I join with the Leas-Cheann Comhairle in welcoming the students from Edmund Rice College, Carrigaline, who are here today as well. I wish them a very pleasant visit to Leinster House. I thank Deputy O'Gorman for the question. BusConnects Dublin is a transformative programme of investment to provide better bus services to more people across the capital. The Department of Transport is providing significant funding to support the roll-out of new bus infrastructure, fleet and services. We have already rolled out the first seven phases of the BusConnects Dublin network redesign so far, with the most recent one being the F spine serving Finglas to Tallaght in October 2025. The National Transport Authority is progressing all necessary works required to facilitate the introduction of the O route, which will provide an inner orbital operating on the North Circular Road and South Circular Road. The €940 million in public service obligation funding provided in budget 2026 allows the NTA to operate the bus network on a sustainable basis and to prioritise changes in line with operational capacity and passenger needs. The focus this year is on consolidating and strengthening the current network, while progressing improvements already under way. Unfortunately, it is not possible this morning to confirm an exact date for implementation of the O route. I am assured, however, that the S2 route from Heuston Station to Irishtown, which entered service in 2023, serves a part of the O route currently. The Department is also providing funding to advance the core bus corridors elements of the BusConnects programme. Contracts have now been awarded for both the Liffey Valley to city centre and the Ballymun-Finglas to city centre schemes, with a view to both entering heavy construction this year. I look forward to working with the NTA and our Department to continue the roll-out of BusConnects in Dublin in the years ahead.
Sentiment score: 0.29
The Deputy is correct; it is difficult to get across the city. The orbital routes are important. In fairness, the Deputy’s former colleague and former Minister, Eamon Ryan, introduced them. We have seen some being rolled out and we are doing more in that regard. The Department of Transport and I will engage with the NTA to ensure we get a date. There is ongoing engagement around the planning of all necessary works for the route about which the Deputy spoke. I will bring his feedback back to the officials. While I cannot provide a date this morning, I can say that the sectoral plan of the national development plan has allocated significant funding to the NTA to progress BusConnects routes in Dublin, Galway, Cork, Limerick and Waterford. The Minister, Deputy O’Brien, the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, the Department and I share the Deputy’s commitment in this regard. I take the Deputy’s points on board. I do not have an exact date but I will bring his remarks back and engage with the officials in the Department.
Sentiment score: 0.23
We all share the commitment to enhance the public transport offering. It is not correct to say there is a lack of funding. In the budget, the Minister received an increase of 46% in the PSO allocation. What we are doing - I think the Deputy will support us in this, being a former Minister - is building resilience and sustainability in the transport system and network for the future. We are planning new routes in a way that is sustainable for the future and will avoid the need to have to go through supplementary measures every budget and cycle. As the Deputy knows, people want certainty, reliable information and on-time buses. We will engage further with the NTA to ensure that process of planning is in place so that we can deliver. The Deputy is right that this is transformative. I assure the Deputy that all of us in the Department of Transport are committed to this. We want to see it happen. As I said, we have increased the PSO offering. It is now about making sure we continue to roll out BusConnects routes not just in Dublin but in the city of Cork as well. I hear the Deputy’s views.
Sentiment score: 0.23
Students from Edmund Rice College Carrigaline are in the Gallery. I welcome them and wish them well. I hope they have a very good visit. Go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.
Sentiment score: 0.38
By allowing drivers and passengers to complete part of their journey by car and part by public transport, park-and-ride sites have an important role to play in generating a mode shift towards public transport, cutting emissions and reducing congestion in our urban centres. To support this work, Iarnród Éireann is currently updating its national carpark strategy report to establish the capacity requirements for car parking, bus connectivity and active travel at all 147 train stations across the rail network. It is anticipated that the strategy will be complete and an updated report issued to the NTA for review later this year. The Department of Transport has allocated significant funding to advance public transport projects, including park-and-ride facilities, through the national development plan sectoral investment plan, which was published in November. The NTA is now progressing a more detailed implementation plan within this overarching Exchequer funding envelope. The implementation plan, which will be published in the coming months, will provide details of projects to be progressed within the funding available over the period 2026 to 2030. This implementation plan, together with the report being prepared by Iarnród Éireann, will inform which park-and-ride sites are advanced in the medium term. I thank the Deputy for raising the issue of Muine Bheag. It is not her first time to do so. She has been very articulate about the need for both car parking spaces in Carlow and enhanced connectivity. Carlow is a growing town, as the Deputy said. There is expeditious growth east and west. I thank the Deputy for raising the matter and look forward to engaging with her further.
Sentiment score: 0.25
I am fully aware of the situation in Carlow. I am very familiar with the town. When you come off the motorway from Dublin, you can see cars parked along the road as you go into Carlow in an area where there could be a need for a park-and-ride facility. The Department and I are very much committed to having an overall strategy. We are looking at a change in focus. That is why we have BusConnects, why we will have the light rail system for Cork, and why we have the strategy whereby a modal shift is being further assisted and supported by Irish Rail with the Department of Transport in the context of park-and-ride facilities. Stations are prioritised using a multi-criteria analysis that takes into account the capacity, current and projected demand, the number of potential spaces gained and lost and everything to do with planning and programme risk. From my own observations, Carlow would be well placed on the relevant list. I know the Leas-Chathaoirleach is also familiar with this matter. For the Department, this is about the modal shift, enhanced connectivity and getting people out of their cars onto public transport.
Sentiment score: 0.07
The Deputy makes an interesting point. On the other, broader point, digressing from her subject matter of the question, from a geopolitical point of view, we need to look differently at rail provision. She mentioned Mullinavat. I could throw in the Midleton to Youghal line in Cork as an example. The Leas-Cheann Comhairle could have a couple in Kilkenny as well. We have to look at the whole thing differently now given what is happening in the world around the uncertainty in the Middle East and then moving away from fossil fuel dependency. The Department and the Government are committed to progressing the modal shift from cars and to buses, to Bus Connects, to a national rail strategy around commuter rail and to the Luas and the metro in Dublin and Cork. I will certainly bring the fundamental point the Deputy makes back to Iarnród Éireann and to the Department. She is right though; it is about looking at how we can create that sustainable piece. What we are trying to do is to build reliance into our rail services. Part of our discussion, not just now but in the future, is about the points the Deputy has made here this morning.
Sentiment score: 0.11
I thank the Deputy for his ongoing advocacy on behalf of people with disabilities and his good work with Ciarán Delaney, whom we both engage with. If there are complaints, I encourage the Deputy to ask the people affected to log them and we will take it up. It is important we have that data. The regulation of the small public service vehicle, SPSV, sector, including the compliance, enforcement and administration of the wheelchair accessible vehicle grant scheme, is a matter for the independent transport regulator, the NTA, under the provisions of the consolidated Taxi Regulation Act. The Minister and I have no role in the matter. The Department has been informed that, in relation to Dublin, the NTA has received 13 WAV-related complaints in the last 12 months, with 11 received in the previous 12-month period. Any person who receives a WAV grant from the NTA must complete mandatory disability awareness training. It is a condition of receipt of any portion of the grant that the proposed driver of the WAV must either undertake the free half-day SPSV-specific disability awareness training provided by the NTA or provide evidence that they have completed a SPSV-specific disability awareness training course during the three years prior to the application date for a WAV grant. Not all WAVs are grant aided. In 2024, 346 non-grant-aided WAV taxi and hackney licences were added to the SPSV fleet, alongside WAV grants given to 372 new SPSV licenceholders. To support all licenceholders and not just grant recipients in providing WAV services, the NTA extended free training to all SPSV licenceholders at the start of last year. Operators can undertake the training as often as required, free of charge, to ensure that they are confident to provide such services to a high standard for passengers. There will be no ambiguity from us. The passenger experience must be to a high standard. There can be no obfuscation. I encourage wheelchair users to log their complaints.
Sentiment score: 0.22
I concur with the Deputy that that should not be the experience of people. The NTA has been working to make it easier for taxi drivers nationally and locally to increase the numbers available to passengers. The last year for which statistics are available is 2025. The NTA received 1,815 complaints regarding SPSVs compared to 1,713 in 2014. Complaints related to the condition of the vehicle, driver behaviour, hiring matters, as the Deputy articulated, and fare matters. The majority of complaints, 976, were fare matters, while driver behaviour accounted for 368 and 396 were hiring matters. I will come back to the Deputy on fixed-charge notices. My information is that four were given, which might seem small in the overall scheme but the percentage of complaints is quite low, given the number of taxis we have and journeys undertaken. I would be happy to engage with the Deputy further on the matter outside the Chamber.
Sentiment score: -0.06
I think there was one fixed-charge notice fine this year. The range of fines has gone from €80 to €250. Around 20% of the fleet comprises wheelchair accessible vehicles; I think it is about 4,836. It is an important matter and deserves the attention the Deputy gives it. If a person has a complaint, they should log it so that we can follow through. We must make it easier and we are providing training and that accessibility peice for the taxi driver. I take the Deputy's point on board. We are on a journey and must continue that journey. It is because of people like the Deputy that we are seeing that mindset being changed. I commend him on his work.
Sentiment score: 0.14
I thank the Deputy for raising the matter. Rural transport is an important point. In the context of the budget, the Minister and I are aware of the role that enhanced connectivity plays in supporting communities in Offaly. I commend the Deputy on the work he does in that regard. In the budget for this year, the Department of Transport secured €940 million of funding for PSO and TFI Local Link services, providing a significant 43% uplift from last year. This package includes a dedicated €31 million for rural transport service provision, representing a 38% increase on last year’s funding. As the Deputy knows, people will use the service if they get it. Offaly and Laois have been well served and seen significant investment in rural transport in recent years, with funding increasing by 36% between 2024 and 2025 to over €5.5 million. Passenger numbers are also increasing. The timetabled services in Offaly and Laois saw a 52% increase from 2024 to 2025. Our public transport system is at an important juncture. To be fair to him, the Deputy has been advocating for it. We are experiencing growing passenger numbers and increasing demand. There is also the challenge, about which we have heard this morning, in parts of Dublin and Cork concerning congestion and getting enhanced and more frequent bus services to allow people to travel to and from work more easily. In the interests of providing citizens with a high-class service, my focus as Minister of State with responsibility for rural transport is to stabilise the PSO position, ensure we have resilience and the routes we have now are functioning, reliable and sustainable, and progress improvements that were already under way. With the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, and the other Minister of State in the Department, Deputy Canney, we will work with everybody to ensure new routes are provided and accessibility and connectivity are enhanced. I will engage with the Deputy further on the matter. I thank him for raising it.
Sentiment score: 0.37
The Deputy is right in that access is not just an option; it is important not just for employment but also for connectivity, going to hospital appointments, going to medical services and even going to the local village. That is why we review local transport provision under the programme for Government commitment. The Minister and I are very much committed to ensuring we see an uplift again in the provision of transport links. This is critical. The TFI Local Link rural transport programme has worked right across the country, east, west, north and south. I join the Deputy in congratulating and thanking those who administer and run the programme. What we are committed to doing through the programme is connecting the missing pieces. It will take time. We will be in the Estimates process seeking further support from the Department of Finance and the Department of public expenditure. I hope that will come because the Deputy is correct that it is the regular rural service and the demand-responsive element that have been critically successful. The proof of that is the number of passenger journeys.
Sentiment score: 0.20