It will be available to the Deputy in written format in any case. If I can answer his question directly, the strategic rail review has been very public for over a year and a half. We had to go to a strategic environmental assessment. We decided that, in advance of the Assembly returning in the North, we would publish it because we had to go into that public consultation, so the details are very clear. That consultation process has finished. In the coming weeks, we will, in my mind, subject to our Northern colleague…

I agree with the Deputy fully. I would add the environmental issue to his list of common-sense considerations we have to take into account. The opponents of investing in rail freight argue that it is not economic and does not make sense, but they do not answer the question of how they intend to decarbonise our haulage system and do not take that into account as a key strategic objective that we have to meet, as well as the other ones the Deputy mentioned with regard to better balanced regional development, social a…

I will try to give Deputies Martin Kenny and Ó Cuív the same clarity I gave to Deputy Harkin earlier. The rail review does not propose the reintroduction of the line to Collooney. I believe in those contexts it is better to keep the line as a greenway. This is a 30-year investment timeline. To answer Deputy Ó Cuív's question about the inflation aspect, we must think about this over a 30-year period. The cost is roughly €1 billion a year over that period. In that regard, inflation has been acute in the past two to t…

I assure the Deputy that the Government is committed to improving transport infrastructure throughout the country, but most especially in the northern and western region. That commitment is evidenced by actual delivery of projects on the ground. The index referred to by the Deputy measures a much wider range of indicators than just infrastructure and, on the basis of the complete index, the region is actually ranked higher. I also note that the road, rail and aviation elements of the index are all based off data co…

First, there was a huge expansion in our capital ambition, in particular in regard to investments in transport for which I have responsibility in the NDP. We got an allocation of €35 billion which I think actually exceeds the allocation for housing. Two Departments were prioritised by the Government. One was housing and the other, on the capital side, was the transport sector. There is €100 billion worth of projects. Even back then there was €100 billion of projects in development and planning. We will not be able …

-----we are going full steam ahead with the TEN-T projects. They include the road from Lifford to Letterkenny, the Manorcunningham to Letterkenny road and the bypass of Stranorlar and Ballybofey. What I said to the councillors I met last week, who are interested in the project, is that we will do everything to advance that project as fast as we can because it is an example of the projects that we do need to see delivered.

I will give the Deputy one example, because she talks about big projects. From memory, the Ballaghaderreen to Scramoge road, not by act of nature, is a single carriageway of approximately 35 km. It is costing the guts of half a billion euro and pretty much a doubling of the previous contract, which, unfortunately, was not able to be concluded because the contractor went out of business. If one were looking for an example of Government commitment to this region, that was a significant investment. It was a significan…

As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport. The NTA is leading the development and roll-out of strategic park and ride nationwide through its park-and-ride development office. The NTA established the park-and-ride development office in February 2020 and it has been included in the climate action plan since 2019. The function of the office is to enable the delivery of park-and-ride sites by the NTA in collaboration with local authorities and transp…

I will go into some of the detail that I have been informed of by the NTA on those three sites. First, in regard to the N6 at junction 19, a 550-space site, the site selection process has led to two emerging site options at this junction. It looks now likely that a compulsory purchase order may be required irrespective of which site is selected. Following a finalisation of the site selection process, which is expected in the next two months, the park-and-ride development office will commence design on the selected …

I am sorry about this. I will finish, if I can. On site 3, the one the Deputy specifically asks about, the discussions are ongoing with Galway City Council in relation to a potential site along the Cappagh Road on the western side of the city. It is understood that lands in public ownership may be available in the vicinity of this location. Discussions are advancing to investigate the feasibility of park-and-ride measures which leverage the provision of planned bus priority measures at Gort Na Bro and other wider b…

First, I agree with the Deputy. I have a concern that the waiting for a Galway outer bypass may have seen the authorities not push the delivery of the public transport and active travel solutions which, I believe, will be critical to turning around Galway's transport difficulties and providing a system that works. The site the Deputy mentions in the west is, to my mind, a particular example of that because I understand the local authority may own the lands which could be used as a potential site. I believe we shoul…

I thank the Deputy for highlighting one of the biggest ongoing challenges facing the public transport sector. I confirm that my Department continues to engage extensively with the NTA and operators on this issue. Unfortunately, it is the case that many operators, both public and private, continue to experience difficulties in recruiting new drivers. In its attempts to attract new drivers to the company in the numbers required, Bus Éireann has undertaken significant driver recruitment campaigns in recent months, eng…

I will make a wider point that Bus Éireann has a real challenge, as all our bus companies do, in getting drivers. This is across public and private services in every part of the country. Bus Éireann, however, is proving to be incredibly successful at present. I remember meeting Mr. Kent a year or two ago, when he said we might get up to 100 million passenger journeys last year. It actually had 106 million. The traffic numbers on Bus Éireann buses is 20% above pre-Covid levels. Some 3,000 people work in the company.…

I agree with Deputy O'Sullivan. I will add that it is not just about a driver shortage. We are also short of mechanics. In Cork, there are ten or 12 vacancies in mechanic positions at present. If the bus is not maintained, then it cannot run. Irish passengers value and are attracted to their bus services. Passenger numbers on Bus Éireann PSO services went up by 27% last year. That is a huge increase by any measure. When we introduce BusConnects in Cork, the fleet will increase by 50%. We will need Bus Éireann for a…

We will look at that in detail.

I fully support the commitment in the programme for Government to maintain the existing road network to a high standard and to fund safety improvements. That being said, in accordance with the provisions of section 13 of the Roads Act 1993, each local authority has statutory responsibility for the improvement and maintenance of its regional and local road network. Works on regional and local roads are funded from local authorities' own resources and are supplemented by State road grants. The primary focus for capit…

I absolutely agree with Deputies Smith and O'Sullivan. Investment in maintaining our roads is our first priority and the best investment because, as the Deputy has said, if you let them go, it costs much more to restore them. There are also great safety and other benefits to properly surfaced and dressed roads. Funding for road maintenance has increased by 20% over the last four years, the lifetime of this Government.

That is true but there was an increase in the budget. Last year, Cavan got a budget of €18.14 million, an increase of €629,000 on the previous year. Monaghan got some €17 million, an increase of €834,000 on the previous year. I have met the officials and engineers in the county councils in Monaghan and Cavan and they do a very good job. They are highly innovative. They are advancing a new means of using reclaimed asphalt to save money, protect the environment and improve roads. We are looking at the funding. It is …

I understand that. The area also has a very dispersed and wide network of roads but so do other counties. Cork is a good example. To answer Deputy O'Sullivan's question, we are working with Cork County Council to provide the funding it needs for the roads that were affected by the flooding in Glanmire and Midleton. The resources are somewhat constrained by how quickly the council can spend them but it is being provided with what it needs.

I assure the Deputy that we will do everything we can. In honesty, the budget available to us is limited but we will try to reallocate any funding we can garner from other areas. The Deputy is right about the increase in costs. The increase in the cost of bitumen and other materials was very significant. It gives us a certain hope that those inflationary impacts are starting to reduce. We are seeing inflation, including inflation in building materials and road building equipment and materials, coming right down. I …