Imelda Henry (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Deputy Alan Kelly, to the House.

Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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Tá mé buíoch don Leas-Chathaoirleach as an ábhar seo, maidir le seirbhísí busanna i gContae na Mí agus thart timpeall, a roghnú don díospóireacht ar an Athló. I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach for allowing me to raise this important matter on the Adjournment.

In recent months, I have noticed many problems with bus services, especially in the commuter belt of County Meath. I understand these problems are also a feature of other parts of the commuter belt. The problems arise mainly with Bus Éireann. I am not here to complain about Bus Éireann, but to encourage the company to provide an even better service than at present.

It has been brought to my attention that commuters on the 109 route from as far away as Kells are unable to board buses on some mornings because the buses are full since leaving Cavan. This is not acceptable. Other passengers have boarded buses in Kells that have taken two and half hours to reach Dublin.

I have received complaints from constituents in south County Meath further down the No. 109 route and related connecting routes onto the old M3, particularly the No. 111 route from Trim and Batterstown. Some commuters cannot get onto those buses either. On three of the five days last week, at least two dozen commuters were unable to get on buses and were subsequently late for work. That is unacceptable in this day and age, particularly when one considers the prices people are paying for tickets. I understand it is ¤54 per week for a ten journey ticket from Kells and Cavan, and ¤38.50 from Dunshaughlin. An annual ticket from the Fairyhouse area costs nearly ¤1,500, before the taxsaver break. These are working people who are glad to have a job, but they find they cannot get on the buses. This is a service the State provides through Bus Éireann.

I also wish to highlight the ongoing issue regarding the town of Stamullen, which I have also raised with the National Transport Authority. Stamullen is the largest town in Ireland without a public bus service. I do not blame the current Government or the previous one for that, but that is the position. The town has grown without the service. One can walk two miles to Gormanston, where there is a fantastic bus and train service, but the buses do not go through the town of Stamullen. I have suggested to the National Transport Authority that it consider diverting a number of the buses on the Drogheda-Dublin route to go through Stamullen to give a direct service to the people. There was an initiative by the last Government under the rural transport initiative which provided a connecting service from the village to Gormanston, but it did not work out. It was too expensive. It meant an extra ¤2 or ¤3 on the price of the ticket and it was not worthwhile for people to pay it.

People in County Meath are being made late for work while some people, such as those in Stamullen, do not have a service. I understand the National Transport Authority is conducting an audit of public transport in the commuter belt. That is what the authority told me when I contacted it. The authority should examine the issues I have raised. I look forward to the Minister's response.

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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I thank the Senator for raising this issue. It is one that has been raised in other parts of the country as well.

First, it must be stated that the National Transport Authority, NTA, is responsible for securing the provision of public passenger transport services. Neither I nor the Minister, Deputy Leo Varadkar, exercise ministerial powers in the area. Where the public bus passenger services are provided commercially without a public service obligation, the NTA regulates the provision of those services under the Public Transport Regulation Act 2009. Where a public service obligation applies to a public bus passenger service, the NTA provides those services in accordance with the Dublin Transport Authority Act 2008 in the form of public service contracts. These contracts can either be direct award contracts, such as those with Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann, or competitively tendered. At all times, the NTA must work within the budget that has been provided for the public service obligation, which has reduced by 20% since 2009.

It is a matter for Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann, with the agreement of the NTA in the case of subvented services, to decide on service levels and changes to services, which takes account of customer volumes and needs, fare revenue and the funding available for public service obligation services. The Dublin commuter belt consists of a mixture of commercial licensed services provided by Bus Éireann and other private operators and routes which have a public service obligation, and are provided under contract by Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann and larnród Éireann. The NTA is undertaking an extensive review of the services provided in the Dublin commuter belt and there may be changes to those public service obligation services to better meet the needs of the public transport customer within the resources that are available.

The CIE group has to date implemented significant cost management measures, including the implementation of the Deloitte cost and efficiency review of Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann. To compensate for the reduced passenger revenues and public service obligation subvention, CIE engaged in a cost recovery programme which has focused on revisions to its network of services and, in particular, the implementation of the Dublin Bus network direct project. Over the past two years, Dublin Bus has revised its full network of services to better meet the needs of customers. All services have been adjusted in line with customer demand at both peak and off-peak times. Dublin Bus constantly monitors service performance and, where required, adjustments are made.

I am aware of the redesign of Expressway services and other Bus Éireann routes and have made inquiries with the company on the matter. Expressway services do not receive a subsidy either directly or indirectly. Bus Éireann's services were not as direct as their competitors and due to that, and the recession, have lost passengers and revenue. In order to gain competitiveness it has, therefore, had to redesign its Expressway services. I appreciate that changes to bus services will inconvenience some passengers. However, given the financial position that the CIE companies find themselves in, there is no alternative for the companies but to ensure that commercial operations operate on a commercial footing and that, unfortunately, limits their scope for changing the services.

That said, there is still a comprehensive service offering along Expressway routes through services from Bus Éireann along with other operators. I have asked the NTA to put together integrated timetables of all bus and rail services across all affected routes and these should be published shortly.

Following the establishment of the NTA in December 2009, the implementation and development of infrastructure projects in the greater Dublin area, GDA, comes under the remit of the NTA. The NTA is also responsible for the roll-out of real-time passenger information, RTPI, in the GDA and the four regional cities of Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford. The RTPI project in the GDA involves the installation of up to 500 on-street information signs capable of displaying the arrival times of buses. These RTPI displays are being located at selected bus stops or interchange points in the GDA. The first phase of sign deployments is now 98% complete in the GDA.

We continue to provide for significant capital investment in both bus companies. In the case of Dublin Bus, 80 new buses are being funded by the NTA and delivery of new buses has now commenced and is expected to cost in the region of ¤25 million. The full order will be delivered on a staged basis as the buses are manufactured over the remaining months of 2012. In 2011, Dublin Bus received approximately ¤3.7 million in funding towards bus refurbishment and a further ¤750,000 towards its bus shelter programme. This year the NTA expects to provide up to ¤3.5 million for fleet refurbishment and about ¤750,000 for its bus shelter programme. In 2011, 60 new buses were delivered to Bus Éireann at a cost to the Exchequer of ¤18.5 million.

The NTA is introducing the Leap card scheme in the GDA on a phased basis, based on smart card technology. Phase 1 of the Leap card scheme was launched in December 2011 on the services of Dublin Bus, Luas and Irish Rail DART-commuter rail. Further roll out of the scheme is continuing in 2012 with the launch of the student travel card in September leading to significant growth in Leap cards issued arising from this launch. Bus Éireann commenced pilot operations in September on its eastern regional services in the GDA. Additional private bus operators will be integrated into the scheme over the coming months. In early 2013, annual and monthly passes will be issued on the Leap card, as cardholders renew passes, and additional products such as multi-journey tickets will be rolled out on Dublin Bus in early 2013. Funding has been provided to Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann from the overall capital allocation for the scheme of ¤55.4 million. The scheme continues to function well with almost 150,000 cards issued to date and 8.5 million journeys undertaken using Leap cards.

On the specific issue of the No. 109 route raised by the Senator, if he provides me with more information I will ask the NTA to investigate the matter. We have received a huge amount of correspondence relating to various routes due to the work that Bus Éireann is now undertaking as a result of the unfortunate circumstances in which it finds itself. As public representatives, we must take cognisance of the holistic picture, particularly in the case of Expressway services. It is a competitive area and there are other providers. However, I do not deny that the Senator has outlined certain issues that require examination by my office and that will be done. On the matter of no public bus provision in the town mentioned by the Senator, if he provides me with further information I will certainly look into it. Perhaps he would do so at his convenience.

Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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I will be glad to do that. Stamullen is the largest town in Ireland with no public bus service. There is no private service either. The issue with the No. 109 route is a matter for Bus Éireann as there is no competing regular commuter service available to commuters on that route. Other parts of Meath have a regular private bus service that competes with Bus Éireann. The people who are paying the price of tickets, and tickets are not cheap now, are entitled to a service from Bus Éireann. It is not fair, or even contractual, for a full bus to drive past when no alternative is put in place. Private operators who are running commuter services could put alternatives in place. There should at least be some system whereby the bus takes the annual ticket holders first if there happens to be a shortage of bus space and, perhaps, provide another bus. It is not right that people are made late for work because of this. I appeal to the Minister of State and the National Transport Authority to do their best to deal with this.

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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As I said previously, I did not know the exact route before coming to the House. If the Senator provides me with the details, I will ensure it is examined as a matter of urgency.