Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 6 November 2018
95. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his views on whether Ireland should dramatically reduce public transport fares to encourage its use in view of the urgent necessity to address climate change and CO2 emissions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45656/18]
View answerThe National Transport Authority (NTA) has statutory responsibility for regulating fares charged by public transport operators so it is not within my remit to reduce public transport fares.
I am however acutely aware of the specific challenge facing Ireland in tackling climate change and achieving our renewable energy targets in our transport sector where travel demand is growing and fossil fuel use is firmly established. An efficient public transport sector is a key priority in meeting our climate change goals. Improving public transport services and infrastructure is central to providing an alternative to the private car not only to reduce congestion and emissions but also to enable the transport sector to cater, in an environmentally sustainable way, for the increasing demand associated with growing population and employment.
One of the primary objectives of the Public Service Obligation (PSO) Programme is to encourage modal shift and public transport use through higher service provision and lower fares. I have secured an aggregate funding increase of over 36% in PSO funding in the last three years. In Budget 2019, I have secured further additional funding which means I will be providing €287m to the NTA for PSO funding in 2019.
In addition to effecting modal shift, we are seeking to address climate emissions by encouraging a transition away from fossil fuels. I have outlined my ambition that by 2030 all new cars and vans sold in Ireland would be zero-emission capable. To support this ambition and a Programme for Partnership Government commitment, an interdepartmental Low-Emitting Vehicles (LEV) Taskforce was jointly convened by my Department and the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment.
The Biofuels Obligation Scheme also plays a major role in decarbonising the road transport sector in Ireland. The penetration of biofuels as a share of road transport energy has increased significantly over recent years from a share of 4 % in 2010 to 8% (by volume) from 2017. It is intended that the biofuel obligation scheme will be incrementally increased on a sustainable basis over the next two years.
Finally, an important role will be played by more efficient standards for vehicles. Ireland continues to push strongly for better EU vehicles standards, seeking greater ambition in regulations that ensure vehicles registered in Europe are increasingly more efficient and less emitting. It is through better technology and improved efficiency that carbon emissions generated by vehicles can be decoupled from increased economic activity and population growth.
