I welcome the Minister to the House. He is a former Member and we are delighted he is back, but I am sure he is delighted he is back only in a temporary capacity.
Senator P. J. Murphy has special guests in the Gallery. Would he like to welcome them?
Public Transport: Motion
I welcome my niece and a great canvasser, Una Fahy, to the Seanad, and my sister, Charlotte, who is always a great support to me politically. They are very welcome. It is nice to see them here.
Una Fahy is from Ardrahan National School and the principal is Mr. O'Leary. As a rule of the Seanad, Mr. O'Leary is not allowed to give Una any homework for the rest of the week and for the next week.
I call Senator O'Loughlin, who is proposing the motion. Senator Clifford-Lee is seconding the motion.
I will be sharing time with my colleague, Senator Clifford-Lee.
Is that agreed? Agreed.
I move:
That Seanad Éireann:
recognises that:
- the Programme for Government commits to developing a strategic public transport network;
- with a dispersed population, connectivity is essential to foster continued economic growth for communities and industry;
- by investing in public transport services, we will enhance connectivity across Ireland, giving people more choice and supporting sustainable growth;
agrees that:
- the public must have confidence in the quality and reliability of our public transport network;
- workers and passengers must be safe, and feel safe, when using the network;
- timetables of some services do not currently meet the needs of commuters;
- there is a lack of nighttime and early morning services across the network;
- the public are increasingly reporting tardiness and ‘ghost buses’;
- all services on the network must be accessible for all, including for people with disabilities and people with impaired mobility;
- those using public transport deserve adequate facilities, including bus shelters, toilets and parking;
- fairer fares for the Dublin commuter belt have yet to be implemented;
notes that:
- 2.3 million annual kilometres were added to the public transport network last year;
- in 2024, the successful public transport security policing pilot ran for 20 weeks on Dublin Bus;
- under Connecting Ireland over 100 new or improved bus services have been rolled out across rural Ireland since 2020;
- work has commenced on key transport projects, including Metrolink, Dart+ and Bus Connects;
- the All-Island Strategic Rail Review was published in 2024;
- the average national public transport fare has reduced by €1 compared to 2019;
- students and young adults now benefit from 50 per cent reduction in fares;
calls for the Minister for Transport to:
- introduce public transport policing;
- work with service providers on the extension of timetables to provide late night and early morning services;
- work with the National Transport Authority (NTA) to improve the punctuality and reliability of services;
- ensure every service on our public transport network is accessible for people with disabilities and impaired mobility;
- continue the roll-out of Connecting Ireland;
- fully implement the recommendations of the All-Island Strategic Rail Review;
- reinstate the Western Rail Corridor;
- engage with the NTA on the implementation of fairer fares;
- provide adequate facilities for public transport users;
- expand light rail in our urban areas;
- expand shuttle bus services to commuter stations from surrounding towns and villages.
I thank the Minister for attending, and I congratulate him. I believe this is his first time in the Seanad in his capacity as Minister for Transport, which is important. Connectivity all around the island of Ireland, but most particularly the Republic of Ireland, is very important for economic reasons, educational reasons and social and recreational reasons.
I wish to raise a number of issues that are particular to my neck of the woods in Kildare. I appreciate that the Minister took the opportunity to visit not so long ago, and we had the opportunity to talk about these. Regarding some priorities for me, I do not expect the Minister to have an answer now but I would appreciate if he could revert to me. The first is the implementation of fair fares. This has been long overdue. We have the short-hop zone, which comes up to 35 km outside of Dublin. People then have a much-subsidised fare to go into Dublin, which is important because it encourages people to use public transport. In Kildare, however, the train fare from Sallins is one third of the price it is from the next station of Newbridge. Many parents have second cars because it is cheaper to have a second car and drive their daughters or sons who are students or working to the station in Sallins to be able to avail of the much cheaper fare. Consequently, roads are blocked up, as is parking in Sallins.
Fair fares were due to be implemented in September. A number of areas are impacted in Kildare, Dublin, Meath, Louth and Wicklow. In Kildare, commuters in Kildare town and Newbridge would have a much better fare system once implemented. For example, the fare for an average single ticket into town would reduce by 45% from Newbridge and 38% from Kildare town. Think about that. People have been budgeting to ensure they have thousands of euro in their pockets since last September up to the end of this April, which is when the NTA says the system will be implemented by. It is of utmost urgency that we have the system implemented. I look forward to hearing what the Minister has to say. We also need to have the Leap card extended so that those who commute from the 50 km zone will be able to use it within and around Dublin.
When discussing travelling from train stations into Dublin - bearing in mind that almost 50% of those who live in Kildare are working outside Kildare, with most travelling to Dublin – we have to talk about the facilities in our train stations. These include car parking, but also waiting facilities. In Newbridge, thousands of people commute every day but there is no toilet open for them to use. We have people using the train for medical appointments and people who have perhaps commuted ten, 15 or 20 miles to come into the station. Trains can be late, as is their nature, or somebody can just a miss a train and may have to wait at least half an hour for another one. It is important that there be proper waiting room facilities and toilets. This is not exclusive to Newbridge. Every train station should have those.
Timetabling is important. Currently, we have a good service from Newbridge but we do not have a good late-night service. For example, I can travel from Newbridge to Pearse Street in the morning, which is ten minutes from here.
It is a great service for those who are working around this part of Dublin. However, the last train leaves at 6.10 p.m. There is capacity for a late-night service from there. At Heuston Station, the last train leaves at 11.10 p.m. which means people have to leave the city centre by 10 p.m. People who want to see a show, want to do something related to work, or for social reasons or for college or education, do not have that option at the moment. We need to have better timetabling in that regard.
There are people who need to use the train but do not live near the train station. I am lucky that I live quite close to mine, but there are people in Newbridge, where I live, who live in the town or an estate but are 3 miles from the train station. We need to have a town bus. Three town buses are proposed for Ennis and Mullingar, which are the next two on the list, and fair play to them. Newbridge needs to be on that list. It needs to be prioritised. We need to be able to bring people from their homes to the train station to avoid traffic coming through the town centre. As the Minister knows, we badly need our second bridge to be able to facilitate traffic coming through more easily. On being able to access the train, there is a problem with parking and many people need to park at the station. People need a second car to enable them to go there because if they are walking, running or cycling during winter weather it is not so good.
On connectivity, Local Link is a tremendous feature of modern life. Rural Link and Local Link are doing an incredible job. Two bus routes are in the plans at the moment but there have been very long delays in rolling them out. The first is the 888, which will connect Athy, Monasterevin, Rathangan and Allenwood. It is badly needed for so many reasons. The second route is the extended 821 link, which will include Suncroft, to Newbridge and further on.
Those are the main areas I would like to cover in respect of this motion and in acknowledging the many commitments that are in the programme for Government. We appreciate the Minister's input into that and his commitment to making sure these will be followed through. There is talk of the extension of DART+ South West to Hazelhatch. That could come further into Newbridge and Kildare. If we have all the building of the housing we want to see, we need to have that.
The bottom line is the connectivity that I want for Kildare and that we all want for all of our country is essential to foster continued economic growth for communities and tourism. We want public transport to be affordable, accessible, reliable, available and safe.
I second the motion. I am very happy that the Minister has attended. It is our first item of Private Members' business, which reflects the importance the Fianna Fáil Group is placing on transport. I was very happy to see that the Minister got this brief because I know he understands this issue, which is a top priority for the people of north County Dublin. I will raise a number of issues. Senator O'Loughlin touched on some of them. She laid out the core tenets of the motion very well. We need people to have faith and trust in our public transport network so we can move to a more modern way of connecting people and communities.
The Local Link bus service is a fantastic network that provides public transport for rural communities, which have always been left behind in that regard. Route 192, which links the towns of Balbriggan and Swords, goes through Balscadden, Naul, Oldtown, Ballyboughal and Roganstown and has been very well received. It is very well used by young and old alike and has given new life to rural communities. We definitely need new routes. The Government needs to continue to fund Local Link. As Senator O'Loughlin said, proposed new routes need to be prioritised, speeded up and delivered so people can live in a sustainable fashion in our rural towns and villages. In particular, a route I would like to see introduced is one from Ballyboughal to Lusk and Rush. That would service Lusk and Rush train station. The Minister is very familiar with these areas and the level of demand that is there, especially from students in Ballyboughal who wish to go to secondary school at Lusk on public transport, and people living in Ballyboughal who want to access supermarkets, doctors and cultural and social activities in the two towns I mentioned. That is a top priority of mine.
The issue of fairer fares that Senator O'Loughlin also touched on impacts Balbriggan and Skerries. These are towns that are absorbing a lot of housing. People want to access the city for jobs, university and cultural and social activities. They need to be given fairer fares without any further delay.
The Minister is very familiar with the long and sorry saga of MetroLink. Everybody in north County Dublin, whether they have been there 25 years, five years or five months, knows about the ins and outs of MetroLink. I was very happy to see a commitment to MetroLink in the programme for Government. This will be transformative not only for Swords, but for Dublin and the wider country. The very first stop on the proposed route will be at Lissenhall. There will be a massive park and ride facility there, which will open up access to MetroLink to the northern end of north County Dublin beyond it. It needs to be delivered. It will be transformative. I know the Minister is personally committed to the delivery of MetroLink, especially for north County Dublin. We have been absorbing the housing needs of Dublin and Ireland. Over the past number of months, there have been particular issues in respect of the quality of life for people occupying the new houses in the communities that are there. Of course, we needed houses. We are building houses and I am delighted to see such a good output of houses, but we need to build communities. Part of that is delivering safe, reliable and accessible public transport. MetroLink will play a key role in that.
The capacity on the northern line and the urgency of it is, again, an issue that the Minister will be very familiar with, given the housing numbers and proposed housing numbers in the area. The capacity on the northern line, especially in respect of Balbriggan, Skerries, Rush, Lusk and Donabate, needs to be looked at urgently. I know that the Minister has a personal commitment to that.
I look forward to working with the Minister on all our aims. If we are to develop as a modern, safe, efficient country that can deliver housing for its people, access to health services and education, and foster an entrepreneurial spirit in the country, we must have public transport infrastructure that is fit for purpose. I know the Minister will work very hard to deliver that.
I thank the proposer of the motion, Senator O'Loughlin, the seconder, Senator Clifford-Lee, and the other Fianna Fáil Senators for tabling this important motion. I thank the Cathaoirleach for his kind words of welcome. I congratulate the new Senators who have been elected to the Upper House and the existing Senators who have been returned. I assure the Seanad that in my attendance during the previous Oireachtas I valued this House. I value the Seanad and Senators' input both for legislation and motions such as this. They can be assured that whenever I can be available to attend here, I will be. I congratulate Senator O'Loughlin on her appointment as Leader of the House and the Cathaoirleach on his second term. I will not use any US comparisons on second terms.
(Interruptions).
He will get a third term.
He probably will.
I appreciate that the motion is very timely. I will address some of the points that Senators O'Loughlin and Clifford-Lee raised. We are not opposing the motion. It is very much in line with the programme for Government commitments that Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the regional group crafted and put together. Public transport is critically important to the growth of our country and, as Senator Clifford-Lee said, to people's quality of life. More and more people are using public transport. That is good and we need to support it. We need to increase infrastructure throughout the country.
The Seanad will be aware that in the programme for Government, Securing Ireland's Future, we are strongly committed to enhancing transport networks and infrastructure development.
Public transport has a key role to play in this. To support this objective my Department has secured just short of €660 million of funding for public service obligation, PSO, and Local Link services. Both Senators have already mentioned the importance of these services, particularly in our rural communities. I want to see a further expansion of those services. The €660 million package includes funding for the continuation of existing various public service fare initiatives and for the extension of free child fares on PSO services to include children between five and eight years of age. We need to get that in. That was agreed before and we need to get that implemented this year. I will also look further at how we can extend that around secondary schools to kids who have reached the age of 16 - those teenagers aged 16 to 18 who are still in school. We can make things easier for them there in the system.
I will also touch on transport security and then I will come back to the NDP. People need to feel safe on our public transport systems across the country, particularly on our buses, trains and the Luas. Let us be frank and say that in some instances people do not feel safe. We have seen far too much antisocial behaviour on our public transport systems. I am very pleased that within the programme for Government there is a key commitment, which Fianna Fáil made in our manifesto, for the establishment of a transport police. I pay tribute to Senator Fitzpatrick for the role she played in that regard along with other Dublin Oireachtas Members such as Senator Clifford-Lee and our Fine Gael colleagues who agreed to our proposals. I want to assure Members that I have already started work on this. There have been discussions with the Minister for Justice, Deputy Jim O'Callaghan. This would be a transport security force established under the NTA. The primary drivers of the legislation will sit within me and my Department. I have already asked and work is already being prepared on that. I expect I will come to this House with legislative changes. It is critically important we do that. I want to see that up and running as expeditiously as possible. It will need to be underpinned by legislation.
Senators O'Loughlin and Clifford-Lee have already mentioned fairer fares. In April 2023, the NTA in its position as regulator published a new national fares strategy and last year published its fare determination aimed at simplifying fares and introducing more a equitable distance-based structure. There are anomalies along the line. Senator Clifford-Lee mentioned the northern line. Newbridge has also been mentioned. For people who are further away, there are quite significant increases in rail fares. The first phase of that fares determination was introduced last June. My Department is engaging with the NTA on phase 2 right now. The implementation of the rail element of phase 2 requires technical updates to systems and machines, Leap cards and various things. I am expecting that to be completed in the coming months. I want to see if that can be sped up. I have had initial meetings with the NTA. We have to put the pressure on. I want all our transport agencies, and in particular our operators, to be more customer focused. We talk in big investment terms about new routes and rightly so, including the MetroLink that we will see. I was at the launch of the MetroLink project in 2005. This speaks about Irish planning. We are 20 years on and we have not a sod turned on projects like that. It takes too long to deliver projects. This is why in this House in the last Oireachtas I brought forward the Planning and Development Act 2024. Senator Noonan is here and he was a key part of that. Thankfully the Government of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, supported by some Independents, passed that legislation because we need that legislation. Other opposed it and that would mean we are just doing the same things again and delaying project delivery. We cannot have that. It is critically important that we move forward with it.
With regard to public transport services, I have reiterated to our partners that a customer focus is absolutely required across the board. As part of that, we are enhancing services under programmes such as Connecting Ireland and BusConnects. We are implementing further early morning and more late-night bus services. Dublin and Cork already have some 24-hour bus services and more are to follow, with plans for Limerick and Galway through BusConnects. We have opportunities to do more there. Hours of operation of many town and city bus service have been expanded. Irish Rail has increased the number of early-morning and late-evening train services between Dublin and the regional cities. The Government has an ambitious vision to transform transport services and infrastructure nationwide. We can do that. We have a national development plan that underpins this. We will have a review of the NDP. As the Minister for Transport, I can say that we will do our level best to secure the additional investment that is needed. If we are to unlock the potential we have across our regions, we have to improve our public transport. From the perspective of our climate targets, our environment and our quality of life, we will be doing that. We have been successful so far. There were many detractors over the years, including when we were developing the Luas and the Luas cross city, the Dublin Port tunnel and all of the various plans. We have Cork light rail coming on track. A lot of good things will be in place. Since the launch of the Connecting Ireland rural mobility plan and bus services in the towns, 150 new or enhanced bus services have been introduced under Connecting Ireland, providing 190 new towns and villages with connections to the transport network. That is significant.
The NTA is upgrading bus stop infrastructure on a phased basis throughout Ireland. Better route and timetable information is being provided at all stops. As we are touching on that, punctuality is critical and information is critical for commuters. I have publicly announced my displeasure in recent weeks with the phenomenon of ghost buses - that is the technical term, or at least the term that people understand - and buses not turning up as scheduled. It is a major frustration for people trying to get to work and trying to get to events. The bus is showing up on the app but then it just disappears and is gone. I have met with agencies and bus operators on that. A full review is being done on what happened recently and a new app will come forward as well. We really need to improve that and be more customer focused. Some of these issues relate to an inability to fill vacancies for drivers and mechanics. We need clearer sight of the risks to our transport system, particularly for operators that are winning contracts. I would say to the NTA and others that when we are assessing contracts and new routes, we need to make sure the business and resource plan is robust and there is headroom and contingency within the plan to deal with things like absences and vacancies. In the programme for Government, we have committed to enhancing and supporting the delivery of a skilled workforce to maintain and operate public transport vehicles. We are establishing a task force to deliver on that commitment within the Department.
As more people are using public transport, such bus and rail, right across the country, we must make sure those who have issues with accessibility and those with disabilities and special needs are catered for like any other passenger or any other customer. Just this week the Taoiseach convened a meeting on disabilities. The programme for Government is very strong in the area of disabilities. It has to be something on which all of us as Oireachtas Members, in government and in opposition, work hard together to deliver. I am very serious about ensuring we no longer have situations where someone who has mobility issues is treated differently in a public transport network from someone else. I feel really strongly about that. Senator Clifford-Lee will know well that heretofore, people using the northern line have had to book 24 hours in advance for a rail journey just because they are mobility impaired and might have a special need. The new carriages we are receiving, which will start on the northern line - in case I am accused of being parochial by bringing them into my own backyard in the northern line, I should mention that this decision was made by my predecessor, the former Minister, Eamon Ryan - are equipped with automatic ramps so there is full accessibility on them. Our bus fleet has improved substantially. There are still some issues with Bus Éireann and some of the older buses as well.
The NTA manages the public transport accessibility retrofit programme. If Senators are not acquainted with this, I ask them to have a look at it. It aims to make facilities accessible for everyone. Senator O'Loughlin spoke about other ancillary facilities. I am pleased to confirm that the allocation for 2025 is €25 million, which is a 60% year-on-year increase in funding. That will be for upgrading of stations and terminals across the country to make sure they are more accessible for people. Members will be aware that my Department and its agencies are progressively working to make our public transport network more accessible, but first of all by ensuring that new services and infrastructure are accessible. Design is critically important. The new routes that are being designed for BusConnects are all being designed with maximum accessibility. We must do a fair bit of work on the retrofitting of existing facilities. Route planning now is absolutely on an accessible-for-all basis.
Newer systems, such as the Luas, are fully accessible and all new buses purchased by the NTA are fully accessible. The new DART+ carriages, which I have mentioned already, will have an automated ramp and I assure the House the Government is committed to making public transport more accessible in line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and in the forthcoming national disability strategy, which is really important and will be published shortly.
The past few years have seen significant investment to create a strategic public transport network and there have been several positive developments to date. An Bord Pleanála has approved 11 of the 12 core bus corridors as part of BusConnects Dublin. The first of these corridors will start construction in Dublin later this year, providing for faster and more reliable bus services. An oral hearing was heard on MetroLink's planning application last year. A significant milestone was reached with the appointment of a very experienced programme director to deliver the project.
The Seanad will note work is ongoing to expand light rail. Our planning application for the Luas extension to Finglas was submitted to An Bord Pleanála just last November. In relation to heavy rail, conditional and full planning approval was provided in 2024 by An Bord Pleanála for DART+ West and DART+ South West projects, respectively. Work is now ongoing to bring these projects to the next stage.
A planning application was also lodged for DART+ Coastal North last year and it is on this northern line from Dublin to Drogheda - I see Senator Comyn is here as well - that the public will get to experience the first element of the DART+ programme with the new battery-powered electric DART carriages, which are currently undergoing testing and will enter into service next year. They will also be fully accessible and battery charged as well and will run along the northern commuter line.
Outside Dublin, we are also investing heavily in our rail network. Works on the Cork area commuter rail programme are well under way, with a new through platform at Kent Station expected to open in the coming weeks. Double tracking and resignalling work is ongoing, all of which will enable the Cork commuter services to expand over the coming years. Galway's Ceannt train station is now being redeveloped. I visited that last year and there was good cross-department co-operation on that. It is being redeveloped and is scheduled to be completed next year.
A new train station is under construction in Waterford, which is a really significant development for Waterford along with the new bridge there and the moving of the train station in Waterford. That is part of a series of station works across the country. I am also pleased to say planning permission was granted last year for works on Oranmore station, which provides for a passing loop at the existing station and a second platform.
In conclusion, last year my Department, together with the Department for Infrastructure in the North of Ireland, published the final report of the all-island strategic rail review. This review envisages hourly train frequencies between cities and the future electrification of intercity lines. Lots of good work is happening and there is lots more to do in that space. There is investment in place. There will be a national development plan review to secure additional funding and we will look for Senators' support on that and not just on the projects in their own areas like both Senators who have spoken already put on the floor of the House. Each and every Senator and the area in which he or she lives will have transport projects that Members will want to see advanced, commenced or completed.
The whole focus of this year and the next five years of this Government is on delivery. It is delivery on transport and on all of the Departments the Government is working through. Specifically, the next five years have the potential to be transformational for public transport in this country and we have to work hard together to make sure we deliver it.
First, I welcome the Minister to the House and congratulate him on his appointment as Minister for Transport. Those who are new here may not be familiar with Private Members' business. This is a Fianna Fáil item and I congratulate their Senators for putting it forward.
None of this is new. This has been rehearsed two or three times in the Seanad and I will share some of that with Members in a moment. Let us forget about all the points where they set out phrases like "agrees to do" and "notes that"; let us get to the real detail. The real detail is in 11 key points the Senators have identified in their asks where they call on the Minister on a number of issues. While there are 11 key asks, I will only talk about three of them.
One is the introduction of transport policing, the next is the full implementation of the recommendations of the all-island strategic rail review, which is very important and the third is to reinstate the western rail corridor. I will start with policing because that is a really important issue. I remind Members on the opposite side of the House in Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and then the Green Party that there was a motion before them in the names of Senators Victor Boyhan, that is, myself, Michael McDowell and Sharon Keogan on 28 October 2021. It simply asked to insert the following and call on the Government to collaborate with an Garda Síochána, the NTA and public transport stakeholders to establish a dedicated transport police unit on the public transport network. That was simple. There was a roll-call vote and it was opposed. Times move on and times change so I want to accept there is a big change of heart. I welcome that.
It is with some regret that I note the Minister has used his ten minutes so he will not even have an opportunity in this Private Members' motion to come back and share some thoughts but we can communicate outside of here. The Minister has spent his time on it. Senator O'Loughlin will have an opportunity but the dedicated ten minutes has now been used.
If another one is put down I will come back.
Can I just point out to Senators that the Minister is entitled to-----
To come back.
-----indicate whenever he wants to.
Absolutely.
Often, the Minister has to leave and it is important the Minister give his contribution.
Absolutely. I have no difficulty with that and I said that. The Minister is one to engage and I am always happy to engage with him. I acknowledge his co-operation and engagement, which has never been a problem.
I am deeply concerned that the front-line staff and the passengers on all our public transport modes are exposed to the threats of sexual assault and aggressive drunken behaviour on the public transport network. Open drug taking, dealing and fighting should not have to be encountered by anyone. Our public transport should be safe to go on for anybody at any age at any time.
There are reports of blocked toilets and people shooting up drugs in our trains. Going west the other day, someone experienced an issue and told me about it. I have spoken to the general secretary of the National Bus and Rail Union, Dermot O'Leary, on numerous occasions and he has said enough is enough for his staff. He has been a strong advocate for safer travel for his staff and for the public. We want zero tolerance for crime on our transport systems and that is important.
I reiterate, as I did then, a call for a dedicated, fully resourced public transport police. I note that in the Minister's contribution today, he talked about the NTA and how that would require legislation. I also note our able and capable Minister for Justice last week talked about a policing service and stated "unless they have the powers to arrest, it's not really a functioning or effective transport police". As the Minister indicated, we can change the powers in respect of the NTA but I also wanted to share with him that during the election campaign, An Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, was reported as stating "Garda management can no longer stand in the way of a dedicated transport police." I share his concerns and have spoken to him about it. I believe, today, that he believes there should be an extension of An Garda Síochána, not an extension of the NTA or new powers for the NTA that give full powers of arrest.
If you go to the UK, just one country, they have a dedicated transport police, which is part of the metropolitan police force. That is the model we should look at. We should not close any option off. That is what I am saying. Please keep that open - that is all I ask. It is a matter for the Government, ultimately, but there is a big difference between authorised officers under the NTA as opposed to a dedicated Garda transport policing division.
I share the views of the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, and he will have another opportunity to outline his view but I share his view. I share the view of the general secretary of the transport workers' union and I also share and support the view of the Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, in relation to these matters. That is an important issue to deal with.
The all-island strategic rail review is an important issue. There is vision and there are goals and objections. Clearly, we want better transport as the Minister says. Transport is a game changer. That is important. I had a look at this today in terms of the strategy of the all-island strategic transport review. There are key goals and key objectives and I ask the Minister to prioritise them. The Minister might come back to the House, and indeed, I might bring a Commencement matter for his attention, so we could set out the key goals and key objectives and let us move on. The Minister talks about an agenda for change for the next five years. Let us start that agenda for change this year in the first 12 months.
The Minister is welcome. I thank my colleagues in Fianna Fáil for tabling this Private Members' motion this afternoon on the very important area of transport. It is clear that there has been considerable investment over the years and the decades but many more projects need to be brought to fruition. It is important that we see progress not only on delivery but also in terms of the planning. For those that have not been delivered, there needs to be at least a route and a plan towards their delivery.
The Minister mentioned the welcome investment in Ceannt station, Galway, which will be a game changer in the delivery of improved rail services for the city and the region. Hopefully it can allow for the expansion of the use of rail, including the commuter services from Oranmore into Galway city. I know there will be a passing loop at Oranmore station, but we need to consider doubling the track into the city and from Athenry into Oranmore to allow for commuter rail and to allow for the possible creation of commuter rail stations at various locations between Oranmore and the city. It would complement the existing services from Limerick and Ennis into Galway city.
The motion mentions the reinstatement of the western rail corridor, of which I am a big supporter. I acknowledge the work of West on Track over the years in supporting work on the western rail corridor. It is fair to say there is now a strong commitment to the reopening of the track from Athenry to Claremorris and the protection of the line on to Sligo. We need to see actual works on that. We have seen the investment in Foynes and the physical work that has taken place. We need to see machinery on the ground of that old railway line and we need to see the investment. It is an obvious project. There has been too much debate about greenways versus railway. It is now clear that this needs to be used to reopen the railway line and to have the commuter service along with facilities for park and ride at Tuam, Claremorris and elsewhere to free up the roads and provide a much more pleasant journey for commuters into Galway city than they have at present and also to link up with the Limerick line. I am fully supportive of that project.
The Gluas light rail or very light rail for Galway has been mentioned. I know there was a commitment relating to a feasibility study which has indicated that there are possibilities there. I am not sure if that has crossed the Minister's desk yet. Perhaps it is something he will be looking at. There are certain models in Coventry, for example, and there is capacity to look at very light rail between Oranmore and Galway and Barna and vice versa.
I wish to speak about BusConnects and local bus services. Obviously, there are BusConnects plans for Galway. We have had some investment in bus lanes over the years. I know that the Dublin Road scheme has gone to and been approved by An Bord Pleanála. I hope to see progress on that. It will involve some disruption during construction but the project will be very important in improving the bus capacity in Galway. If the buses are frequent, reliable and comfortable for passengers, they will be used. Comfort also includes proper bus shelters, which we have seen in certain areas in towns, but much more could be done across the country. Every town and village that has a main route should have the comfort of a bus shelter. The local authorities need to be funded and the NTA needs to assist in that provision. There are 12 bus shelters across County Galway which are very welcome. Most of them are in place now. We need to see that replicated every year to make the experience more pleasant for commuters.
There has been investment in the Local Link service. It is very welcome to have that service reliable. Again, there is no shortage of possible additions to routes that could be looked at. It would be very important in rural communities for people who do not drive or who maybe can drive but do not want to drive and want to be able to socialise. There are services for which there is demand but which are very infrequent. If that could be improved in conjunction with initiatives relating to school runs and things like that so that those buses are used throughout the day, that would be very welcome.
People might say it is counterintuitive to talk about the Galway city ring road, but the Galway city ring road is pivotal in freeing up capacity in Galway city for public transport needs. As long as cars that do not need and do not want to go through the city are going through the city, we will not have the capacity needed to allow for proper public transport networks and everything else that is needed, such as pedestrianisation, improved cycle lanes, improved cycling capacity and public transport routes within the city. I think that would be absolutely vital. I know that project is still with An Bord Pleanála. I know that there has been a commitment from both Government parties, which is very welcome. It is something I would like to see progressed. As I have often said at doors and on radio, if we get planning permission, I am confident that we will build the Galway city ring road but we cannot build anything without planning permission. I certainly hope to see progress on that over the course of this year.
I am sharing time with Senator Andrews.
Is that agreed? Agreed.
It is lovely to have the Minister here today. Good evening to him. Since we are talking about transport and transport infrastructure, I want to address a really urgent concern for the people of north Cork and Kerry, namely, the dangerous condition of the N72. I am talking particularly about the stretch between Cullen and Clonbanin. I have been contacted by numerous locals who have had burst tyres and other serious vehicle damage on the road. While quite a bit of funding was allocated this year to road improvements in the constituency of Cork North-West, the N72 stretch was left out. The Cullen to Rathmore section was resurfaced in 2024 but the works stopped due to funding shortages. In a statement last year, the Department of Transport cited inflation, increased material costs and land acquisition expenses as some of the reasons for the postponement. However, we must be clear that postponement is just another word for delay, and on roads like this it is just a serious accident, possibly a fatal accident, waiting to happen.
That brings me to the wider issue of what we are talking about which is transport connectivity. Today we are discussing a motion which calls for improvements and we can all agree that there have to be improvements in public transport services. However, roads also need to be improved because buses and other public transport cannot function properly if road conditions are so poor. I am calling on Transport Infrastructure Ireland and the Department of Transport to take immediate action on this issue. I urge the Minister to ensure that the N72 stretch from Cullen to Clonbanin is resurfaced as a matter of urgency because we cannot wait for a tragedy to happen and it is only a matter of time.
I congratulate the Minister on his new position. There are a lot of moving parts to it, literally. I wish him the best of luck in that.
I do not believe the Minister mentioned the extension of light rail down to the Irish Glass Bottle site. Obviously, he knows about the Irish Glass Bottle site extensively. I know his predecessor put back the Luas, the light rail, down to the Irish Glass Bottle site by over ten years, which will have a huge impact on the entire development. The development will be finished and occupied by then, with 7,000 to 10,000 residents living there. It is a major concern to the existing community and also for the new people moving in that there is no light rail and that the previous Minister extended the timeline for that. It would be very helpful to let residents know and to shorten the timeline for the development of the light rail down to the Irish Glass Bottle site. It will be a fantastic site. We already know there will not be car parking spaces and therefore there needs to be public transport. I cannot understand why that decision was taken to push out the delivery of light rail down to the Irish Glass Bottle site.
Senator Boyhan spoke about his concern about public safety on the DART and the Luas. We all know how menacing it feels to be on the Luas or DART, particularly for older people. Many parents do not want their children to go on the Luas or DART at any time of day.
Older people are afraid to travel out and visit their friends along that route because of the concerns they have. There has to be teeth to any measures taken to improve security. I wish the Minister the best of luck in his new role.
Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. I congratulate Darragh. It is the first time I have had an opportunity to publicly congratulate him. He was a fantastic Minister to serve under in the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and I wish him all the best in his new role.
I want to make a couple of quick points. I support the motion. The one concern the Green Party and I would have is that the 2:1 ratio split for public transport, cycling and walking that had been committed to in Our Shared Future, the previous programme for Government, does not seem to be overt in this programme for Government. While the Government reiterates its commitment to public transport, I would be concerned, particularly when one of the Minister's ministerial colleagues is saying people want tar when we talk about the local and regional roads programme. There was no decrease in the local regional roads programme from previous years, and the then Minister, Eamon Ryan, kept that on a positive trajectory over his time in office. Yet, this motion acknowledges that direction of travel, including the mode of travel put forward by the Green Party. I hope the Minister stays with that commitment. He has spoken about a transformational change and shift in public transport over his tenure, and I hope he will keep that, because what people want are safer routes to school, cleaner and more vibrant towns and cities and the ability to feel safe in urban and rural areas.
The commitment that was made by the three parties in the previous Government that led to a massive boon in the uptake of public transport, the reduction of fares and those under nine being able to use it for free has been hugely significant. That is what people are looking for. People in my own area feel that the extra Local Link routes committed to under Connecting Ireland have been transformative. They have brought rural communities together. People are getting to hospital appointments, education and training. It has made an immense difference.
In my own home city of Kilkenny, we have a road project that we want progressed, namely, the completion of the ring road in Kilkenny city. It has been a project I have been campaigning on for more than 20 years. It has been blocked politically for various reasons, when it was more convenient to plough a road through the historic urban core of the city. Now, calls are growing louder as the city expands. Thanks to the funding the Minister put in under Housing for All, the city is expanding and there is a lot more housing on the periphery of the city. To keep the city vibrant and to keep its heart and core alive, the only option is to take those trucks and HGVs out of the older parts of the city. I raise the commitment from Kilkenny County Council that it continues to progress the project, because a lot of the delays have been of its own making, but I would welcome the Minister's commitment to support whatever trajectory that heads on. It is vitally important the Kilkenny city ring road completes that loop around the city.
Again, I hope that the spending and the trajectory in public transport, cycling and walking the Minister has talked about continues, because it has led to very positive outcomes in our towns and cities. Perhaps I will bring this to a Minister at a later date, but we need to look at the integration of rural public transport services with the Local Link services in our towns and cities. It is a piece of work I was involved in with Kilkenny Leader Partnership and the Ring a Link demand-responsive transport service we had running very successfully for the past 20 years. There are proposals regarding that which I think could be really innovative and transformative in making the connection between the Local Link services and how they fit in with the roll-out of the broader town bus services.
I wish Darragh all the best and continued success in his new role.
Déanaim comhghairdeas leis an Aire. I wish him luck in his new role. I am sure he will have a transformative effect on all matters related to transport.
Public transport is essential for our economic, social and environmental progress. It is critically important. The importance this Government places on it is a budget of almost €4 billion, almost half of which is in public transport. That is very important, not just in urban areas but, as has been enunciated by other colleagues, in rural areas too. The social connectivity, employment, tourism and economic opportunities it creates are immense. Therefore, this motion is an important one. I am glad there will be support from across the House.
It would be disappointing if the record of the House were to reflect the narrative that had been articulated by Senator Boyhan, which seemed to indicate or paint a picture that the Fianna Fáil group is somehow coming new to this support for a public transport police. As the Minister indicated in his opening comments, it is an issue we, as a party, have been very concerned about for quite a while. In fact, as the Minister also indicated, the Dublin parliamentary party group took its concerns, not just the anecdotal stuff we hear, and actually conducted a public sentiment survey. We had more than 1,300 respondents to that survey. The survey confirmed what we knew anecdotally, that 93% of the respondents had witnessed antisocial behaviour and 78% of respondents supported a dedicated transport police. It is something we engaged with. As the Senator suggested, we met with all stakeholders, namely, the NBRU, SIPTU, Irish Rail, Dublin Bus and Transdev. We met with the Garda Commissioner, assistant commissioner and Department officials because we wanted a proposal that would gain popular and political support. I am delighted the Senator acknowledged the Taoiseach's support for our proposal, the inclusion of our proposal in the Fianna Fáil manifesto and its manifestation in the programme for Government.
I am delighted the Minister is here and is able to confirm to the House that it is his intention to bring forward legislation. I would appreciate it if, when he gets a chance to respond, he would indicate what timeframe his Department will be working to on that issue. The issue of safety is a real concern for the people who work in our public transportation who provide vital public transportation services to allow other workers to get to work and for those of us who are not working to go about, enjoy and engage in recreational activities. It is very important it is safe for those who work on it and travel on it. We know from our engagement with the public transport service providers that, unfortunately, public transportation is not as safe as we all want it to be. We know there are hundreds of complaints every month and that millions have been spent on improving public transport safety. We also know that there are 11 CCTV cameras on every Dublin Bus, which act as a form of active surveillance.
I also congratulate Dublin Bus, which engaged with us. It commenced a pilot project that ran for 20 weeks at the end of last year on foot of our engagement and work with it. That pilot project was supported by the unions such as SIPTU, which was very important because the pilot project proved that it increased public sentiment and confidence in the safety of using buses and public transportation. We need to build on it. I believe the Minister will build on that. I believe his proposal that he will bring forward in legislation to establish a public transport policing function is going to work because it is what the Garda has said it recommends and what the public transport service providers have said is needed. The Minister will have our support on that.
I raise one other issue. The previous Government deserves credit for making public transportation more affordable. We are all very conscious of cost-of-living increases, but in terms of the discounts, senior citizens enjoy free transportation, something which we introduced and long protected, and the 50% reduction for young travellers has been very important for young people. I would like the Government to try to build on that and expand it into the future. I wish the Minister well and thank him for being here today.
The Minister of State, Deputy Buttimer, will be taking over this section. It is not because Senator McDowell rose to his feet now-----
Do not worry, I will not take any offence.
Do not, please. Here he is.
I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Buttimer, to the Chamber and congratulate him on his appointment. I welcome him back to this House to which he has given such great service over the years.
I listened to Senator Clifford-Lee speaking about the MetroLink. She made the point, and is possibly correct, that from the point of view of Swords, which is an area in her would-be constituency, it could be transformative. I put on record what has happened to date. To date, we have spent over €300 million planning this project in its various different forms. That is a lot of money. In 2018, the MetroLink was costed at €3 billion and there was to be a 25-station link from Swords to Sandyford. A much smaller project which will run to Ranelagh, near where I live, is now pencilled in at €9.5 billion and the State more recently has estimated that this €9.5 billion could be of the order of €11.9 billion, close on €12 billion. Two independent bodies, namely, JASPERS and the major projects advisory group, as well as the Committee of Public Accounts, have expressed fears that the MetroLink project could cost up to €20 billion. That is a lot of money in anybody's book. The point I want to make is that it will probably take seven to ten years to be built, no matter what. That is €20 billion over those seven to ten years. However, we also have to take into account that this €20 billion the State is being asked to invest in this single line from Swords to Dartmouth Square in Ranelagh is going to absorb nearly all the available funding for other public transport projects in Dublin. I made the point to the oral hearing of An Bord Pleanála and I reiterate it here now that even though the Government seems to be committed in its programme to Government to proceeding with this particular MetroLink project, that €20 billion, which I think it will eventually cost the taxpayer, is being earmarked for that project when it could have provided a network of very light rail surface transport, like the Luas system to Finglas which is now proposed, right across Dublin to all of its suburbs, such as Lucan. Senator Andrews mentioned the Irish Glass Bottle site in Ringsend. All of Dublin could have a comprehensive network for the order of €12 billion to €15 billion if we abandoned the very heavy construction criteria which were used by the engineers when the cross-city Luas was put in place. I just want to sound this warning. My public life will be well over by the time any passenger alights in Swords for this transformative-----
Not according to the newspapers.
-----for this transformative trip to Ranelagh. My public life will be well and truly over by the time that happens.
What about the Áras?
The opportunity cost of going ahead with MetroLink is vast. The things we will not be able to do because we are making that choice are numerous. The huge improvement we could make in the capital's transport system is enormous and it is not going to happen now because all of our money is going to go into this single line from Dartmouth Square in Ranelagh to Swords via the airport. At the oral hearing, Colm McCarthy, an experienced economist, set out the very small difference it will actually make for passengers coming in to Dublin Airport. The amount of time a bus from Dublin Airport takes to get to the city centre will be roughly within three or four minutes of the amount of time it will take MetroLink to deliver passengers into the city centre. Most people do not want to travel from Dublin Airport to the city centre. They do not want to go to St. Stephen's Green or O'Connell Street or, in particular, to Dartmouth Square in Ranelagh as the terminus of this route. We are not going to proceed now with Luas for Rathfarnham, Churchtown or Lucan. All of those suburbs will have no Luas system because we have made this decision.
I may be the only person who is deeply suspicious of MetroLink. I remain deeply suspicious of it because I regard this single line as a vast money pit and I do not believe it will be "transformative", to use Senator Clifford-Lee's word, of public transport in this city. I do not believe it will have that effect. It will have a very marginal effect and it will be vastly expensive.
It is great to speak today on the Private Members' motion and I thank my colleagues in Fine Gael for tabling it.
I have four topics to speak on and I will be quick. When a representative of the Department of Transport is in the Chamber, it is too important not to cover as much as possible. I represent County Meath. My fellow Senators will never guess what I want to talk about relating to County Meath. What is the elephant in the room? It is the Navan rail line. I bet they have not heard that one before. County Meath had a population of 230,000 people according to the most recent census, carried out in 2022. I have no doubt the current figure is way more than that. Only this morning, my sister-in-law texted me from the bus she got at 5.30 a.m. from Navan. It was full by 5.40 a.m. at the Johnstown stop, which is just outside Navan. This is to get in work in Dublin. Never mind that the bus also has to stop at Dalgan Park and Garlow Cross before it sets off on its journey to Dublin. I have no doubt it had to leave people behind. Does the Minister of State know that the people of Meath spend more time commuting to Dublin than those in any other county in Ireland? We have buses at capacity at peak times, we have the M3, which is basically a carpark at Blanchardstown in the mornings, and yet we have over 3,500 people per day leaving Navan, never mind all the other towns, to get to Dublin to work. This does not include the people leaving for hospital appointments, college or university. We are desperate for this rail line in Navan. When the public consultation was released on this two years ago, over 4,000 responses were sent in, such is the want for this in our county. This project was promised 20 years ago and many people bought their homes in Navan in good faith, expecting a train line. Then nothing.
Moving forward from the 1850s when we actually had a train line in Navan to now, it is only 175 years later and we learn we are going to get the train. Consultants have been appointed and we are on our way - choo-choo. I was informed at a meeting with Iarnród Éireann that a route will be identified by the end of this year and decided upon by next year, with public consultation as part of the process. However, I feel like I am watching a kettle that is never going to boil. Such is the frustration of people in Meath that many of them do not think it will ever actually happen. Can we blame them, in fairness? Will the Minister of State guarantee that this project will be completed? Will he assure us that when it is completed, it will be within budget? If he can give me those answers, thousands of people in Meath will be very happy today.
The next issue I will mention is that of fairer fares, which my Fianna Fáil colleagues mentioned previously. I was glad the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, said he was hoping to see it sped up. We need more than hoping to see it sped up. We were promised this would be done by the end of this first quarter and I hope we will see it done. My colleague in Meath East, Councillor Sharon Tolan, has put a lot of work into this and I would like to see it happen as soon as possible.
My next topic is the bus stops. In Meath, we get €500,000 a year to construct bus stops.
That is €500,000 for the whole county. With the average bus shelter costing approximately €30,000, this creates 16 shelters for the entire county. Remember that we have the most commuters of any county outside of Dublin. We are getting just €500,000 for bus stops. If we are encouraging people to use public transport, we need to have covered shelters in as many places as possible-----
The OPW can get the Senator very cheap ones.
-----and we need people to stand safely while waiting for the bus. I encourage the Minister of State to seek extra funding for the provision of bus stops, particularly in smaller villages in Meath West.
I wish to discuss our roads. I thank the Minister and Department of Transport for the €26 million that they recently provided to Meath for regional and local roads. However, it seems that we have a significant problem with potholes. In 2024 alone, Meath County Council paid out €55,000 in compensation for cars because of potholes, an increase of €13,000 on the previous year. What is even more concerning is that we paid out €530,000 for public liability claims in 2023. There were 290 claims, of which 270 were for potholes and footpaths. The road I have been living on for approximately 15 years has never been resurfaced in that time. Three times a year, craters open up on the road. The council comes out and fills these large potholes, but it is obvious to me that rural roads need greater funding and attention. Right now, most of our reporting on roads is done from councillors and public to the council, but perhaps we need a roads safety manager whose job it is to identify roads with problems and link in with the engineers. I am sure we will be delighted to set up such a pilot scheme in Meath.
I thank the Minister of State for attending and look forward to hearing his thoughts on all these matters.
I welcome the Minister of State to the Seanad and look forward to working with him.
This debate is on one of my pet subjects, specialising in transport as I do because I come from east Galway where we have many transport issues. I have written them down so that I do not forget any of them. I was delighted to see that we have focused on fairer fares in this motion because if one travels one way from Athenry to Galway, it is €5.10. We are trying to take cars off the road. It is not a fair fare. We look after people in Dublin and its commuter belt but we have problems in Galway because of the capacity of our transport infrastructure, not having a road around the city and not having park-and-ride facilities.
It is difficult to believe that the gates at the railway station in Athenry are down for four hours a day because of passing trains. We have businesses locked out for four hours and ten minutes each day. There is a solution, namely, a passing loop like in Oranmore. The funding for that loop from the previous Government was welcome, but we need a passing loop in Athenry to prevent our businesses being locked out.
I wish to focus on park-and-ride hubs. While we do not have a ring road around Galway city yet, we need to put in place operational methods to support people in accessing the city while also letting the city breathe by not clogging it up. The city needs to breathe. People need to be able to travel in and out for their hospital appointments without having to leave an extra hour ahead in case they get stuck in traffic. If we had a park-and-ride facility in Gort, Athenry or Headford where people could rely on efficient and flexible public transport, it would really work. There is enough of a shoulder on the M6 to allow people to be brought in and out from Athenry and enabling that swift movement of people. My colleague and the Minister of State's colleague, Senator Kyne, spoke about how the city was choking. Most of the traffic comes from the east. Senator Curley, Senator Murphy and I have a responsibility to ensure that we propose workable solutions to the Minister of State. The park-and-ride option is a workable solution.
We are grateful to the people of Cork for sharing Bus Éireann with us when it does its daily routes from Cork to Galway. By the time the bus gets to Gort, there are approximately ten spaces left on it. By the time it gets to Ardrahan and Senator Murphy's area, there are approximately two seats left on it. By the time it gets to Kilcolgan, it is full. By the time it gets to Oranmore, there is no capacity whatsoever on it. It is an efficient, well-run and much-needed service, but we need more capacity on it. If Bus Éireann ran a double-decker or there was a change in Limerick that facilitated more capacity, it would be welcome. Running another service from Limerick is another solution. A number of young people who attend day services are dependent on the bus. Unfortunately, if they cannot get a seat on it by the time it reaches Ardrahan, they do not get to the day service.
Likewise, we do not have a PSO offering from Galway to Loughrea. In the olden days - when I say "olden days", I mean the last number of years - we used to have a PSO service from Galway to Dublin. It used to go through Craughwell, Athenry and Loughrea and then on to Aughrim and Ballinasloe. Where we have centres of education and a lack of housing, including on the routes to Limerick, Galway and Athlone, we need to look at having a PSO service where we do not have transport infrastructure or rail currently. Bus Éireann's PSO service from Cork was withdrawn a number of years ago, my sources tell me, and now we have three service providers, so do not tell me it is about competition. The NTA needs to set down the criteria for servicing our communities outside Dublin. I think that is one of them.
I wish to refer to e-charging for Local Link services. We have great Local Link services in Galway and are very pleased with them. They provide phenomenal support. One of our best providers has approximately 15 of the routes. He comes out to Portumna, which is a great hub for Local Link services. He goes to Ballinasloe and Loughrea and even across the bridge to Nenagh in Tipperary. However, he cannot go green because we do not have the three-phase electricity. It is at the Garda station. If we could connect to the three-phase electricity and put in that e-charger, he could run his green buses.
I am sharing time with Senator Tully.
I welcome the Minister of State. I raise an issue of importance to the people of Limerick and Cork and all who travel between them, namely, the urgent need to address the dangers of the N20. For far too long, this road has been a death trap. It is one of the most dangerous routes in the country, with an appalling record of serious injuries and fatalities. Between 2016 and 2022, at least 26 people lost their lives on the N20 and hundreds or more were seriously injured. A collision on this road is four times more likely to be fatal than on any other road in Ireland. These are not just statistics. Behind every number is a person, a loved one taken too soon, a family devastated and a community in mourning. Too many families in Limerick, Cork and across the rest of Munster have suffered unbearable loss because this road is simply not fit for purpose.
The N20 carries heavy traffic volumes, including significant numbers of HGVs, yet it remains largely a single-lane carriageway with dangerous junctions, poor sightlines and a lack of safe overtaking opportunities. Every day, thousands of commuters and businesses rely on this road and, every day, they put their lives at risk. The solution is clear - the long-promised M20 motorway must be delivered. We have been hearing about this project for over 20 years, yet nothing has materialised. Delays, excuses and endless reviews have left this road among the most dangerous. Every day this project is stalled is another day that families take their lives in their hands simply by commuting to work, school or hospital appointments. Cork and Limerick are the second- and third-largest cities, yet they are still connected by a road that belongs in another era.
This is not just about an economic benefit, although the benefits of a proper motorway connection between these key cities is undeniable. This is about safety and preventing more tragedies on a road which has already claimed too many. I call for a clear and binding timeline for the M20 project. There cannot be any more delays or uncertainty. I call on the Minister to invest in immediate safety improvements on the N20, including better junctions, speed enforcement and overtaking lanes, and to ensure that funding for this project is ring-fenced so it is not sacrificed for political convenience. The people of Limerick, Cork and Munster deserve safe modern infrastructure. They deserve a road that protects lives rather than endangers them. Let us ensure the N20 no longer makes the headlines for tragic reasons but instead becomes a symbol of progress, safety and responsible planning.
I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Buttimer. When we speak about public transport Cavan does not have a rail service and I will come to this later. This means we are dependent on a bus service. There is a regular hourly bus service to Dublin every day coming from Donegal and through Cavan and Meath and on to Dublin. I have raised this issue on countless occasions and I have received all sorts of promises from the NTA. The capacity on the 109X returning from Dublin to Cavan is a continual problem. People are left standing at bus stops every day on the hourly buses that leave after 3 p.m., 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. and sometimes the later ones also. People could be waiting up to three hours to get a bus service home. Bus drivers have raised this constantly with Bus Éireann, which sends it to the NTA. They all blame each other and nobody does anything about it. I have received promises from the NTA that it would address it and put in extra capacity at peak times. It has done nothing about it. A bus driver told me he had eight seats on his bus for the last stop out of Dublin, which is Blanchardstown, and after eight people got on the next four passengers were a woman and three children. It nearly killed him to have to leave them on the side of the road but there was nothing he could do. Many older people and people with medical conditions take the bus to Connolly Hospital but because it is the last stop out of Dublin they are often left standing there for an hour or sometimes more, and there is no proper covered bus stop for when the weather is cold and wet. If this could be addressed it would be absolutely brilliant.
We have a pretty good Local Link service in Cavan. It is improving all the time and there is always room for more services. One thing people have often asked me is whether there could be more stops in between towns and villages. For example, one service goes from Cavan to Ballinagh and on to Kilnaleck and back again. This is brilliant but people living between the two towns have to go to one or other of them to get the service. There are safe places where the bus could pull in. I have asked the NTA to look at this and it says it has done so and that it has gone to the council. I cannot get an answer out of anyone on whether this can be approved. If it could be approved it would be great. Perhaps at weekends the night-time service could be extended. This might help businesses such as the local pubs as people would have a way to get home.
Due to the lack of rail and a limited bus service we are dependent on our roads. We have approximately 3,000 km of local roads and they are in an atrocious condition. The money coming in is very limited. Last year in one engineering area of roughly 1,000 km of local road only 13 km could be repaired. This was all the funding that was provided. We need ten times this to address it. The roads are deteriorating and disintegrating in front of our eyes.
There was a train service in Cavan and Monaghan but there is none now. Cavan, Monaghan, Donegal, Fermanagh, Tyrone and this area is included in the all-island strategic rail review but it is very late, coming after 2040. It is to connect Armagh to Cavan and down to Mullingar. We really would appreciate a rail service. It was foolish that the one there was closed but, unfortunately, there was no foresight. I ask this to be brought forward as it would be very welcome.
I thank the Minister and the Minister of State for attending today to answer the very serious concerns we all have regarding the public transport system throughout the country. I welcome that the Minister touched on one of my first queries, which is the delay on adding my home town of Drogheda to the Dublin commuter rail pay zone. For years Drogheda and east Meath commuters have been hit with much higher rates than those closer to the capital. It is often double the fare for what is just a few minutes down the track. Being included in the fair fare scheme would significantly reduce travel costs, by up to half in many cases. As we know, commuters, students and all sorts of workers and families are in dire need of some financial relief and this really will go a long way. A start date has been promised many times in the past. The latest was in September last year. I welcome the fact we are hearing it will be imminent as commuters may have already purchased their monthly or annual tickets.
As we are also discussing accessibility, I must say the train station in Drogheda is under serious pressure. The DART+ works are very welcome and I am glad to hear the commencement and completion dates for this Drogheda service are coming along. The hourly Enterprise trains between Dublin and Belfast have been a real bonus but I must say there is a serious lack of parking for commuters at MacBride Station. It is completely full by 6.45 a.m. Laytown, which is the next station, is not really any better. All this does is force people to go back on roads. The town centre location of the railway station in Drogheda means the roads are completely clogged with traffic crossing at peak times. My house on the north side of the town should be a 13-minute car journey from the station. This may happen at 4 a.m. It is also a 42-minute walk. At peak times it can be a 45-minute drive in a car. Once it took me 52 minutes on the bus link. People do not make it on time. It would be faster to walk and probably healthier.
Between the lack of parking spaces and heavy traffic congestion, this is the ideal time to examine the possibility of opening a second railway station for Drogheda, based on the northside of the town. I realise I am being a little bit greedy. Senator Nelson Murray is looking for just one train station while I am looking for two but I ask the Minister of State to bear with me. A second rail station for Drogheda was included in one of the national plans a number of years ago but it was excluded from subsequent plans.
The Minister is very familiar with Drogheda and how it is expanding, and how we really are in need of more infrastructure to go along with the amount of housing. Northern Drogheda will have an extra 20,000 people living there within the next decade. The ideal location for the northside rail station would be adjacent to the port access link road. The second phase involving the construction of a tunnel and overpass is due to begin fairly soon, and the reopening of the rail line would coincide perfectly with the third phase of the port access route. Its location would also assist in routing port traffic and heavy goods vehicles away from the centre of town. It would encourage new users to the port facility, generating new industry and jobs for the locality.
A new IDA Ireland business park is ready to open close to the link road, Drogheda United is planning state-of-the-art football ground, and it would also be the ideal place for a much-needed hotel for Drogheda, our largest one still being used to house international protection applicants and asylum seekers. The location on the northside would open up easy access to the M1 and has the potential for thousands of new rail users from the entire north east and midlands area on a daily basis. It could become a transport hub, serving thousands of commuters, residents and students in south and mid Louth and parts of Meath, as well as tourists to Louth and the Boyne Valley area. During the week I met Brian Hanratty and Kevin Enright of the commuter north rail users group in Drogheda to discuss this possibility. There is huge support from local chambers and business communities throughout the county. I hope this is something that can be seriously looked at as a plan ahead of the third phase of the northern cross route, and that this vital and valuable opportunity is not missed.
I welcome the Minister of State and thank him for joining us today for this important discussion. I appreciate his time. I want to highlight a number of matters critical for us in Limerick. It was music to my ears earlier to hear the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, commit to the next five years being dedicated to delivery.
As a Limerick woman, I am pleased to tell Senators we have ambitious and worthy plans to improve our public transport and connectivity across Limerick and the mid-west. We have worked on these in a consultative way with stakeholders, public representatives and our colleagues in the council chamber over recent years and we are very anxious for the rubber to hit the road and to move forward with delivery on these plans.
I will just highlight two pertinent ones to the Minister of State today. The first is the matter of Limerick BusConnects. I acknowledge the important role the NTA has played in funding the improvement to Limerick's O'Connell Street project. This concerns phase 1 of upgrades to the premier route through Limerick city centre, where we are undertaking much-needed works to facilitate the greater frequency of buses envisaged under Limerick BusConnects phase 1. This work has now been completed. We look forward locally to the councillors and the Limerick local authority delivering on phase 2 of these important works to facilitate the delivery of those buses under the Limerick BusConnects project.
I must highlight, however, that there is much frustration felt locally that, during the consultation with the NTA on the plan for Limerick BusConnects, a very important local focal point for employment and an important economic area, the Annacotty Business Park, was omitted from this critical public transport plan for Limerick. Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of the Limerick Chamber, other business representative bodies and, indeed, many councillors at the time to have the business park included, the 3,000 workers commuting daily to the Annacotty Business Park, which is a stone's throw from the IDA national technology park in Castletroy, several educational sites, housing and important road networks, has been omitted from this plan. I put it to the NTA consultants myself that it is vitally needed. It is as plain as the nose on your face that the people working in this business park should have access to public transport as one of their options to get to and from work daily. Equally, the businesses based in the business park, which are predominantly local, Irish-owned Limerick businesses, are actually constricted in their ability to expand their facilities due to our planning regulations which insist it is necessary to have a particular number of car parking spaces where there are no public transport links. This omission, therefore, which I have flagged previously and which I am committed to continuing to raise during my term in the Seanad, is putting our local business park, the Annacotty Business Park, consisting predominantly of Irish-owned Limerick businesses, at a disadvantage compared with other business parks and locations for employment in the Limerick metropolitan area. It is an issue I am passionate about seeing rectified.
The other issue I raise with the Minister of State concerns some critical road infrastructure we require in Limerick. I am, of course, thinking of the Foynes to Limerick road. It has been planned and approved and we urgently need to see it advanced and delivered. It is a vital infrastructure for the Port of Foynes. The port requires this infrastructure, along with the reopening of the Foynes to Limerick railway link for freight, to facilitate the retention of its TEN-T status and to facilitate the development of something we in the mid-west have great ambitions for, namely, the delivery of floating offshore wind generation from the Port of Foynes. It will also allow us to make better use of the increased public transport services being delivered through Local Link and allow our important commuter towns in County Limerick to flourish and develop as we would like them to. I flag this vital infrastructure as something we need to see advanced delivery of. There is talk of not commencing the project, despite it having received its planning approval, until 2026. I would like to discuss further with the Minister of State and his Department why this is the case.
I acknowledge the support of the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, for development in Limerick during the previous term when he was the Minister for housing. We look forward to welcoming him to Limerick very soon for the signing of the contract for the appointment of the new contractors to the Coonagh to Knockalisheen road. This is critical local road infrastructure that will open the whole of the north side of the city for further housing development and for what we hope will be the development of economic opportunities and, of course, critically, it will open the area of Moyross, linking it better into Limerick city and giving it better cycling, walking and road connectivity into the city and beyond onto the motorway network. I acknowledge this aspect and say this investment is very welcome.
Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as ucht a bheith anseo don ábhar thar a bheith tábhachtach seo. When it comes to public transport, I think it is quite clear that the west has been completely left behind for many years. One only has to look at the 2021 decision by the NTA to completely wipe from the map the X20 and 20 Bus Éireann route from Galway to Dublin. The optics of that decision to wipe out the biggest city and the third biggest city from having any public transport provided by the State whatsoever was catastrophic. It did not show the same policy focus as what we are trying to achieve, which is trying to get people onto public transport. It was an awful decision. It took three years to get back any bus from Galway to Loughrea after 6 p.m. This meant it was catastrophic for any students commuting to college, and their parents, at a time when we have such a shortage of housing.
As has been outlined in the briefing document, transport is a key component of economic prosperity in any region. In the west, we have been designated as a region in decline because we have just 71% of the average EU GDP. There are practical steps we can take to address this situation at speed, including even something as simple as bus shelters. If we take Loughrea town, my hometown, as an example, it is very linear, stretching almost 2 km from one end to the other. We have one bus stop in the middle of the town. For anybody with a disability or an elderly person with mobility issues, trying to access their local bus is extremely difficult. There are small steps, like introducing extra bus shelters and bus stops, that could be brought in that would increase the number of people using public transport at a time when we have a massive traffic crisis in Galway city.
On this topic too, we really need to see increased train capacity from Ballinasloe to Loughrea and on to Galway city. Senator Rabbitte and Deputy Dolan have both mentioned this issue at different times. We have seen people in our constituency passing out on dangerously overcrowded train carriages. This issue needs to be addressed urgently. Additionally, regarding the passing loop in Oranmore, it took three years just to get that project through the planning permission phase. We need to speed up our processes massively. We need to see this delivered at speed if we can at all.
I would also welcome a commitment that the Athenry to Claremorris railway line will go to the construction phase as soon as possible. Taking the examples of students going to college or the fact we have the centre of excellence for cancer care in Galway for people in the west and mid-west, it would be greatly beneficial for those people to be able to hop on a train and access the services they need. We have a traffic crisis in Galway city, as I said. We are taking time from people's lives. Day after day, they are spending time sitting in traffic during car journey after car journey and delay after delay when they could be doing so much more. This issue just needs to be addressed.
While we are on this topic, I have seen commentary in the media recently that the rail project will include just Athenry to Claremorris and that is it. We need to finish this project by bringing it to Sligo. We need to be ambitious. We have the two biggest urban centres in all of Connacht in Galway and Sligo and we need to connect them by rail. It is very simple. While we are at it, I ask the Minister of State to be ambitious. I ask him to plan to finish the job and extend the rail line up to Donegal, to Letterkenny and on to Derry, so the entire island will be truly interconnected by rail. This would show real ambition to get people out of cars and into trains so we can reduce carbon emissions across the country. We have a climate crisis and we need to take it seriously. I implore the Minister of State to look at this issue.
I am sharing time with Senator Cosgrove.
Is that agreed? Agreed.
I welcome the Minister of State to the House. It is good to see him. I wish to talk about public transport in County Cork and Cork city in particular. I raise the issue of the need for the light rail project to progress in Cork city. This is something even the Taoiseach spoke about recently in regard to it needing to be a priority for Cork. We really need to see action on the project. The Cork Chamber will agree with me too on the issue of connectivity in Cork and the need to improve it. There is certainly a need to improve connectivity between the city and the airport as well in terms of options for services to promote tourism and to make things easier to allow people to get to the airport, particularly for business purposes.
Like many other cities, Cork is impacted by congestion.
It is becoming a bit of a vicious circle in Cork. People are being pushed into cars because the bus service is not reliable and then we have parking and congestion issues. I will mention the 214 bus in particular which stops beside where I live in Wilton. It is extremely unreliable. I know the route is being looked at, as is the 220 route in Cork, in relation to ghost buses. A student in Munster Technological University, MTU, launched an app in recent weeks - his name is Sasha Mitichkin - called no show bus tracker. It is feeding the data to Bus Éireann. Young people in particular are deeply affected by this.
It is also worth noting that the cost of the Bus Éireann service is overpriced. It is cheaper to get from Dublin to Cork on a bus than it is from Kerry or Waterford to Cork using the bus service. For students who are commuting to such places as University College Cork, UCC, and MTU, these prices need to be looked at. I will raise it separately with Bus Éireann and the National Transport Authority, NTA.
I welcome the commitment to providing transport police in the programme for Government. That needs to happen. We would certainly welcome it in Cork as there are a number of safety concerns and there have been a number of antisocial behaviour incidents on our buses. The tap-on service on the buses is also being trialled in Cork. That would make it more accessible for everyone. However, ultimately we need to see a complete scaling-up of the ambition when it comes to public transport in the country as a whole, including Cork. I know Ministers are busy, but I challenge any Minister to come to Cork and spend a day trying to get from A to B on a bus, without the ministerial car. They would find it pretty difficult to make it to meetings on time. I hear from business owners all the time that employees are late for work frequently because they cannot get there because of the bus. Students are also late for college. Lecturers are late. It is affecting how the city operates. It also affects people's stress levels and mental health.
Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit agus go n-éirí an t-ádh leis leis an bpost nua.
Cá thosóidh mé leis an public transport in the north west and west? Any of the Seanadóirí who speak here about public transport and general transport infrastructure could draw a line from Galway downwards and see the lack of available public transport systems, but the road infrastructure from the west and north west up is also an issue. We have spoken a lot about opening the western rail corridor and there is a lot of support coming from many different groups for that. The Atlantic Technological University, ATU, has nine campuses between Sligo, Mayo and Donegal. They should be connected and people should be able to go from one campus to the next. Lecturers and other teachers will say that, but people have to go all across the country to get from one to the other. We are encouraging people to get out of their cars, but it is simply not a possibility in the north west. It is in the All-Island Strategic Rail Review that the western rail corridor will be extended from Athenry to Claremorris, but we need to be ambitious about it. All my colleagues in the west of Ireland would say that it is only a tiny bit further to push it on as far as Sligo. I would love to be ambitious again and push it up to Donegal. We call it the spine of Connacht because it will open up the west. The west needs to be woken up. We can alleviate some of the housing crisis in Dublin and some of the infrastructure difficulties in the bigger cities, but we need the infrastructure to match.
The cancer care services were taken away from Sligo and relocated to Galway and Dublin. There are a lot of elderly people who have to go on the cancer bus that goes from Sligo to Galway, which is not fit for purpose, or on the train. I will again raise the state of the catering cart on all trains. It is back on the Cork to Dublin and Dublin to Belfast trains, but there are elderly people travelling on trains where there is no water or cup of tea available. These are basic things that should be provided on a train. I tabled an amendment for that to be included in this motion.
There is ambition in the programme for Government and I am delighted to see the transport police included because there has been some antisocial behaviour. Another area that could be looked at is having a commuter bus from Longford to Sligo. There is only one train. We definitely need a second rail track, and an early morning train service that would allow people to work and attend lectures in Sligo in the morning because we have a serious problem with no student accommodation.
Before I start, I apologise to Senator Harmon for passing in front of her while she was speaking. I was not thinking.
Not at all.
Is the Senator sharing time?
Yes, I propose to share time with Senator McCarthy. We will have three minutes each.
Is that agreed? Agreed.
I commend the Private Members' motion and refer specifically to one exhortation. It is number 22 of 29, but it is there: "ensure every service on our public transport network is accessible for people with disabilities and impaired mobility".
I impress on the Minister of State - déanaim comhgháirdeachas leis agus cuirim fáilte roimhe ar ais go dtí an Seanad - that if the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, is in delivery mode in the next five years, he should note that while technically much of our public transport is accessible, functionally and practically it is inaccessible to disabled citizens. We are fortunate in Dublin that we have such a proliferation of public transport, but Dublin Bus is inaccessible to many wheelchair users, for example, because when the buses leave the garage many of the ramps are not working. In a cost-cutting measure, Dublin Bus changed the rules around that and buses are allowed to leave the garage with ramps not functioning. That needs to be looked at.
The DART is practically inaccessible for wheelchair users for a number of reasons, including that the lifts are constantly out of order. This is recorded on a daily basis by such people as Bernard Mulvany from People Before Profit and his daughter Sophia. My son will never use the DART. We do not even consider it because it is inaccessible. If the lift is actually functioning, people have to ring 24 hours beforehand and arrange to have someone in the station with a ramp and the service has to be told when passengers will be getting off. Iarnród Éireann and Dublin Bus are putting in place investment to address these issues, but it is not happening quickly enough. In his delivery mode, I ask that the Minister accelerate that.
When it comes to regional bus services, the buses of many of the private contractors who were awarded the contract by the Government are inaccessible because it was not made a stipulation in the granting of the contract. Frankly, that is disgraceful. I ask everyone to think about this and imagine they had to make an appointment 24 hours before they travel on the basis of their protected category, for example, because they are LGBTIQ or ethnically different or because they are a Muslim. We would quite rightly be outraged. Citizens should not have to make those kinds of arrangements, simply to access public transport.
On a US state department programme called alternatives to political violence a number of years ago I was in the train station in Montgomery, Alabama, where Rosa Parks in 1955 got on the bus and was excluded. That sparked a series of civil rights protests and eventually the US constitution was vindicated in that people cannot be segregated on the bus on the basis of their race. In Ireland, disabled people cannot even get on the bus. Rosa Parks was able to get on the bus in Alabama 70 years ago. People like my son cannot get on the bus or the train today. There is a lot of work to be done.
I thank the Minister of State for coming in for this debate. I acknowledge that we have seen significant improvements in public transport and we want to focus on doing more. As we look to the future, there are several gaps in the public transport system in areas I am familiar with. One of the key areas I will highlight - Senator O'Loughlin will be familiar with it as it is also her area - is the Newbridge area, where the Leap card service does not apply. It is a growing town with a large commuting population, yet residents have been unable to avail of the financial and practical benefits of the Leap card system. Extending the service to Newbridge makes sense as it would ease the financial burden on commuters, encourage greater use of public transport and reduce congestion on the N7, which is a graveyard at certain times.
There is another issue in my area with the park and ride facilities at Sallins station.
Investment in the form of an increase or expansion in the parking capacity to encourage more people to avail of park and ride facilities would help alleviate traffic congestion and help with our climate change targets. An investment, certainly in the Sallins area, would be an immediate benefit to commuters.
Another concern I want to raise today is the impending loss of the Aircoach service to Greystones, which ends on 2 March. This has been a crucial link to Dublin Airport for many Greystones residents. The bible of Greystones is the Greystones Guide and it published yesterday that this will leave many passengers stranded as it was a link for travellers, tourists and business people and now there is no direct reliable means of getting to the airport. If we are serious about promoting public transport and ensuring ease of access to our key transport hubs, we must look at reinstating or providing an alternative to that Greystones service.
I am limited on time, but these are some of the issues that need immediate attention. I urge the Government to take action on these matters, to make public transport more accessible, efficient and sustainable.
I welcome the Minister, Deputy Buttimer, back to this Chamber. We miss him but we absolutely wish him well in his new, really important role. I know, as I have been watching, that he has taken a lot of notes on the issues we have raised from right around the country. We look forward to having another interaction at a later time to see the progress made on them.
I thank all of those who have contributed to this debate. I thank all within the ranks of Fianna Fáil Senators for supporting this motion. It is the first Private Members' business of this mandate. We genuinely believe this is of such importance to all of us around the country that we really want to put the emphasis on it at this time.
Listening to the contributions it is very clear that this motion is supported by all and t we want to see public transport that connects places and people and that is affordable, accessible, reliable, efficient, available and safe. We have listened to particular situations and we all have a story to tell as regards public transport in our own areas. We have listened in the past few hours to particular calls for action from Kildare, Galway, Kilkenny, Dublin, Meath, Cavan, Louth, Sligo, Limerick and Cork city and Wicklow. Within that context we see how important public transport is to all of those counties and indeed beyond. We had 11 specific calls for action within our motion and, to be fair, the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, addressed all of those in his opening statement. He then had the opportunity, along with the Minister of State, to listen to particular constituency issues.
I would like to address a point from Senator Boyhan, which was picked up earlier by my colleague, Senator Fitzpatrick, and that is to say we certainly have no objection whatsoever to providing public safety transport police. It was the previous Minister for Justice who at the time did not agree. The present Minister for Justice absolutely supports it. I wish to be very clear where the Fianna Fáil Senators are on that.
I thank everybody for their support and it is important that we have the opportunity down the line to regroup regarding all of the issues raised.
Question put and agreed to.
When is it proposed to sit again?
Tomorrow at 9.30 a.m.
Cuireadh an Seanad ar athló ar 5.55 p.m. go dtí 9.30 a.m., Déardaoin, an 27 Feabhra 2025.
The Seanad adjourned at 5.55 p.m. until 9.30 a.m. on Thursday, 27 February 2025.