My Department received a complaint in August 2000 from a private bus operator that Bus Éireann was competing, contrary to section 25 of the Road Transport Act 1958, with new licensed services that the operator had introduced in July 2000. Bus Éireann is exempt from licensing under the Road Transport Act 1932. However, the company is bound under section 25(1) of the Transport Act 1958 to seek the consent of the Minister if it wishes to initiate or alter services so as to compete with a licensed service. Following consideration of the complaint, I concluded that Bus Éireann had initiated passenger road services from Cavan to Dublin from Monday to Friday at 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. and a service from Cavan to Dublin on Sunday at 7 p.m. which competed with a licensed passenger road service under licence No. 00021 for services on the Cavan to Dublin route departing Cavan at 6.30 a.m. Monday to Friday in respect of the stop at Cavan only; and with a licensed passenger road service under licence No. 00022 for services on the Killeshandra to Dublin route departing Cavan at 7 p.m. on Sunday in respect of the stops at Cavan and Virginia only. I also concluded that Bus Éireann did not seek or obtain ministerial consent to operate the services complained of and that it was therefore in breach of section 25 of the 1958 Act.
Preliminary notice of the findings of the investigation was forwarded to the company in May 2001. Following receipt and consideration of further documentation from the parties concerned and advice from the Attorney General's office, my Department wrote to Bus Éireann in January 2002 advising it that it appeared to be in breach of section 25 of the 1958 Act and that consideration was being given to issuing a direction to Bus Éireann under section 25(3) of the Transport Act 1958 requiring it to cease its above mentioned services, and inviting the company's observations. Following further consideration of the matter, Bus Éireann was advised in November 2002 of my decision that the company had been found to be in breach of section 25(1) of the Transport Act 1958 and was directed to cease the provision of services at the stops and times in question by 31 December 2002. The company's attention was also drawn to the option of seeking ministerial consent to initiate services in competition with those of a licensed operator.
