Vol. 901 No. 2
6. Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will address concerns regarding the decreasing affordability of public transport, given the recent rise in the cost of fares in addition to consistent increases over the past four years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44999/15]
The Minister is aware of the significant increases in the cost of public transport and the impact that is having on people's use of it. The Minister has correctly identified some of the investment that he has made. However, there is a rising concern about the affordability of public transport as a result of the significant increases in fares. I ask him to address that and to provide any views he has on it.
As the Deputy knows, the National Transport Authority, NTA, is the statutory body charged with regulating public transport fares and I have no legal function in the matter. On 30 October 2015, the NTA published its fares determination for 2016. In setting fares, the NTA takes a number of factors into consideration including, of course, the financial contribution that fare revenue makes toward the overall funding of good-quality public transport services. However, there are other important factors which it also considers, including the role the fare structure can play in ensuring greater use of public transport. This year's fare determination builds on the work of recent years in simplifying what has historically been a quite complicated fare structure system. In addition, the recent determination continues the initiative to encourage people to switch to using the Leap card. The recent announcement means that the public now knows that the Leap card will always be 20% cheaper than cash for a single journey.
Along with its work on simplifying fare structures and encouraging the switch to Leap card, the NTA has also delivered a number of significant cross-operator initiatives such as real-time information at bus stops, via apps and online, the national journey planner, investment in the bus fleet and on-board Wi-Fi, improved public transport maps and the reconfiguration of regional city bus services.
There is no doubt about the need to make public transport more attractive by creating better, more accountable and, importantly, more affordable transport systems. Extensive fare hikes have taken place across bus, rail and Luas services. If one looks at it cumulatively over the last four years, one cannot but conclude that providers have been predatory and made a significant dent in people's pockets while at the same time reducing the attractiveness of public transport. Adult cash fares on Dublin Bus services have increased by 36% since 2012. The increase at Bus Éireann averaged approximately 18% while Luas fare increases totalled approximately 11%. Increases on most monthly and annual rail tickets were on average approximately 22% on short hop commuter trips. All of that has amounted in my view to a targeted attack on commuters using the public transport system.
Despite the huge fare hikes over recent years, the NTA has approved fare increases of up to 5% across Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann, Luas and Irish Rail from the beginning of next year. Like others, I welcome the increased economic activity. However, the growth that is taking place is in no way keeping pace with the increases with the cost of public transport. While I accept the difference between the statutory roles of the Minister and the NTA in this regard, there is a need to call a halt here. If fares continue to increase, that will have an impact on people's use of public transport services, which in turn will only add to further gridlock.
I have outlined to the Deputy what my role is in how these decisions are made and how the fare structure is set. As Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, I expect that as our economy recovers, more public investment in public transport is made and the balance sheets of public transport companies begin to improve in line with increases in their passenger numbers, the frequency and magnitude of the price increases we have experienced in the past will begin to change. The Deputy has referred to the most recent fare determination figures. I would like to contrast those figures with where we came from in the depth of our difficulties in 2013. In 2013, Dublin Bus had a price increase of 5.7%, whereas its most recent price increase was 1.2%. In 2013, Bus Éireann had a price increase of 6.1%, whereas its most recent price increase was 1.1%. In 2013, Irish Rail had a price increase of 7%, whereas its most recent price increase was 1%. This shows that the magnitude of price increases is beginning to decline significantly. In all cases, the Leap card will be cheaper than cash. In many cases, a single Leap card fare will be exactly the same in 2016 as the cash fare was in 2013. This is all about driving more integration and better utilisation of public transport.
The bottom line is that it comes down to the level of subvention that is available. What I am saying in a roundabout way is that there is a need for the Minister to fight at the Cabinet table for a greater level of subvention. We all have faith in his capacity to ensure the burden of the cost of a publicly funded public transport system does not weigh too heavily on the shoulders of those who use it. If people move away from public transport because it has become an intolerable burden, a negative spiral will be created. Although investment in the upgrading of infrastructure is important and good, if fares continue to increase as they have been increasing, it will have a very negative effect. I hope that over time, the Minister will be able to secure a greater level of funding through the State subvention.
As I have said, I accept it is not good for public transport and for this country's climate change agenda if fares go up at such a rate that they clearly make the use of public transport unattractive, particularly for families. I remind the Deputy that the most recent fare determinations differ considerably from the fare determinations that were made earlier in the crisis with which this country had to deal and from which we are now looking to emerge. In response to the Deputy's question about investment in public transport with particular reference to the level of subvention, I will set out where we are now. When the budget that will come into effect next month was announced, the Minister of State, Deputy Ring, and I were able to provide for an increase of €28.5 million in the current funding available to the CIE group. That single increase restores almost 30% of all the funding lost by the group over the last seven years.
The clock in the Chamber might not be working, but I assure Deputies that the clock on my desk is working.
7. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport further to his correspondence with the Promoting Awareness, Responsibility and Care on our roads group in October 2015 in which he said that a new agreement to provide for the mutual recognition of driver disqualifications was signed on 30 October 2015 by Ireland and the United Kingdom, that legislation to underpin this agreement was at an advanced stage of drafting with the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel and that a Bill was expected to be published in November 2015 and enacted by the end of 2015, if the drafting of this legislation has been completed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44883/15]
After the UK pulled out of the EU Convention on Driving Disqualifications this time last year, the Minister undertook to use the planned road traffic legislation, which he brought to the Cabinet on Tuesday, to bring about a regularisation of this country's arrangements with the UK. It has taken the Government a full year to legislate for this issue, which is of great importance to the Border region, in particular. I understand most of that time was spent renegotiating our mutual recognition agreement with the UK. A number of further months have passed since that was concluded. I accept that the other key part of this legislation, which relates to drug-driving, is very important. The Government has stuck mutual recognition in with that. Organisations like the PARC road safety group are asking why the mutual recognition aspect of the proposed Bill has not been advanced more quickly on its own. They believe that should have been done because this is such an important issue. Has the Road Safety Authority been informed of Northern disqualifications? If so, how many such disqualifications has it been informed of in the current year? Have we informed the Northern Ireland authorities in reverse?
As the Deputy knows, saving lives by improving road behaviour is at the heart of the road safety measures that have been taken here and in the UK. In the past, it was possible for a driver who committed a serious road traffic offence in one jurisdiction and was detected and prosecuted, resulting in a driving disqualification, to return home and continue to drive without any recourse being available to apply that disqualification in his or her home country.
Arrangements for the mutual recognition of driving disqualifications between Ireland and the UK, based on the EU Convention on Driving Disqualifications and primary legislation in both jurisdictions, were in place from January 2010 to November 2014, with an average of 140 disqualifications being transferred between the two jurisdictions each year. Those arrangements changed for the reasons outlined by the Deputy. When they were in place, a driving disqualification received in the other jurisdiction was recognised in the driver’s home country or country of normal residence.
A new agreement between Ireland and the UK on the mutual recognition of driving disqualifications was signed on 30 October 2015. I am taking the first opportunity available to me - the road traffic Bill that was agreed by the Cabinet yesterday - to make provision for that in legislation. The drafting of the Bill has been completed and the Government approved it yesterday. My aim is to publish the Bill soon. I hope to have it published before the end of the year. While it will not be passed by the Oireachtas early in the new year, I assure Deputy Broughan that I aim to have it introduced in the Oireachtas in January so that its passage through these Houses may begin. I believe a number of measures in the Bill will make a prompt contribution to better road safety for 2016.
While I welcome the commitment to introduce this Bill, it is a pity the part of it that is the subject of my question could not have been passed more quickly. I accept that the other issue is very important as well. Ten years ago, I proposed in this House that we should adopt the drug-driving regime that was being used in the state of Victoria in Australia. It has taken a decade for legislation to be introduced to address this issue. Surely the Minister could have fast-tracked the mutual recognition aspect of this legislation to get it passed before this House is dissolved in the new year. A number of us will not be in this House after the general election. The Minister and I might not be Members of the Thirty-second Dáil. The legislation to which I refer is of great importance in Border areas. How will this process actually work? When the Road Safety Authority gets the information from Northern Ireland, will it go to the District Court to seek to have someone who has been the subject of a disqualification in Northern Ireland disqualified here? I think that was the older mechanism that was used. Will it be used again under this process? I have raised some of these matters on Topical Issues on two occasions. The Minister was not able to attend those debates because he was on European business. The Minister of State, Deputy English, deputised for him. I asked two critical questions about disqualifications, but I did not receive any satisfactory answers. I would like to put those questions again briefly. First, we often hear from solicitors etc., that there is no actual requirement in law for the Courts Service to record the licence of a disqualified driver. Is that the case? If so, do we need legislation?
Second, the Minister has told me we do not need legislation on the question of breathalyser results in English and Irish. Prosecutions are not proceeding as a result of the chaotic situation that exists in this regard. Can the Minister tell us what will be done about that, particularly in light of Judge Marie Keane's recent judgment? She threw out 21 cases over summonses that were wrongly worded, in her view.
Before I answer the Deputy's questions, I would like to anticipate the possibility that I will not get an opportunity to speak about all of these road safety matters after Christmas.
I acknowledge that the Deputy and the other Deputies present today have made a significant contribution to addressing the issue of road safety in this Dáil. It is a matter that is treated differently from other matters we debate. As of earlier this week, 34 fewer people were killed on our roads compared to this time last year. That is a very significant change to which all the Deputies have contributed.
The Deputy asked me a number of significant questions. He asked why could I not do this sooner. The reason is that the agreement between both jurisdictions was signed on 30 October and the first opportunity I have had to bring it in is in the road traffic Bill, which I have just brought to Cabinet. On the issue of where we are in terms of the serving of statements regarding the electronic breathalyser test devices in Irish, when I dealt with the matter in the past, it was subject to a court hearing. I was advised that we would win that matter but, as the Deputy knows, we did not. We were ruled against. The next day I signed the statutory instrument to deal with that matter. A number of cases are before the courts and I will not comment on them because it is up to the judges to evaluate and make decisions on them. The Office of the Chief State Solicitor is considering what action could be taken on them and I await its response. I will not comment on any cases the courts are currently evaluating. I always do my best to take Topical Issue matters when I am here. I was not here, as the Deputy acknowledged, for the debate on that issue. I will find out what questions the Deputy raised and I will write to him within the next seven days with an answer on them.
I would welcome that particularly on the two issues the Minister mentioned and whether legislation is required regarding the recording of licences by the Courts Service, given that there has been so much controversy about that. The Ceann Comhairle ruled out two questions I tried to ask about Judge Marie Keane's judgment on 12 November 2015, when she dismissed 21 cases on the basis of failure to present licences because, as she said, the summonses were worded incorrectly. They did not include a reference to the penalties people would incur if they did not bring their licences or have them ready for presentation. I asked whether that has been appealed to the Director of Public Prosecutions. It seems there are many matters in regard to the broader issue under mutual recognition that need to be addressed and in respect of which we need to bring forward legislation.
We have to acknowledge that the vast majority of road traffic cases are successfully prosecuted. To take the application of penalty points alone, more than 84% of penalty point cases before the courts-----
The Minister is inadvertently misleading the Dáil-----
The Minister has the floor.
I have asked a series of questions about this matter, about adjournments and about cases that are not completed, cases that are withdrawn and cases that are thrown out. He cannot cite that figure of 84%.
This is the Minister's time to respond.
Did the Minister read Judge Hamill's speech to the Law Reform Commission in which he made some very pertinent points about what is a fairly chaotic situation?
Deputy, the Minister has the floor.
The Minister said this in the past when, unfortunately, I could not be present but that is not the case. We need more information from the Courts Service before we can start talking about percentages.
I can understand why the Deputy wants to make that point given that he made a number of statements on the matter. The Courts Service then had to clarify the interpretation of statistics.
That is a disingenuous answer.
Deputy, please.
The Deputy has made his points. He put forward an analysis with respect to some of those statistics, which he is perfectly entitled to do. A week later the Courts Service gave a very different interpretation with respect to the figures he offered.
It left out a lot of information.
Allow the Minister to conclude.
The advice the Deputy has just offered me is advice that goes both ways in regard to the analysis of statistics that come out of our court system. I stand by the point I made that any road traffic offence that goes before the courts is one the Judiciary independently has to evaluate and make its mind up on. The vast majority of such cases that go before the courts are successfully prosecuted.
Thank you, Minister. I must move on to the next question.
8. Deputy Dessie Ellis asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will work with Stormont and transport companies in the North to deliver an island-wide integrated ticketing system and to improve access to cross-Border public transport services. [45004/15]
The integrated ticketing system in the South and the smarter travel programme have been working very well. In regard to our northern counterparts in Stormont and transport companies in the North, what work has the Minister done to introduce a ticketing system to cover the North and the South and to improve access to cross-Border public transport services?
I understand from the National Transport Authority, NTA, that it has held discussions with the Department of Regional Development and Translink in Northern Ireland in order to explore the possibilities for integrated cross-Border ticketing. The current ticketing systems are incompatible and the NTA understands that Translink is in the process of putting together a tender for new ticketing equipment for the North.
Concurrently, the NTA is looking into the possibilities of the next evolution of smart ticketing across Ireland and is having discussions with Translink with a view to exploring the opportunities for collaboration. These discussions are at an early stage and at this point in time, there are no defined plans for integration. However, both NTA and Translink recognise the potential of linking up the systems and are keen to explore further.
An example of the tangible benefit cross-Border co-operation can deliver to everybody on our island is the fact that approximately €21 million has been awarded to two separate cross-Border railway projects, the Drogheda viaduct and Enterprise refurbishment project, which will significantly enhance the transport infrastructure of the region on a cross-Border basis. This has been financed through the European Union's INTERREG IVA programme and managed by the Special EU Programmes Body, SEUPB. I launched the Drogheda viaduct on 7 December and the Enterprise refurbishment project will be complete by the end of this year. Both projects will enhance one of our main cross-Border infrastructure links, thereby supporting trade and tourism between the two biggest cities on the island.
I am glad the authorities on both sides are at least talking but the NTA and Translink do not seem to have made huge progress. It is a pity we have not pushed this much further because many areas could benefit from rail and bus link-ups and they could be made very efficient. On many occasions, we have said there should be free travel for senior citizens North and South. That issue needs to be addressed. Other areas with respect to cross-Border links include the ferry services and the canals. If a better approach was taken by officials and the transport authorities on both sides of the Border, it would greatly assist in improving our tourist figures and provide a better way for ordinary citizens to travel between the North and the South. This is an important issue and one on which we need to place more emphasis.
I agree that cross-Border co-operation in the transport area could deliver practical benefits to commuters in both jurisdictions. We need only consider what we are doing in the tourism area where both jurisdictions are working together successfully to deliver more than either could deliver on its own. In regard to fares and ticketing integration, discussions are under way but because the Northern Ireland Executive and its transport bodies are perhaps considering introducing a new ticketing system, we will have to let that work take place and allow them to make their decisions on how they want to do that. When that happens, I would hope there would be further opportunities for integration but that is a matter for them to work on.
With regard to cross-Border co-operation, I would respectfully say that one would not find many better examples of that than the €21 million European Union funding that both Administrations worked together to secure, the benefits of which can be seen in the co-funding of the new viaduct and the new rolling carriage that is available on the Belfast to Dublin rail line.
I welcome the funding and co-operation the Minister mentioned to seek European funding for cross-Border projects, particularly in respect of transport, but he did not reply regarding senior citizens travel. This issue could be progressed. I acknowledge that his Northern counterparts are looking at a new ticketing service. Have detailed discussions been held with them regarding the systems used here such as Smarter Travel, Leap card, apps and real time information provision and what they are doing in this regard to try to move us towards an integrated system across the island? That is important and it would have huge benefits.
Integration of our ticketing systems is very much a long-term objective but engaging and co-operating better in terms of how tickets are made available in either jurisdiction undoubtedly would be of benefit.
With regard to senior citizens travel, that will have to flow from the potentially successful conclusion of the discussions that are under way, but that can only happen if agreement is reached on how the two ticketing systems work with each other in a more effective way. A great deal of work needs to be done.
9. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will review or if he has reviewed the public transport policies and investment budget, given Ireland's legally binding emissions commitments and given the agreements made at the COP21 meeting in Paris in France. [44880/15]
This question flows from an earlier question on climate change in reply to which the Minister was a little defensive. I did not say the Department had done nothing but it has not done enough in the context of climate change and the fact that transport is the second largest non-emissions trading sector. This has a key impact on our emissions targets, particularly now, given we were not on target to meet the 2° target. The Paris agreement has changed that to 1.5° by 2050. What change in public transport plans will the Minister put in place to take account of the new agreement reached in Paris last week?
I was simply pointing to what is being done and the big changes that have been secured. I am also acknowledging what needs to be done. As opposed to going through the material I shared with the Deputy earlier, I will outline new information in this regard.
With regard to our bus fleet, I propose to establish a green bus fund for the period 2017-20 to support the purchase of cleaner and greener public transport vehicles. The main purpose of the fund will be to cover the differential between the cost of a conventional diesel bus and an alternatively fuelled equivalent. It is hoped and planned that the fund will help to accelerate the introduction of alternatively fuelled vehicles across the public transport sector. These measures will focus on supporting the change in the current fleet stock of hybrid vehicles as double deck or single deck vehicles to make them potentially fully electric for both Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann. This has the aim of delivering reduced vehicle emissions, improved air quality and health benefits, lower fuel costs, reduced operating costs and increased security of supply. These vehicles would also have the potential to utilise a renewable fuel source, namely biomethane, all of which has the objective of trying to improve the efficiency and quality of our public bus fleet in the context of the agenda the Deputy has outlined, which I accept will pose challenges for Ireland that we will need to respond to.
It is clear the Government has not taken on board the scale of the crisis. To achieve the target set in Paris, there would have to be a near complete decarbonisation of the world economy with a wholesale shift away from fossil fuels to renewable sources. I welcome the fact that there will be more green buses. That will be great and I compliment the Minister on that but the problem is that public transport fares have increased by 60% and, therefore, it has become less attractive to people. We might have cleaner buses but instead of people using them, they are being forced into their cars. Dublin Bus is reliant on circuitous routes that transport people all around north County Dublin before, for example, bringing them into town, which does not make the service attractive. When Iarnród Éireann publishes a timetable that does not service key urban areas such as Donabate at peak times, people from those areas do not have an opportunity to get home by rail from the city centre, which means fewer people on trains. While I accept there has been more investment, everything needs to be stood on its head. A total of 60% of the capital investment plan for transport published in September will go on the road network. If we are to tackle climate change, that has to be move in the opposite direction.
The investment in our road network is intended to make it safer in many cases and to join up facilities, assets and cities that need better connectivity. I thank the Deputy for acknowledging that we are making progress in the public transport sector. I accept we need to make more progress and I have outlined how we are working on that. However, it is also important to acknowledge the big change under way in respect to the numbers of people using public transport. Based on the analysis the Deputy offered, one would think fewer people were using public transport than a year ago. More people are using Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann, Luas and Irish Rail services, particularly the DART and suburban rail services. Contrary to what she suggested, more people are using public transport and we need to continue to invest in this in line with the plan I outlined, which seeks to substantially increase service provision. Over the past 18 months, an additional €90 million has been made available to support the improvement, maintenance and upgrading of the Dublin Bus fleet.
Congestion levels are also increasing. They have reached 2008 levels in recent times. We need to get more out of public transport. Private car journeys need to be reduced, yet the plan unveiled by the Minister in September said that 60% of his capital budget would go on the road network, which supports private transport in the main, not public transport. The Government needs to radically overhaul and prioritise rail transport, particularly in financial terms. Only €3.6 billion is promised for public transport over seven years, of which €2.6 billion will maintain current service provision. It is indisputable that Ireland would not have met the target in place prior to the Paris agreement but to reach the new target of 1.5°, we have to do something different from what the Minister planned in September. I am wondering what that will be because justifying the amount being spent on roads will not do it for us. We will fall far short.
I hope the Deputy accepts that many of the public transport services to which I have referred will have to use the roads in which we are investing. Bus Éireann buses will have to use the roads we are upgrading. The Deputy can talk to the company's managers about the needs they have in the context of improving our road infrastructure in order that public transport can work better. Public transport runs on our roads and if she thinks there is no need for this investment, she should travel along the parts of the N4 and N5 we are looking to upgrade to see what is happening and the challenges faced in the context of road safety.
What about the rail network?
She should travel the road between Cork and Kerry we are looking to upgrade, via the Ballyvourney to Macroom project, and see the difference that could be made to road safety. She should also visit Deputy Pringle's constituency and examine the road projects that have been welcomed there. They all address road safety. One of the points the Deputy is missing in the question she has put is the investment in our roads is justified on a road safety basis and to allow different forms of transport, including public transport, to travel more quickly and safely. I agree with her that we have a shared objective of trying to get more people to use public transport but the capital plan, which provides that almost one third of additional funding will go to transport, was put together in anticipation of the agenda that our country will have to implement.
