Section 7 of the Road Transport Act 1932, as amended, requires that every person who carries on a passenger road service in contravention of the Act shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding approximately €70. In the case of a continuing offence, a further fine not exceeding approximately €7 for every day during which the offence continues.
Enforcement of the provisions of the Road Transport Act 1932 is the responsibility of the Garda Síochána. The Garda Síochána has prosecuted cases for offences against section 7 of the 1932 Act, as amended. My Department does not have data on the number of fines and penalties imposed in such cases.
There are 16 staff employed in the bus licensing division of my Department. Some staff carry out monitoring exercises as part of their duties. These monitoring exercises involve reviewing the bus operations of licence holders for compliance with their licences; investigating complaints in relation to the operation of bus services, and assessing demand for services in the case of applications for new services or expanded services.
Where breaches have been observed, my Department pursues the matter with the licence holder with a view to the withdrawal of any unlicensed activity. The 1932 Act also provides the power to refuse to renew a licence where there have been frequent and grave breaches of the conditions of a licence. Transport officers in my Department who have responsibility for the enforcement of transport and road haulage issues occasionally also provide assistance to the staff of the bus licensing division in monitoring passenger road services.
Given the limits of the existing road transport legislation, there is clearly a need to modernise this legislation. The draft proposals being developed for a new regulatory regime for public transport services will include more robust enforcement powers and significantly increased penalties for breaches of licences.