Mary Wallace
Ceist:220 Miss. M. Wallace asked the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications his views on the proposals of Commissioner Neil Kinnock regarding accessible transport services. [23838/96]
Written Answers. - Accessible Transport Services.
There are no legislative proposals relating to public transport accessibility under discussion at the Transport Council of the European Union at present. However, a Green Paper on the citizen's network was published by the European Commission earlier this year. The Green Paper addresses a wide range of issues relating to public transport systems, including the question of improving the accessibility of these systems for people with mobility impairments of one form or another. In this regard, the Green Paper notes that it is the long-term aim of the Commission to ensure that public transport is accessible for all, and this is an objective which I fully support.
Having completed the public consultation process launched by the publication of the Green Paper, the Commission will no doubt bring forward specific proposals over the next few years in relation to issues raised in the document, including that of accessibility improvements. My Department will participate fully in the consideration of any proposals of this kind which the Commission may present to the Transport Council and will assess individual measures on their merits, in the light of their potential impact on our public transport sector generally.