I thank both Deputies for raising the matter. There has been significant engagement. Progress has been made and the most important point is that if we did not have engagement both Deputies would be coming in with a different set of questions in terms of governance and in terms of structures and the appropriateness of that. We have seen record investment in community by Government over the past decade. There are deficits in some cases and we will work to fill those deficits. Both the Minister, Deputy Calleary, and I…

How about yourself, Deputy?

The important part we should look at is this debate is about people, first, second and third. It is not about anything else. A decade on from the passing of the Gender Recognition Act, we have a lot of road to keep going as a country. As a member of the LGBTIQ+ community, I respect everybody. Deputy O'Donoghue is right that fear is driving some of the narrative. That fear is caused by some and they have to reflect on their articulation of points. I welcome the members in the Public Gallery and thank them for being …

I thank Senator Kennelly for raising the matter. The Senator is a proud representative of his area and I hear his concerns in terms of the temporary fixtures and temporary solutions. The Senator is correct that it is unacceptable that a 16-week closure deprives people. The Senator painted a very dark picture of the lack of connectivity. I am taking the matter this afternoon for my colleague, the Minister for Transport, Deputy O'Brien. The bridge rehabilitation scheme in the context of Foildarrig Bridge in Duagh is …

I understand the Senator's frustration. This is unacceptable. He is representing people who are deprived of connectivity, and he not wrong to be here today advocating for them. I accept totally his bona fides and his position. There is a need for facilitation between all the different stakeholders to ensure that we avoid where we have been and where we cannot be in the future. The Government is committed to protection and renewal of our road network. As we know, we must connect people, businesses and communities. W…

I thank Senators Kyne, Conway and Byrne for their contributions on this very important matter. They raised very pertinent points regarding the localities where they are from and, indeed, about the tourist market. The greening corporate fleets initiative originates from the European Commission's sustainable and smart mobility strategy from 2020, which committed to a comprehensive policy of actions to boost the uptake of zero-emission vehicles in corporate and urban fleets. In October of last year, Ireland joined a s…

I am glad the three members are in unison on this matter. I will certainly reflect their concerns and the views they have articulated back to the Minister. Senator Conway, it is fair to say that nobody from our side of the House wants to decimate the car rental market and the fleet relating thereto, which is a very important part of our offering to tourists coming in and to people who need to rent cars. The Government remains firmly committed to accelerating the electrification of private and corporate vehicles as …

I thank the Deputy for his question. I have no doubt he will join me in welcoming this initiative, which was launched in September and extends free travel on all public service obligation, PSO, services to children between five and eight years of age. This initiative was announced as part of the budget 2025 package of measures and delivers on a key programme for Government commitment to make public transport more affordable and accessible for families. The extension of free travel for children under nine builds on …

I will bring the Deputy's concerns back. As he knows quite well, the whole piece of the individual cards and the validators on Luas and rail is about ensuring there is not accidental double charging. I disagree with him on the uptake - 25,000 since 1 September is quite a significant uptake. Equally, it is important to recognise that since the launch over 9 million Leap cards have been issued, accounting for €2.7 billion in fare payments. The fundamental core architecture is nearly 20 years old and cannot absorb fur…

The budget of this year has provided for the continuation of the free child fares on PSO services. The Deputy raised commercial bus operators. The previous Government decision did not include provisions for extending free travel for children reliant on commercial bus operators. While the NTA is responsible for licensing commercial bus services, any decisions regarding fares charged by these services are managed by commercial bus operators themselves, who largely operate without State subvention. Notably, the young …

I thank Deputy Mac Lochlainn for the question. I am taking it for the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, who cannot be here tonight. The programme for Government includes a clear commitment to engage with relevant stakeholders to establish air connectivity between Dublin and City of Derry airports. The Department of Transport is progressing the preparatory work necessary to establish a Dublin-Derry public service obligation air service in 2026. This service will enhance connectivity for the north west of the island pending …

I understand Deputy Mac Lochlainn's need to get this expedited. He makes a good point about there being no rail and no motorway, and the A5 delay. We should compliment the wonderful Local Link service in Donegal. The Deputy right. I will bring his comments back to the Department officials. I assure him that the current timeline proposed is the optimum one to ensure that important stakeholder engagement and the preparatory work are completed and we can deliver this important service. He is right that we share this. …

From a policy perspective, the Government announced the national human rights strategy for disabled people on 3 September 2025. Pillar 5 of the strategy, "Transport and Mobility”, contains a number of transport priority actions, which I am proud to say will be led by our Department. The strategy puts great importance on engagement with disabled people. The Minister, Deputy O’Brien, met with members of the disability sector on 29 September last for a constructive dialogue around our shared ambition to ensure 100% tr…

The Deputy’s points are relevant, and I will take them back to the NTA and Dublin Bus. It is not about making it difficult for people. It is about ensuring they can have accessibility. The work we are doing to make public transport accessible for older or disabled people must not count for nothing. It is about that reliability piece, but it is also about accessibility and not creating a barrier. I will bring that back. The other point that is worth making is that while the retrofit programme is important, if we can…

I thank the Deputies for their comments. I do not have the specific answers to their questions but I will take them back. I thank them for the geography lesson on Dublin city and routes 73 and 123. The points the two Deputies make are very important. If we are asking people to have independent travel and encouraging the 15-minute concept of the city, then older people need to be able to access public transport. There is no point in having free public transport if they cannot access it. The points made by both Deput…

I thank the Deputy for her question and for her ongoing engagement on the matter of Dublin Bus services. Like her, I am eager to see improvements in real-time tracking, not just of Dublin Bus services, but nationwide across the whole public service obligation, PSO, fleet. The Dublin Bus automatic vehicle location system feeds information to the bus operator's control room, TFI Live app and on-street signs. It dates from 2009. A new automatic vehicle location system is due to be rolled out initially on Dublin Bus an…

There is nothing on which I disagree with Deputy Currie regarding the matters she has raised. As she knows, the NTA has responsibility for the planning and development of public transport infrastructure, including the development of real-time systems. The Deputy made a good point on the app. The rating is quite poor. To be fair to her and other Members, but her in particular, she has raised the matter repeatedly. I know from talking to people who work and live in Dublin that they are concerned about the lack of rea…

She has made a very fair point. The network redesign and delivery by the NTA has continued over the past four years. It has rolled out the sixth phase of the redesigned bus network in Dublin, which includes state-of-the-art ticketing and providing cashless and account-based ticketing across bus and other public transport networks. We have seen new bus liveries, standardising the exteriors and interiors of buses across bus operators, along with new bus stops and shelters, but also providing enhanced bus stops with b…

I fully concur that a rating of 1.4 on the app is not good enough. I know from my city, Cork, that people are concerned about buses not turning up, be it the late-night bus or the last bus, which the Deputy mentioned. We really have to improve on this. I will ask the NTA to engage directly with the Deputy.

I thank Deputy Timmins for the matter he has raised tonight. As Minister of State in the Department responsible for transport, I recognise the vital role that enhanced connectivity plays in supporting communities across rural Ireland, including in County Wicklow. The Deputy raised it during the last Question Time. I reassure the Deputy that improving the accessibility, reliability and affordability of rural public transport, while ensuring the system remains well-funded and responsive to passenger needs, is a core …