Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Green Party)
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Question 242: To ask the Minister for Transport if the 20 buses announced as part of the Transport 21 plan were already ordered by Dublin Bus in the months preceding the announcement; and if any of the buses are earmarked for routes in the Clondalkin and Lucan area. [40122/05]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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At the launch of Transport 21, I announced that, in response to a request from Dublin Bus, I had approved funding for 20 additional buses in 2005. The buses had been ordered as part of Dublin Bus's replacement programme but, in order to provide increased capacity at the earliest possible date, the 20 buses will now become additions to the Dublin Bus fleet. The deployment of buses is a day-to-day operational matter for Dublin Bus but the company informs me that both Clondalkin and Lucan will benefit from the entry into service of the additional buses.

Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Green Party)
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Question 243: To ask the Minister for Transport if his Department will ring-fence funding for a regular bus service from Clondalkin to Tallaght, in view of the lack of a real service and the lack of available resources at Dublin Bus; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40123/05]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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In recent years, the Government has significantly increased the subvention paid to Dublin Bus from €8.8 million in 1997 to €64.9 million in 2005, an increase of 637%. In 2006, the subvention to CIE will increase by a further 5%. In addition to this 5% increase, a further €1.7 million will be allocated to Dublin Bus in 2006 to operate the 20 additional buses for which I gave approval recently. The provision of services on a particular route is a matter for Dublin Bus itself, having regard to the demand for such services and compliance with the requirements of the Transport Act 1958 and the administrative arrangements established to support those requirements.