Thomas Gould
Question:35. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Transport the number of drivers he believes will be needed in Cork in the next 12 months to run the bus service properly. [45732/24]
View answerThursday, 7 November 2024
Questions (35)
Written answers
As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport; however, I am not involved in the day-to-day operations of public transport. The National Transport Authority (NTA) has statutory responsibility for securing the provision of public passenger transport services nationally and for the scheduling and timetabling of these services in conjunction with the relevant transport operators, in this case Bus Éireann.
The performance of all public transport operators is monitored by the NTA as part of the contractual arrangements in place between it and the operators. These contractual arrangements allow for not just the monitoring of performance by the NTA and the publication of their annual performance reports, but importantly, the contracts also allow for the imposition of financial penalties where performance does not meet the required standard.
In light of their responsibility in this area, I have forwarded the Deputy's request to the NTA and Bus Éireann for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a response within ten working days.