I will go through the Chair. To my mind, we have a fundamental problem in the institutional structures. There have been mechanisms to try to resolve that. In the 1950s, the United States of America pushed through UN General Assembly Resolution 377, the uniting for peace resolution, as a means of circumventing possible Soviet vetoes. The measure states that in the event that the Security Council cannot maintain international peace, the matter can be taken up by the General Assembly. The procedure requires a two thir…

As Minister of Transport, I have responsibility for policy and overall funding of public transport. Parking adjacent to railway stations is a matter for Iarnród Éireann in the first instance. In view of the Iarnród Éireann's responsibility in this matter, I have referred the Deputy's question to it for direct reply. Please contact my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 working days.

As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for overall policy and exchequer funding in relation to the National Roads Programme. Under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 and in line with the National Development Plan (NDP), the planning, design and construction of individual national roads is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. This is also subject to the Public Spending Code and the necessary statutory approvals. In this context, TII is best placed …

The key problem has been in getting drivers at Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann, Go-Ahead and other private operators. Every bus operator will tell the same story. To address this challenge and help close the gap, we engaged with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and secured agreement for 1,500 work permits for drivers who are needed across the country. Deputies will have seen Dublin Bus's major advertising campaign, which I understand has been successful. Private operators, Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann are s…

The National Transport Authority published the Limerick-Shannon metropolitan area transport strategy, LSMATS, in December of last year. The strategy was prepared by the NTA in collaboration with Limerick City and County Council, Clare County Council and Transport Infrastructure Ireland, with the co-operation of Iarnród Éireann, and provides a roadmap for sustainable transport in the region for the next 20 years. Proposals for investment in rail under LSMATS include a new station in Moyross, which I announced last O…

The House will not be surprised that I agree with Deputy Leddin. It is an either-or. We could go with a roads-based sprawl development, and Limerick could spread out into Clare on an unsustainable roads development system, which has not worked for Limerick. Limerick should be much bigger. Limerick needs to grow and needs to be much larger, and I believe it can grow around a sustainable transport system. If you try to do both, you will undermine the sustainable option.

It will not be viable. The housing will not be put in the right places. There will not be this 15-minute city concept, which we need to develop in Limerick, and we will not connect particularly those communities that were left isolated and without public transport systems, often people who could not afford a car. We need to think of them. There is a social justice issue in this. Public transport belongs to and provides for everyone. A car-based development model, which is unsustainable in environmental terms, is al…

The other thing that will help in that direction is that the market itself is changing. A large number of the international manufacturers in Europe and beyond are starting to provide options that are cheaper, lighter and more compact. I believe there is a real market for that. Many people say they cannot switch to electric vehicles because of the cost issue. That will start to be resolved as many those smaller, more affordable and more sustainable vehicles come on the market. That will also help us in terms of what…

Under the National Development Plan 2021-2030, BusConnects programmes will be substantially delivered in all of Ireland’s five cities by the end of the decade. These programmes will significantly enhance the quality of public transport in our cities and also include the parallel development of high-quality cycle lanes. BusConnects will be hugely transformative for all five of our cities, including Cork. Like all transformations, it will require change. I agree that it is important that this type of change is commun…

I fully agree with the Deputy. As I said, that local knowledge helped to inform the significant change that took place between the first and second iterations. That will continue to be needed. Public representatives also have a key role because they represent the people and have similar knowledge of the area. Both councillors and Deputies have a critical role to play. I encourage everyone to take part and make their views known by 25 May. I have a concern which comes from my experience of the Dublin BusConnects pro…

I absolutely agree about the consequences of not listening and the need to avail of local knowledge. I am glad the Deputy had a two-hour meeting with the representatives of the NTA. I have been involved in transport campaigning for 30 or 40 years, and in every single instance I can recall where we restricted traffic in some way, there have been valid concerns about what will happen to the neighbouring streets and areas, and people have felt it will not work. I cannot think of a single example where we have reversed…

The Government’s position on parking, including workplace parking, is largely reflected in the recent climate action plan. Broadly speaking, the plan recognises the role of car parking, and the availability and price thereof, in people’s choice to use a car, and the associated impacts this can have on climate emissions as well as on traffic congestion and the efficient operation of our urban areas. Within the context of managing traffic and transport demand, the plan also includes a commitment to develop a new nati…

I think such a levy goes back to the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997.

It must have been updated further. Either way, the point is that we have been talking about this for a long time. It is not an easy one. It is very sensitive. In many cases, people were locked into certain transport systems because of 50 or 60 years of car-dependent planning. We need that to change. It is about a combination of measures and not any one. We want to avoid punitive measures, pointing fingers, blaming people or pricing them out of things. It is about reallocating space, including car-parking space and …

In the first instance, I believe it is the Minister for Finance who has the signing order on any such measures and he or she would have a key role in anything. I go back to the point I made already that we cannot do this as a punitive thing where certain workers are forced into a workforce transport mode and then have the conditions change from under their feet, as it were. This speaks to a wider issue. We have seen in this city the real cost to everyone from the way in which we saw the rezoning of the outer city, …

There have been significant initiatives in the lifetime of the Government to improve public transport, particularly its affordability. There was a 20% reduction for all users and a 60% reduction for those under 24. In Dublin, 90-minute fares were introduced, so you can go from one public transport mode to another with a single fare. Only last week, new fare structures were introduced that recognise the system was overly complicated and that there were inequities in the scheme. The new fare structure is designed to …

I am keen to get the details. I used to do a lot of hitching over the years. Is that what the Deputy is talking about? Is it a hitching scheme?

Just some individuals.

So everyone would have a free car.

I am glad to confirm that my Department has engaged with Iarnród Éireann on a possible future station in the Killucan–Kinnegad area. An initial discussion on the potential reopening of Killucan station took place between my Department and Iarnród Éireann on 15 June 2022. Following this discussion, Iarnród Éireann was asked by my Department to prepare an estimate of the level of funding that might be required to progress a feasibility study considering new station options in Killucan and the surrounding area. Earlie…