard to passenger road services and other forms of passenger transport available to the public on or in the neighbourhood of the route of the proposed service.

Generally, the public interest is interpreted as being best served by enhancing and facilitating an expansion of the range of public transport services available to the public as opposed to allowing unrestricted competition for market share. The adequacy or inadequacy of existing services and the net benefit to the public interest of a proposed service is assessed by the Department on the basis of the best evidence available to it, including evidence submitted by the applicant in support of the licence application, as mentioned by Senator Morrissey, and information made available by other parties.

Dublin Bus or Bus Éireann are not required under the Road Transport Act 1932 to apply to the Department for a licence to operate a proposed service or to alter an existing one. The next point is an important one which illustrates the interest in this area since the Minister introduced the 25% franchise. However, since 10 January 2001, both companies are required to notify the Department of proposed new services or proposed changes to existing services at least four weeks prior to their introduction. The purpose of this procedure is to ensure a level playing field between Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann and private operators in the authorisation of services.

The length of time taken to process an application, the kernel of the Senator's motion, can vary depending on the nature and complexity of the application. Applications are dealt with on a first come, first served basis. Detailed analysis is required to ascertain, for example, the extent of any overlap between the proposed service and existing licensed or other public transport services. This can include similar licence applications already received or prior notifications received from either Dublin Bus or Bus Éireann. However, pressing or exceptional circumstances, and this does not appear to be in accordance with what the Senator said, are taken into account in determining the order with which such an application is dealt. In some circumstances, while the preliminary work may have been completed on a particular application, a final decision cannot be made until other relevant applications or notifications received prior to it have been finalised. In some cases, the application process can be delayed where relevant information is not provided by an applicant, such as an updated road passenger transport operators licence, current public service vehicle licences and approvals from the Garda for pick-up and-or set-down points.

The Senator inquired about the number of applications under consideration. The following point is a further indication of the interest in the 25% franchise. In reply to the motion on the Adjournment in the House on 22 May 2003, I advised the Senator that, at that time, the Department had on hand 133 applications for new routes or for amendments to existing route licences countrywide. Since then, an additional 155 applications have been received, giving a total of 288 applications to date. During 2003, the staff of my Department made a sustained effort to speed up decisions on applications through a heavy overtime commitment and streamlined processing. That effort has been successful in virtually eliminating a significant backlog of applications prior to 2003.

The overall result of this effort and commitment of staff is that currently the number of applications on hand has been reduced to 85. Of these applications, 60 are currently being processed and 25 are awaiting processing. I am also happy to advise the Senator that the Department — this is another important point — has made arrangements with private operators to deal with the renewal of all annual licences during the months of September and October next, instead of the piecemeal renewal of licences undertaken up to now. This will greatly facilitate the renewal process for the Department and will also assist private operators by co-ordinating the renewal dates for all annual licences held by them.

The Government programme contains a commitment to replace the Road Transport Act 1932 with modern legislation. In keeping with that commitment, the Minister has already set out his proposals for regulatory reform of the bus market based on genuine market opening to new entrants. Following a meeting which he had with the trade unions on 26 January and subsequent correspondence, intensive discussions between the Department and the unions are expected to resume shortly under the auspices of an independent chairman.

It remains the Minister's intention to proceed with legislation on public transport reform in 2004, thereby fulfilling the commitment in the Government programme. In the meantime, my Department will continue to improve the administration of the 1932 Act in so far as resources permit. However, it is important to note that there is widespread agreement that the Act no longer provides a satisfactory basis for market regulation and needs to be replaced with modern legislation.

I hope the foregoing clarifies the matter for Senator Morrissey. As I told him before, I do not pretend to have the wisdom on this issue as exists among the officials in the Department of Transport. His contribution was genuine in terms of his concerns for private operators. Perhaps we can move this matter forward in a meeting between him and the officials concerned who know the current position.