Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Question 18: To ask the Minister for Transport the level of funding which has been secured for the provision of increased park and ride facilities nationally; the amounts and location of each individually proposed park and ride facility; the number of applications which his Department has received from parties interested in providing such facilities; if such projects will receive Exchequer capital grants; the number of increased park and ride facilities envisaged; when same will be announced; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35997/05]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 30: To ask the Minister for Transport the reason park and ride or adequate shuttle bus services are not being provided at all rail stations, particularly in the commuter belt with the objective of encouraging motorists towards rail transport with particular reference to the obvious need to double traffic on all commuter lines immediately thereby relieving road traffic congestion with consequent benefit to all sectors; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35930/05]

Seymour Crawford (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Question 40: To ask the Minister for Transport his plans to build or encourage private industry to build park and ride structures along the main national primaries as they join the M50; his views on whether such facilities would minimise the traffic chaos in the centre of Dublin and maximise the bus corridors, which are clearly under utilised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35883/05]

Ivor Callely (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 18, 30, and 40 together.

It is a key aim of the Department of Transport to develop an integrated transport system that will be an attractive alternative to the private car and help to minimise traffic congestion in urban areas. Provision of adequate park and ride facilities at appropriate locations around the country is an essential component in achieving this goal. In this context, Transport 21 includes substantial funding for traffic management measures, including a provision for doubling of park and ride sites in the greater Dublin area and for park and ride sites in Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford. Furthermore, this summer I approved the Dublin Transportation Office, DTO, strategy for the development of rail-based park and ride facilities in the greater Dublin area, GDA, and included a provision that bus-based park and ride will also be considered.

I am happy to be in a position to say that my Department will provide capital funding for the development of new park and ride facilities across the country. The allocation of funding to specific projects will be subject to the submission to my Department of proposals from private or public bodies based on comprehensive business cases. Among other criteria, applications will be evaluated in the light of the strategic benefit of each proposed location from the perspectives of public transport provision and traffic congestion relief. It is not possible to say at this juncture that park and ride facilities at each and every railway station will be appropriate.

Financial provision has been made for park and ride in Transport 21. However, it is not possible pending the receipt of specific applications to predict the cost of individual proposals or the total number of spaces which will ultimately be made available. My Department has received several expressions of interest regarding potential park and ride projects, and expects to receive specific proposals in the near future, which will then be evaluated.

Apart from specific proposals for funding which may be submitted on the basis set out above, park and ride will also be provided as part of major transport projects, such as the Cork suburban rail and Kildare route projects. The question of providing shuttle bus services to rail stations will be considered as part of the bus investment programme under Transport 21. As I indicated at the launch of Transport 21, the role of the bus will change as the major rail investments are completed, with a greater emphasis on orbital, feeder and local bus services.