Tuesday, 2 Nov 2021

Written Answers Nos. 187-204

Greenways Provision

Questions (187)

Alan Kelly

Question:

187. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Transport when he expects the commencement of work on the south Kerry greenway to commence. [52471/21]

Written answers

Minister for Transport

As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for overall policy and securing exchequer funding in relation to Greenways. The planning, design and construction of individual Greenways is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. It will be important that any proposed Greenway has the support of the relevant Local Authority as funding is only provided by TII to Local Authorities. All projects are also subject to the Public Spending Code Guidelines and the necessary statutory approvals. In this context, TII is best placed to advise you on the status of this project.

Noting the above position, I have referred your question to TII for a direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 working days.

Driver Licences

Questions (188)

Paul McAuliffe

Question:

188. Deputy Paul McAuliffe asked the Minister for Transport if the case of a person (details supplied) will be addressed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52566/21]

Written answers

Minister for Transport

All enquires relating to driver licensing are handled by the National Driver Licence Service (NDLS), the provision of which I have delegated to the Road Safety Authority (RSA) under the relevant legislation. My Department does not have access to individual applications.

Tax Code

Questions (189)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh

Question:

189. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Transport his plans to review the policy regarding charging motor tax on vehicles used by a charity (details supplied) to exempt it from the tax. [52596/21]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Transport

Under current motor tax, legislation exemptions are allowed for certain categories of vehicles, including State-owned vehicles and vehicles such as fire engines, ambulances and those used exclusively for mountain and cave rescue. Under the present system, there is no provision for the exemption of motor tax for vehicles such as those referenced by the Deputy.

I wish to advise that I have no plans currently to amend the relevant legislation to extend the list of vehicles which are exempt from motor tax.

Traffic Management

Questions (190)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh

Question:

190. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Transport if he will amend the Road Traffic Acts to allow for the vehicles of a charity (details supplied) to use bus lanes as is the case in many other jurisdictions while on route to hospitals. [52597/21]

Written answers

Minister for Transport

While I acknowledge the very valuable contribution made by volunteer services, I do not intend at this time to extend scarce and valuable bus lane access to additional users without careful consideration of the impacts, including the potential for delays to buses and emergency services who currently have such access, and consultation with those affected, including such services, the Garda Síochána and relevant state agencies.

The current bus lane network was created at considerable expense to the public, with the express purpose of providing on-street priority for bus-based public transport. Bus lanes are designed to make bus journeys faster and more reliable, so as to encourage people out of cars and onto public transport. This, in turn, reduces both congestion and air pollution and is considerably more environmentally sustainable than car-based transport in the long run. As the populations of our urban centres increase and public awareness of the importance of sustainable transport grows, it is likely that bus passenger numbers and, by extension, the provision of bus services and the demand for bus lanes will continue to increase year on year. As a result, it is critically important that bus lanes serve the purpose for which they were installed in the first place.

Since bus lanes were first introduced, there have been many requests to allow other classes of traffic to use the lanes. These have included requests on behalf of motorcyclists, multi-occupancy vehicles, electric vehicles, hackneys, animal ambulances, prison vehicles and others. My predecessors as Ministers for Transport and I have consistently rejected these requests, on the grounds that any addition to the categories of vehicle permitted to use the lanes would inevitably reduce their efficiency for performing their original purpose, which has become even more critical in light of the current climate emergency.

Question No. 191 answered with Question No. 181.

Driver Test

Questions (192)

Paul McAuliffe

Question:

192. Deputy Paul McAuliffe asked the Minister for Transport if he will address an issue in relation to a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52623/21]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Transport

Under legislation, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) is the body responsible for the operation of the Driving Test service. Individual cases are a matter for the Authority.

This question is therefore being referred to the Authority for direct reply. I would ask the Deputy to contact my office if a response has not been received within ten days.

Rail Network

Questions (193, 208)

Alan Dillon

Question:

193. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Transport the status of the project for the bridge at the Knockaphunta rail crossing in Castlebar as part of the new N5 road works.; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52632/21]

Alan Dillon

Question:

208. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Transport the status of a bridge (details supplied) as part of the new N5 road works. [52871/21]

Written answers

Minister for Transport

I propose to take Questions Nos. 193 and 208 together.

As Minister for Transport I have responsibility for overall policy and securing exchequer funding in relation to the National Roads Programme. Under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 and in line with the National Development Plan (NDP), the construction and upgrading of individual national roads is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. This is also subject to the Public Spending Code Guidelines and the necessary statutory approvals.

In this context, TII is best placed to advise on the current status of the bridge at the Knockaphunta rail crossing.

Noting the above position, I have referred your question to TII for a direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 working days.

Electric Vehicles

Questions (194, 201, 202, 203, 204)

Fergus O'Dowd

Question:

194. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Transport if he will respond to correspondence (details supplied) in respect of the withdrawal of grants for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles; if a review of the decision is taking place given the serious concerns that have been raised which may force more persons to purchase fossil fuel vehicles; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52661/21]

Johnny Guirke

Question:

201. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Transport the reason the grant incentive for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles is being removed from January 2022 in view of the fact that the charging infrastructure in rural Ireland is totally inadequate; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52732/21]

Johnny Guirke

Question:

202. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Transport the reason the grant incentive for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles is being removed from January 2022 in view of the fact that range anxiety with electric vehicles has not yet been addressed in rural areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52733/21]

Johnny Guirke

Question:

203. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Transport if he will consider extending the grant incentive for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles until such time as the charging infrastructure in rural areas is sufficient to support increasing numbers of fully electric vehicles; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52734/21]

Johnny Guirke

Question:

204. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Transport if he will consider extending the grant incentive for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles until such time as all plug-in hybrid electric vehicles already ordered for 2022 have been delivered in order to ensure that businesses and consumers are not disadvantaged by the sudden removal of the incentive; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52735/21]

Written answers

Minister for Transport

I propose to take Questions Nos. 194 and 201 to 204, inclusive, together.

The SEAI grant scheme aims to encourage behavioral change and support the Government’s commitment to achieving a 51% reduction in transport emissions by 2030.

I am conscious of the need to assist people living in rural Ireland to transition to electric vehicles and my Department is examining options on how this might be best achieved.

The grant schemes are kept under continuous review to ensure that they are as effective as possible in driving the decarbonisation effort.

To date in 2021, almost €65m has been provided in grants to support the purchase of electric cars. By year end, this will represent almost a doubling of supports to EVs in 2020.

As a result, the EV percentage of overall car registrations has increased significantly this year and represented over 15% to end Q3 2021. Government is on track as regards the number of vehicles which need to be sold in 2021 to reach its projected annual EV target as set out in the CAP 2019. As of 30 September, there were 45,423 EVs registered in the national fleet.

In the past year, many new BEVs with ranges of over 400km on a single charge have been introduced to the Irish market. Range anxiety is no longer an issue for electric vehicle purchasers, and while PHEVs provided an interim option, but emit both CO2 and air pollution emissions, this interim option is no longer necessary. Government supports should be provided to full electric vehicles, which will be the most effective means of reaching our carbon reduction pathway.

I announced after the budget that grant support for PHEVs will be removed from 1 January 2022. Any PHEV which registers for the grant in accordance with the scheme rules before this date will be approved and the commitment carried forward into Q1 2022. However, from 1 January 2022 the SEAI will no longer accept grant applications in respect of PHEVs. For the top 10 PHEVS sold in 2020, four are high cost vehicles for which a grant would not be applicable and two have a direct BEV equivalent, that would be more useful in terms of decarbonizing the car fleet. Of the four remaining, three are made by manufacturers that have an equivalent size BEV model and only one model has no BEV alternative in its range.

Under the Terms and Conditions of the grant process, drawdowns normally need to be made by year end (31 Dec). However, due to the slowdown in global car manufacturing, I am extending this drawdown date to 31 March 2021, to allow time for customers to take final possession of the vehicle.

It should be noted that PHEV owners will still be able to avail of other incentives currently in place including:

- Tolling reductions of 25% up to a threshold of €500 per annum per household for private vehicles and a maximum annual threshold of €1,000 for commercial vehicles;

- Low rate of annual motor tax; and

- Home charger grant of €600 per household.

The Government is fully committed to supporting a significant expansion and modernisation of the electric vehicle charging network over the coming years. A national charging infrastucture strategy is being developed which will set out a pathway to stay ahead of demand over the critical period out to 2030. My Department is engaging with relevant stakeholders to inform this work and it is envisaged that the strategy will be published early next year.

Preparations are underway to establish an Office of Low Emission Vehicles. This Office will play an important role in our transition to zero emission vehicles. It will co-ordinate measures to support the uptake of EVs and the rollout of charge point infrastructure.

Having an effective and reliable recharging network is essential to enabling drivers to choose electric. Charging at home is the most convenient and cheapest way to recharge and is suitable for rural drivers as the majority have off street parking. Targeting the installation of smart home chargers is a priority as we look to moving towards more energy efficient and sustainable ways to charge. A grant is available from the SEAI for those individuals seeking to install a home charger.

Destination chargers are chargers that are installed in locations such as town centres, supermarkets, workplaces, car parks and hotels. Businesses are seeing the value of installing these for customers, visitors and employees. There is potential for this scheme to consider strategic locations which might have relevance for the more rural areas of the country and those with dispersed settlement. The final design for this scheme will also need to consider the on-going work in developing the EV Infrastructure Strategy.

Bus Services

Questions (195)

Duncan Smith

Question:

195. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Transport if his Department will consider the installation of bus shelters at bus stop numbers 3854 and 3855 in Lusk, County Dublin ahead of the coming winter months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52679/21]

Written answers

Minister for Transport

As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport. The National Transport Authority (NTA) has statutory responsibility for the planning and development of public transport infrastructure, including the provision of bus stops and shelters.

Noting the NTA's responsibility in the matter, I have referred the Deputy's question to the NTA for a direct reply. Please contact my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 days.

Driver Test

Questions (196)

Duncan Smith

Question:

196. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Transport if the lifting of restrictions in October 2021 removed the restriction to sanitary and toilet facilities at driver test centres to allow access to instructors, students and those accompanying learner drivers to lessons and tests; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52682/21]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Transport

Under legislation, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) is the body responsible for the operation of the Driving Test. This is an operational matter for the Road Safety Authority, and one in which I have no role.

I am therefore passing the Deputy's question to the Road Safety Authority for direct reply. If a reply has not been received within 10 working days, the Deputy should contact my office.

Question No. 197 answered with Question No. 181.

National Car Test

Questions (198)

Catherine Murphy

Question:

198. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Transport his plans to make provision for a pause on the requirement to maintain an NCT certificate valid in instances in which a vehicle has been declared as being off the road. [52695/21]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Transport

All Member States of the European Union are required by law to carry out a periodic roadworthiness inspections on motor vehicles at regular intervals throughout the vehicle's lifecycle.

The applicable dates for periodic testing is provided for by national legislation. Under Regulation 3(2) of the Road Traffic (National Car Test) Regulations 2017 (S.I. No. 415/2017), the initial test due date for a vehicle is determined using the date of registration of that vehicle and subsequent test due dates fall on anniversaries of that date. Accordingly, all test due dates are predetermined based on the date of registration of a vehicle and any NCT certificate issued in respect of a vehicle is only valid up to the test due date that falls after that certificate was issued.

At such time of the expiry of the declaration, a valid NCT is required if it is intended that the vehicle be used on public roads. It may be useful to note that a vehicle may be used during the period of a non-use declaration in two cases:

- to bring it to and from a test centre for the test; or

- to bring it for repair after a re-test, or back to where you are keeping it while it is off the road after the repairs. This option may only be used where an appointment has already been made for a re-test.

There are currently no plans to make provisions for changing the applicable dates for roadworthiness test, even in the case of vehicles declared temporarily off-the-road.

Question No. 199 answered with Question No. 181.

Question No. 200 answered with Question No. 181.

Question No. 201 answered with Question No. 194.

Question No. 202 answered with Question No. 194.

Question No. 203 answered with Question No. 194.

Question No. 204 answered with Question No. 194.