Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 17 June 2021
52. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Transport if he plans to act upon the recommendations of the recent report of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport on decarbonisation and public transport; if the process of examining the provision of free public transport will commence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32212/21]
View answer74. Deputy Brian Leddin asked the Minister for Transport if he will consider the latest report of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Environment and Climate Action on the topic of emissions from the transport sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32141/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 52 and 74 together.
To help tackle our climate challenge, I am strongly committed to achieving substantial carbon abatement within the transport sector. Accounting for a little over one fifth of Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions, there can be no question but that transport must feature strongly in contributing towards the national decarbonisation effort. As such, I welcome the recent report from the Joint Committee on Environment and Climate Action on reducing emissions in the transport sector by 51% by 2030. Indeed, the publication is very timely given that both the Climate Action Plan and National Development Plan are currently undergoing review. The Committee’s report provides a strong evidence base to assist in the development of these two key Plans.
It is becoming increasingly clear that a transformational change is required to achieve a carbon free transport sector by 2050 and more imminently to halve emissions over the next decade. In preparation for the Climate Action Plan, my Department has conducted significant analytical and modelling work to help identify the nature and scale of measures required to achieve the step-up in emissions reduction. Preliminary findings of this analysis align closely with the conclusions of the Joint Oireachtas Committee, particularly in relation to promoting more sustainable trips, managing travel demand, achieving greater EV penetration as well as needing to decarbonise the hard-to-abate freight sector.
I am committed to giving due consideration to all 47 recommendations from the Committee’s Report, including those relating to public transport fare structures, to chart an informed course to reduce transport emissions in line with our Programme for Government commitment. The Deputy should note that as the National Transport Authority has the statutory responsibility for the regulation of fares in relation to public passenger transport services, any assessment of a proposed change to public transport fare structures would be a matter for them in the first instance. I have, therefore, forwarded the Deputy's question to the NTA for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a response within ten working days.
