Dáil Éireann Debate, Monday - 11 September 2023
329. Deputy Steven Matthews asked the Minister for Transport the position regarding bus lane enforcement cameras; if this is under review in his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38267/23]
View answerAs my Department is responsible for the drafting of Road Traffic legislation, I am happy to clarify the legal status of bus lane enforcement cameras. As the Deputy may be aware, Section 81 of the Road Traffic Act 2010 does in fact already provide for the use of cameras by the Gardaí to assist in the detection of certain offences under the Road Traffic Acts. These powers have already been successfully used by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), working in partnership with the Gardaí, with regard to speeding offences and it is open to other road authorities to use these powers on a similar basis for other offences. Indeed, the offences specified in Section 81 include those made under Section 35 of the Road Traffic Act 1994 which is the basis for the current Traffic and Parking Regulations covering, among other things, bus lane restrictions.
While legislation under the remit of my Department already permits the use of cameras for enforcing bus lane restrictions, the Department has no role in the actual installation of such cameras, as this remains the responsibility of the Gardaí, in partnership with the relevant stakeholders. In line with commitments set out under Actions 67 and 122 of the Road Safety Strategy 2021-2030, my Department has asked the National Transport Authority to convene a cross-agency working group to examine various approaches to expediting the timely and efficient introduction of camera enforcement. I understand that this group has been meeting on a regular basis since May of this year, and I look forward to considering its formal recommendations in the coming months.
