Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 20 May 2003

Vol. 567 No. 1

Written Answers. - Public Transport.

Seymour Crawford

Ceist:

353 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Transport if his attention has been drawn to the fact that Bus Éireann, which runs a service from Monaghan to Dublin along the N2, is no longer allowed to take on passengers in Carrickmacross; the reason for this situation; if it will be rectified in the interest of freedom and competition; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13383/03]

Minister for Transport (Mr. Brennan)

My Department received a complaint in January 2002 from a private bus operator, that Bus Éireann was competing contrary to Section 25 of the Road Transport Act 1958 with the licensed services of the private operator on the Carrickmacross to Dublin route. My Department had issued two licences to the private operator in 1998 on the Carrickmacross to Dublin route: licence No. 98028 departing Carrickmacross at 6.45 a.m.; and licence No. 98113 departing Carrickmacross at 9 a.m.

Bus Éireann commenced operating new services on the Monaghan to Dublin route and on the Letterkenny to Dublin route in July 2000, which had departure times from Carrickmacross at 6.35 a.m. and 9 a.m., which were allegedly in direct competition with the licensed services of the private operator. Bus Éireann is exempt from licensing under the Road Transport Act 1932. However the company is bound under section 25(1) of the Transport Act 1958 to seek the consent of the Minister if it wishes to initiate or alter services so as to compete with a licensed service.

Having fully considered the matter, including correspondence from both Bus Éireann and the licensed operator, I concluded that Bus Éireann had initiated passenger road services from Monaghan to Dublin on Monday to Friday at 6 a.m. and from Letterkenny to Dublin on Monday to Saturday at 6.35 a.m. which competed respectively with: the licensed passenger road service under licence No. 98028 for services on the Carrickmacross to Dublin route departing Carrickmacross at 6.45 a.m. Monday to Friday in respect of the stops at Carrickmacross, Ardee, Collon and Slane; and the licensed passenger road service under licence No. 98113 for services on the Clones to Dublin route departing Carrickmacross at 9 a.m. Monday to Saturday in respect of the stops at Carrickmacross, Ardee, Collon and Slane.

I also concluded that Bus Éireann did not seek or obtain ministerial consent to operate the services complained of and that it was therefore in breach of section 25 of the 1958 Act. Bus Éireann was advised on 10 April 2003 that the company had been found to be in breach of section 25(1) of the Transport Act 1958 and directed to modify the operation of the services in question in the following ways with effect from 26 May 2003: the 6 a.m. service from Monaghan to Dublin, departing Carrickmacross at 6.35 a.m., should no longer serve Carrickmacross, Ardee, Collon and Slane; the 6.35 a.m. service from Letterkenny to Dublin, departing Carrickmacross at 9 a.m., should not be permitted to pick up but may continue to set down passengers between Carrickmacross and Slane, both points inclusive.

Bus Éireann was also requested to give passengers on these routes a minimum of 21 days notice of the modifications to the operation of services specified in the direction and the commencement date of those modifications. Bus Éireann may at any time apply under section 25(1) of the 1958 Act for my consent to initiate a passenger road service which competes with a licensed road service.