Matt Carthy
Question:101. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Transport the funding allocated for local road restoration to Cavan and Monaghan County Councils in 2025; and the funding allocation to both councils in 2026. [1246/26]
Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions
Road Network
I have been in elected politics a long time and I have to say that the state of local roads generally has never been as bad in all of my time. It is evident not enough funding is being provided to local authorities. Will the Minister indicate how much funding was allocated to local authorities in my area, Cavan and Monaghan county councils, last year? What is the proposed allocation for 2026?
I know this matter is of great interest to the people of Cavan and Monaghan. I met with councillors from there before Christmas. At the outset, I should state that the improvement and maintenance of the regional and local road network is the statutory responsibility of the local authority, in accordance with the Roads Act. Works on these roads are funded from the council's own resources and are supplemented by State road grants. The initial selection and prioritisation of works to be funded is a matter for each local authority. Indeed, Cavan and Monaghan do a very good job. Although they have been constrained by resources, they have got the resources every year they are required.
As regards the basis for allocating grants, within the budget available to the Department, grant funding is allocated on the basis of grant programmes and not on the basis of the category of road. The allocation of funding across specific roads, or across categories, is something we get submissions from local authorities about, which we assess. The main regional and local road grant programmes are targeted at specific policy objectives, including pavement sealing to protect the road surface from water damage, road strengthening based on pavement condition rating to lengthen the life of the roads - good work has been done in Monaghan, in particular, on that using new technologies - and a discretionary grant that allows for a range of activities, including pothole repairs, edge strengthening and renewal of signs, etc. These three grant programmes account for most of the grant funding and are allocated based primarily on the length of the road network in a particular local authority area.
Apart from a requirement that 15% of the road strengthening grant is spent on regional roads, the allocation of funding to different categories of road is entirely a matter for decision by each local authority. Having said that, in 2025, Cavan received an allocation of €19.193 million, which was an increase of nearly €1.8 million on its 2024 allocation, and Monaghan received an allocation of €18 million, which was an increase of just short of €1.8 million on the previous year's allocation.
I am awaiting the draft allocations for roads. I expect to have that in the next week. I will then go through that, taking into account working with officials, to allocate that and get it out quicker than we did last year. There was a slight delay because of the election and road allocations did not go out until around March. We intend to get them out in January of this year.
I agree with the Minister on two fronts. Local authority staff in Cavan and Monaghan are doing a huge amount of work and are getting efficient use out of the funding that is allocated in terms of the road programme. The second area is that councillors across all political parties and all local Oireachtas Members agree that the funding in place is nowhere near sufficient in order to deal with the issues.
There are a number of different problems. The road network deteriorated as a result of cutbacks following the financial crash and costs have increased substantially. The increases we have seen, even in recent years, come nowhere close to addressing that. In Monaghan, for example, in real terms, the extra allocation was about €1 million last year vis-à-vis the two years in terms of actual funding provided. Well over €400,000 of that - it was actually closer to €500,000 in Monaghan - had to be spent on speed limit signs because of the new speed limits. The situation is that more roads are in need of urgent repair than ever before.
The Minister said he cannot give the actual figures. Will there be a substantial increase in the 2026 allocations?
Every local authority is looking for additional funding. Last year, we provided significant additional funding, which the Deputy acknowledged. We intend to provide a further increase in funding this year. I am not being evasive; I cannot give him that figure. I need time with colleagues to be able to go through the draft allocations, which I will look at. We take into account the submissions and feedback we receive from local authorities. I have met with most, though not all, local authorities in relation to the roads programme. I could not meet all of them in the short space of time that I had. Both Cavan and Monaghan do an excellent job. I know both local authorities well and the staff therein. Monaghan, in particular, has been to the forefront of using new technologies for road repair. It has got additional funding for that and is one of the counties that has piloted that programme. I commend its chief executive, Robert Burns, and its director of services on the work they have done there.
This will be in the next few weeks. I intend to get this out, if I can, in January. I will obviously share that with Deputies. We will get the allocations out to the local authorities so they can continue the good work they are doing. This will not all be fixed in one year.
No, but here is the difficulty. I have visited roads, including one that is close to the town of Ballybay and one close to Castleblayney, in recent weeks. The roads are in a terrible condition. From dealing with the local authority, the best it can do in the short term is patching work, which in many ways is economically crazy but it has to be done. The best-case scenario under the current trajectory is that it could take five or even six years before those roads will be properly restored.
Here is the frustration of people in those areas: they have seen their cost of insurance increase; they are paying their road tax; they have seen the cost of petrol and diesel being increased by the Government on an annual basis; and, for those who have to travel to Dublin or elsewhere, their toll charges have increased. They are asking themselves what they are getting for all of this, if they cannot even drive to their local school without risking bursting the suspension on their car.
I know the Minister cannot give the precise figures. Will there be a substantial increase in road funding so we can ensure that the programme for road maintenance and restoration will be accelerated in the coming months and years?
We cannot just look at this in isolation. There is the NDP and the projects we are advancing for new roads and new national roads across the country. In Cavan-Monaghan, there is the trans-European transport network, TEN-T, road network, which is critically important in the north west. There have been unprecedented levels of investment. There will be a further increase. The Deputy's definition of "substantial" and mine might be different, but I do not have a figure yet. I do not have the draft report. When I do, it will be considered. We will do that.
We will work with our local authorities across the country, which do a good job in this regard. The funding increases last year were significant. It has been good to see the local authorities being able to deploy those resources. More work needs to be done. Deputy Carthy would also acknowledge that this situation will not be fixed in one year. We have got to be able, on a phased basis and in a structured way, to continue increasing that funding. We are coming through, but are still in, a high-inflation environment where more money has been allocated but, in some instances, it has really just covered that inflationary amount. That has to be managed well, and it will be. In the coming weeks, we will be announcing the allocations.
Bus Services
Roderic O'Gorman
Question:102. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Transport the new bus routes that will be provided under his Department's 2026 current expenditure allocation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2584/26]
What new bus routes will be provided under the Department's 2026 current expenditure allocation?
Improving accessibility, reliability and affordability of public transport while ensuring the system remains well funded and responsive to passenger needs is a core priority under the programme for Government. While my Department sets the overall policy direction and funding framework for the delivery of public transport services, the NTA has the statutory responsibility for securing the provision of public transport services nationally. In this context, we secured an unprecedented allocation of €940 million for the PSO services in budget 2026. I mentioned this in my previous answer to the Deputy. That was a 43% uplift in one year alone. It has raised that base. As I mentioned earlier, we did not want to continue the practice of the previous five years of going back for continued supplementary budgets because you cannot plan properly. We need to get the PSO onto a sustainable footing. We have taken a real step forward in that regard. As the Deputy is aware, supplementary funding has become a recurring requirement and we wanted to move away from that. Accordingly, the 2026 allocation prioritised advancement of ongoing programmes and commitments in line with operational readiness and resource availability. This includes recently announced changes to the route alignments under phase 7 of BusConnects and the upcoming roll-out of new town services in, for example, Mullingar, County Westmeath, in quarter 1 of 2026.
I will continue, with colleagues, to engage with the NTA as it finalises its 2026 service plan, ensuring that planning and strategic decisions are informed by operational and resource considerations. Once we receive the draft plan, the Ministers of State and I will assess that. I expect there will be new services in 2026. We have to consolidate the new services brought in during the past couple of years. We have to manage the resources properly, which we will. I do not have the service plan yet, but I expect to get it imminently. We will take the feedback we get from all colleagues, Government and Opposition, with regard to services that are needed. People are using public transport at a level they never have before, which is great, and we want to continue to support that.
The Minister has set out the size and, in his own words, the unprecedented current expenditure allocation for 2026. I am concerned it only gives him enough to maintain existing levels of services. That seems to be backed up by what his officials said. The minutes of the management board meeting were quoted in the paper: "The allocation, while substantial, will not allow for new services to be delivered" in 2026. For example, on the BusConnects programme for Galway city, the NTA said in 2023 that Galway's new bus network was scheduled for 2025 to 2026. However, when I contacted the NTA in November last year, it said that the new bus network in Galway city was currently scheduled to commence implementation in 2027 to 2028, subject to operational readiness and confirmation of funding. To be clear, the NTA is saying this is not an infrastructural issue, but a funding issue. Funding is key to the decision about whether Galway gets its new BusConnects system. I am concerned that gap in funding for new services identified by the Minister's officials is the blockage for BusConnects in Galway.
I also saw that article and will take the opportunity to say we need the investment in the new services, like the N8 bus link from Dublin 15. However, we definitely need investment in existing services as well due to a growing population, growing demand and growth in housing. The Minister and I spoke about the fact that investment in existing services in Dublin West had reduced to €97 in 2022 and there was zero budget for 2023 in enhancing existing services. That led to serious reliability issues across the 37, 38, 39 and 40 buses. They are the backbone of our constituency. We need to invest in both new services and enhancing existing services. It was foolhardy to prioritise new services over existing services, leaving communities like mine behind from 2022 to 2024. It would also be foolhardy to now go in the opposite direction. I know from speaking to the Minister that it is a priority for him to invest in both and get it right for all the population of Dublin.
We will take Dublin as an example. I am using Dublin because two Dublin Deputies have asked this question. We had 164 million passenger journeys on Dublin Bus alone last year. Those are record-breaking numbers. That has been supported by new services being rolled out and improvements to existing services, even acknowledging that there have been human resource challenges. We still have issues in some areas with reliability of services. The ghost bus phenomenon needs to be addressed because the customer needs to be central to everything our bus and rail operators do all the way across the country. It has to be about serving the paying customer because people are responding to the investment. We will not be able to do every new route that everyone wants in one particular year. We have to step that out and move it through.
Deputy Currie mentioned the N8 and has asked me direct questions on that before, as have Deputy O'Gorman, the Minister, Deputy Chambers, and others. I intend to get that route in place in 2026. I am clear about that.
We have to work with partners in the NTA and we have a budget to manage. We do not have infinite resources either. Let us be clear about that, too. Getting the PSO onto a sustainable footing was critical. I was not going to do what was done over the past five years, which was to depend on large supplementary budgets coming in at the end of every year to support service expansion. That is not the way to do business. That is why my two Minsters of State and I insisted that we get a significant increase into the base in the PSO. That gives us a real platform to move forward into 2027 to 2028 and beyond.
For my part, I will always fight for new bus services and public transport routes around the country. I brought in a question earlier specifically about the N8, a new service we have desperately needed for years and that has been pushed back. I am glad that the Minister is going to intervene, and we look forward to seeing that delivered this year.
I think about the growth of housing around our city and brand new estates in areas like Tyrrelstown, Hollywoodrath and Kilmartin Grove. These are entirely new estates in places that were fields two or three years ago. Those areas need new services. It is not always enough to say we have boosted the existing services, because there are brand new areas that have been created. Particularly in those parts of my constituency, and the Minister and I were at the opening of many of those homes, I know that many people cannot get into town because the bus routes are inadequate. That is why we have to fight for new services as well as improved capacity on existing services.
When I want to take a bus or train from Belfast to Dublin, Dundalk or Drogheda, the routes have improved. By rail or bus, they are absolutely excellent and even on the hour. However, if I want to go from east to west, from Clogherhead to Dunleer or Ardee and on to Trim or Kells, there are no buses and no public services to enable people to get to work or to get to medical appointments. I have written again and again to the NTA with no reply. If there is any reply, it is saying they have no plans to develop any services east to west within County Louth, or even connecting County Louth to County Meath. I find this extraordinary when we are trying to encourage people to use more public transport. There is the cost to car owners and to people who have to take time off work to bring loved ones to medical appointments. Surely this is something that can be considered.
By the range and depth of the questions and contributions here, we see all of the different demands on the Department of Transport. That is good. We have advocates right the way across the House, but we have a Government that needs to deliver. We need to continue a phased and sustainable improvement in services. My predecessor in transport, the former Minister, Eamon Ryan, did a good job and we worked with him in that regard.
We needed to get that funding on a sustainable footing and I was not going to continue what was done previously. It meant having to go back every single year and look for short-term moneys to plug the gap. We need to be able to plan in a sustainable way. That is how the Minister of State, Deputy Buttimer, answered Deputy Whitmore earlier when she asked for a bus service to be announced. It has to be done in a planned way. We have to look at the network in its totality, all the way across the country. Deputy Dolan raised specific issues in his own constituency that we will work through.
I am concerned that the Deputy said he wrote to the NTA and got no response. That is not acceptable. I ask him to bring those to us. Every Deputy deserves a response and for their input to be respected. We will make a further improvement this year in 2026. Am I going to be able to keep everybody happy with all the services they want in 2026? No, I am not. However, we are going to see a further step change in that regard, an increase and improvement. We particularly have to serve our newer communities. We cannot look at this in isolation to the NDP capital investments. We are talking about the bus network. The first two BusConnects corridors have started and there has been major investment in rail, road and our bus network as well. We have lots of good things. This period of time could be transformational.
There were 343 million public transport journeys in 2024. That was throughout the full year. That will have substantially increased further in 2025. People are responding to the investment the Government is making. This is good for our climate and quality of life. We need to continue to improve it, and we will by working with people.
Bus Services
Keira Keogh
Question:103. Deputy Keira Keogh asked the Minister for Transport if his Department will consider introducing additional Local Link routes and frequencies to better connect rural communities in Mayo; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2666/26]
Many communities and individuals across Mayo continue to face significant challenges in accessing essential services like employment opportunities and social activities, as well as doctor's appointments, due to limited public transport options. Will the Department consider introducing additional Local Link routes and, more importantly, additional increased frequency to better connect communities in Mayo?
I thank Deputy Keogh for raising the issue. As Minister of State in the Department of Transport with special responsibility for rural transport, with my colleagues, the Minister, Deputy O’Brien, and the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, we are, as I told Deputy Whitmore, investing considerably in services throughout the country under the NTA’s flagship Connecting Ireland rural mobility plan, supported by funding allocated by the Department of Transport. I thank the Deputy for being a constant advocate in her own county of Mayo for rural transport and connectivity. We have seen funding increase by 56% between 2023 and 2024, with passenger numbers increasing by 72%. A great example of this continued investment can be seen in the launch of routes 460a and 460b in September of last year. These new routes offer connectivity to regional bus services in Castlebar station, Mayo University Hospital and to the villages located between Castlebar and Achill Island. I am pleased to share with Deputy Keogh that, last July, Ireland’s first ever smart demand responsive transport service was launched in Achill. This pilot marks a major milestone in rural mobility innovation and is a flagship initiative designed to revolutionise how rural communities connect and access public transport, and the service includes a flexible door-to-door app-based transport model, tailored to local needs, offering greater connections, convenience, accessibility and frequency. Since its launch last July, the pilot has seen encouraging passenger numbers, with a notable increase in repeat users highlighting the importance of the service as a transport link for residents in areas with limited transport options.
In October 2025, the operating hours of the TFI Anseo in Achill were extended and it now operates from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. to better meet the needs of the local community, providing more travel options for greater convenience and accessibility.
In conclusion, my Department supports continued investment in rural transport in line with the commitment in the programme for Government to continue delivering on the fundamental and foundational public transport service produced under our flagship Connecting Ireland rural mobility plan.
I thank the Minister of State.
I will conclude on this. There is €31 million ring-fenced for rural transport, a 38% increase on funding from last year.
I was at the launch of TFI Anseo and I welcome it, along with all of the increases in spending. When we look at the map of Local Link in Mayo, it looks like we are really connected, but I am thinking of a lady in Fahy outside Westport who is in her 60s. Her mind is super active and she is a fantastic woman, but she has arthritis and cannot drive. She has one option to go to Westport on a Friday morning at 12.10 p.m, but she has three hours and 20 minutes in town before she has to be back on the bus for 3.30 p.m. It sounds as though that is great and she can go to town once a week and do her shopping and meet her friends but she has to plan that in advance. With TFI Anseo doing so well, it would be great to see that expanded into Erris and Westport so that people do not necessarily have to plan ahead. I also think of Pullathomas where one when can go as far as Curraunboy on a Monday or Wednesday at 10.30 a.m. and get a bus to Ballina at 10.44 a.m., but cannot get back. A lot has been done but more needs to be done.
The map paints a very good picture and I accept there are challenges. There are the provisions we have to bring and we want to see a further enhancement of the service. As I said earlier to Deputy Whitmore and I will say again now, we await the NTA service plan. As the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, said to Deputy Carthy in terms of road funding, we will listen to all requests. We have a finite budget, as the Deputy will appreciate, but with the NTA, we will work to ensure we continue to invest in our rural transport. In the Deputy’s own county of Mayo, we saw an increase in investment of 56% between 2023 and 2024 to more than €2 million, with passenger numbers increasing by 72%. As Minister of State, I will work with the Deputy to ensure we look at that map and see how we can fill the gaps in provision for the people the Deputy mentioned. I am fully committed, along with the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, and the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, to ensuring that map has connectivity all the way around.
We need to box clever when we are looking at it. For example, Knockrooskey is an area that does not have footpaths or lighting, so we cannot put an extra bus stop in yet for the Bus Éireann route that moves through it. A Local Link would be really welcome there where the nearest bus stop is Coill an Bhaile and it is too dangerous to walk to. I think of Louisburgh, where the bus service finishes around 6.30 p.m. and the residents are cut off from the nearest swimming pool where kids want to attend lessons, the theatre or cinema.
I welcome the increased investment and numbers but we can think smart about it. We should expand the likes of TFI Anseo more so that we are being flexible and adaptive to the needs of our constituents and boxing clever with the resources we have. That would go a long way.
The Deputy is right that it is about boxing clever and TFI Anseo is a success. I fundamentally agree with her. She mentioned Knockrooskey. It is about that joined-up approach in terms of the local authority with footpaths, the NTA and Bus Éireann. What I would like us to do further as a Department is better linkage in terms of more accessibility and highlighting what the Deputy referenced in terms of the child who wants to do swimming lessons being able to get on a bus, the footpath, the lighting, and having a bus stop on the road. That comes down to an holistic approach by the NTA, the Department, local authorities, local communities and the local bus service providers to make sure that we are more accessible and resilient.
People are voting with their feet. We as a Government and a Department are strongly committed to enhancing our Local Link services, as I know the Deputy is. She has been a champion for that for the 12 months I have got to know her and I hope we can work together to deliver further for the people of Mayo.
Rail Network
Albert Dolan
Question:104. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Transport if plans are in place to progress the double-tracking of the rail line between Athenry and Galway; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1763/26]
Athenry as a town is growing at a rapid rate. The town has been without a bus for a year and our trains are completely wedged. I welcome the investment in Ceannt Station in Galway, bringing it from a two-platform to a five-platform station. I welcome the investment in the passing loop at Oranmore to increase frequencies. However, I have to ask whether there is any plan to double-track the line from Galway city to Athenry.
I thank the Deputy for the question and I wish to confirm straight off that my Department is working with the National Transport Authority and Iarnród Éireann to progress a number of rail projects in Galway, including double-tracking the line between Athenry and Galway. In order to progress this project, Iarnród Éireann has appointed a multidisciplinary engineering consultancy, and the Galway line capacity study commenced last summer, so the work is in hand at the moment.
The development of an emerging preferred option is expected to be identified later this year. Separately, and related, as the Deputy said, works commenced at Oranmore Station last October. This project will provide an additional platform and a passing loop. This will increase capacity on the Galway to Athenry line. The project is scheduled to be completed next year and will be of immediate benefit to the route.
Work is also progressing on Ceannt Station. These works, which are scheduled to be completed later this year, will increase the number of platforms from two to five, which will support the growth of train service frequencies envisioned under the all-island strategic rail review. In order to start making the vision set out in the rail review a reality, the NDP sectoral investment plan for transport, which my Department published in November, provides funding to advance a number of early interventions by 2030, including new passing loops and platforms to boost rail connectivity and resilience.
Included in these early interventions are new platforms at Clara and Woodlawn on the Galway line which will support journey times. The sectoral plan also provides funding to commence the construction of the reinstatement of the western rail corridor between Claremorris and Athenry. I look forward to seeing these projects being delivered in the years ahead. This morning I met the chief executive of Iarnród Éireann to get a progress report on the works that are going on right across the country in terms of the all-island rail review. I am happy to say that progress is being made and that last year we had 55 million journeys on rail. We are now talking about rail in a fashionable way as opposed to how we were talking about for the past 20 years, which was talking about closing it down. We are now in expansion and growth mode, and that is what we will be doing.
I really appreciate the update and the fact that it is being looked at and that a team has been appointed to design a preferred option. However, I have to re-emphasise that Athenry is a town with a population of over 5,000 and currently has 200 homes under construction across four different sites. Things are going great for the town. Jobs are coming but that access to Galway city is vital but right now a town with over 5,000 people has no bus service. Our trains are completely wedged in the morning. I know that the trains and carriages are on their way but they cannot come quickly enough. The people are crying out for them and they want to see this happen. The double tracking is critical because that would enable a direct commuter link from Athenry to Galway city. The passing loop at Woodlawn as per the sectoral plan is vital as well because that would drastically reduce intercity times. All of this is progress but the Minister of State has to understand how serious it is right now in Athenry. There has been no bus service for over a year and trains are completely wedged.
Deputy Butterly, did you wish to come in on this?
Yes. County Louth, where there are 140,000 people-----
Ah Jesus, what has that got to do with Athenry?
The Deputy is allowed to speak.
The Deputy is allowed to ask the question.
It is based on rail, Deputy Mac Lochlainn. With a population of 140,000, County Louth is growing and houses are spawning at an accelerated rate. Our businesses are growing and we are attracting businesses into the county, month after month. However, our two train stations are jammed. There is no parking and there is no facility. I listened earlier when the Minister of State talked about how we have to be ambitious, and we are ambitious, but it is now time to have a serious conversation about a third railway station. We have the land zoned in Drogheda and it would make sense to have another train station in Drogheda, or north of it. However, if we are truly ambitious, surely we should consider a brownfield site half way between Dundalk and Drogheda and really plan for the future.
I thank the Deputy for raising that issue. As someone who has been in politics since 2004, I am glad to see the demands that are now coming for rail and for investment in rail. At that time, the agenda was to close down the railways and people continued with that up to two or three years ago. I am glad to see that my colleagues in the constituency have seen the light of day and are now supporting the implementation of and investment in rail. It is a success story and we are now in growth and investment mode. There are 285 new carriages on order at the moment, with a total of 750 to be procured over the next number of years. That is an investment. What is happening at the moment is that we have demand that is growing every year and that is great. What we have to do is make sure we, as a Government, provide the investment to make sure we can meet that demand and give a good experience to the passenger.
The idea of a new train station for Louth has a lot of merit. We need to get the population there travelling by public transport rather than by cars and all that goes with that. Over the next number of year, I will look forward to making sure we invest. My two colleagues here are totally behind me on that.
For fear there would be any confusion, I invite the Minister of State to look back through my social media since I was elected in politics in 2019. He will see that month on month, I consistently raised the need for the passing loop at Oranmore. On radio and in local media I have consistently pushed for the double tracking. Those projects are vital and they will be delivered but this has to be done collegially and together. I look forward to working with the Minister of State in the constituency to make that happen. We have a town that is growing at a rapid rate and the commuter service and the access to the city before 9 a.m. are vital. I appreciate the work that is being done but I would definitely invite the Minister of State to look back through my social media and I think he might be pleasantly surprised.
When mentioned colleagues, I was not referring to Deputy Dolan but he knows the history of what people were trying to do. They were trying to close down lines and they were from political parties and none. Basically, I am saying that agenda is gone. What we need to do now is to work together to make sure we deliver what we can deliver. We have the will to do it and Iarnród Éireann is capable of doing it. We will start in a logical way. We are going to make sure that Ceannt Station is capable. In the meantime, while we are getting the double tracking done, we will get a passing loop and a new station at Oranmore.
We are also going to open up the line between Athenry and Claremorris, so that we can service the west of Ireland. I know well the Deputy supports all of that. The agenda has changed and people are demanding investment. They are getting the investment and we will continue to do that. Not everything is going to happen at the one time. We have set out our strategic plan for investment over the next five years and beyond. When I met representatives of Irish Rail this morning, I got their programme. They are looking at the next 15 to 20 years. I am looking forward to seeing all of that being delivered, as the Deputy is.
It is wonderful to have that clarified and those in the constituencies are working together.
Yes, I thank the Leas-Ceann Comhairle.
School Transport
Brian Stanley
Question:105. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Transport if he will resolve the issues concerning bus drivers aged over 70; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2626/26]
I ask for the Minister to resolve the issue of school bus drivers, when they reach their 70th birthday, having to bow out and retire. This has to be addressed because it is causing problems. I have been raising this issue since January of last year. Right throughout the year, I have been at it. I hope there is some progress being made.
I thank the Deputy for asking the question. I know he is passionate about it, as are a lot of Deputies and Ministers, because it is something we need to get sorted.
The overriding consideration in relation to age limits for bus drivers has been safety. It is a matter for relevant bus companies, including Bus Éireann, to set their own terms and conditions in relation to employment, including retirement age. Bus Éireann applies a retirement age of 70 years for drivers across its wider road passenger services, including semi-State PSO services and school transport services operated or managed on behalf of the Minister for education. This approach is consistent across the PSO cohort, as neither Dublin Bus nor Go Ahead Ireland employ drivers over the age of 70.
Bus Éireann’s policy of operating services with drivers up to age 70 is grounded in safety considerations. This policy is informed by the company's operational experience and also by ongoing engagement with relevant stakeholders, including the RSA and other public operators. At this stage, I have had contact with Bus Éireann over the past year since I came into office. I have asked it to look at the requirements for people over 70. It has been looking at that. It has a safety board and an accessibility committee and they are considering whether to increase the upper age limit to 75 for its drivers. Bus Éireann is looking at this at the moment and it will continue to engage with the Departments of Education and Youth and Transport on all of this.
Hopefully, we will get a conclusion on it which will be acceptable to all in the not-too-distant future.
I thank the Minister of State for that. The issue is straightforward: bus drivers on the school transport scheme cannot drive beyond their 60th birthday. They cannot drive a minibus for two or three hours a day with ten or 15 pupils on it, yet they can drive a 50- or 60-seater coach hundreds of miles, and are doing so. School bus operators are losing drivers every year, and in Laois this is a real problem. They are finding it very difficult to replace them because the work is part-time and really suits retired people. I emphasise this to the Minister of State and the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien. The cohort driving the school buses is largely retired people. People generally retire at 60 or 65 and get five or ten years' driving. I am not asking for them to keep going until 100 or 90 years of age; I am simply proposing that they go to 75 on the condition that they pass a strict medical test. This is the key. I do not want to endanger anybody. I can understand Bus Éireann and other bus operators being concerned, but there are real issues starting to arise here. I refer to somebody driving a minibus two or three hours a day five or ten miles to a local school. They can drive 50-, 60- and 70-seater coaches, which they are doing and I know people who are doing it, yet they cannot drive their local school bus. That is a ridiculous situation. The Minister of State is right that we need to address the safety issue, but we need to solve this issue as well.
A private operator can be asked by the school to bring a group from Galway to the zoo in Dublin and someone aged over 70 can drive the vehicle, but someone that age cannot drive students in the local area to the local school, a route with which they will be a lot more familiar. There is an issue there to be resolved. In all fairness, Bus Éireann is looking at that. It has to look at it from a safety perspective. It also has to look at it from a logistical point of view as to how this will work. This probably affects the private bus operators more than Bus Éireann because they have people who are well experienced and school bus runs are part-time work.
This is a work in progress. The Department of education is involved in it as well as Bus Éireann. I will continue to work with them to try to find a solution, which the Deputy is requesting.
The school bus scheme is working fairly well, and it is good that is happening. I think problems were ironed out a bit quicker this year, and that is welcome. I acknowledge that. However, we have to have the drivers to fill the positions, and it is the Government's ambition, as I understand it, to expand the scheme, maybe to bring in people who are closer to the school and to reduce the distance from the school to qualify for it. If the Government is going to expand the scheme, that, along with an expanding population, will require more drivers. It is really important that we try to fix this because in September there were problems again trying to fill positions. Bus operators were frantically going around trying to get people to take on positions. We could extend the age by three, four or five years beyond 70 with a strict medical test. We do not want to see anybody put in danger. As I said, this has become a problem in Laois. I know it is starting to become a problem elsewhere because other Deputies have started raising it as well. The strict medical test is the issue. I ask the Minister and the Ministers of State to bear this in mind and to use their influence with Bus Éireann because the Department pays money to it every year. People's health is better now. They live longer now. Their health is better beyond 70. Seventy is the new 50.
I reassure the Deputy and every other Deputy in the House that this is a priority for the Department of Transport and that I have the support of the Ministers and the Government on this. We are making sure that any changes we make, or made, take into account all the safety factors that have to be considered as well. I agree with the Deputy. I see this in my constituency where private operators find it hard to get drivers to do part-time work and there are very well-qualified drivers who may be 70, 71, 72 or 73, who can do this and who were doing it last year but who cannot do it this year. We have to look at that and have a pragmatic approach, and that is what is being done at the moment. Hopefully, we will get the solution to it in the not-too-distant future.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Roderic O'Gorman
Question:106. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Transport for an update on the corrective action modelling project his Department is developing to correct the trajectory of carbon emissions from the transport sector out to 2030; when this will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2585/26]
Over Christmas, the Minister raised the white flag on our 2030 emissions targets four years ahead of schedule. One of the areas where Ireland continues to struggle is the emissions from our transport sector. The NDP sectoral plan the Minister published in November referenced the corrective action modelling project that the Department of Transport is leading to try to tackle the gap in our transport emissions. When does the Minister expect to publish that work?
First, no one has raised the white flag. I read with real interest and, actually, amusement the Deputy's comments in that regard since he is someone who served in the Government in the past five years and his former party leader did a very good job in that area. We are reducing emissions while the economy and the population are growing. A lot of the projects we have been talking about today will help to further decarbonise our transport system. Transport is critical in that regard. I am being honest with people and changing that climate conversation to ensure that people see the benefits of the transition that is under way in this country. Really significant progress has been made across many sectors, including agriculture, transport and, in particular, energy.
We are clear on the climate obligations we have. I am committed to advancing the progress we have made. However, we also have to be very honest with ourselves about where we will land at the end of the decade. I gave a view on that, which was based on projections I have, and it is important people know that. That is not to surrender anything at all. I can see where we will further accelerate our progress between now and the end of this decade and in the early 2030s. That conversation itself needs to change, and we are having an honest conversation with people and stakeholders and further advancing the good work that was done by my predecessor and the previous Government. However, we need to be honest with people too. That is where the discussions we have had even here this morning about the competing demands, and rightly so, with regard to public transport will be critical. I refer to continued electrification of our public transport network and of our car fleet. We have exceeded targets, by the way, with regard to electric vehicles. We have targeted the supports there for people through tax measures and grants. We will accelerate retrofitting of homes as well. In no way has anyone raised a white flag in that regard. Of that I can assure the Deputy.
The Minister's comments over Christmas cannot be taken in any way other than raising a white flag on this issue. What shocks me is that it is happening four years before the date for our 2030 targets.
Notwithstanding our disagreement on that, will the Minister speak to a particular project taking place in his Department, the corrective action project, which is to address the emissions gap pre-2030 as well as post 2030? If the Government is to effectively try to bring us on track in the transport sector pre-2030, this has to be published soon so those actions can start to be implemented and can take place. Has the Minister engaged with his officials on this project? Does he have any sense of the recommendations for new, extra measures, that this will bring forward? Does he have any sense of when that document will be published? Will any additional budget be provided for these extra measures?
We will get back to the point of agreement in this regard. I thank the Deputy for the question. It has been widely acknowledged that transport is and continues to be a difficult sector to decarbonise, but we are making progress. The development of the transport chapter of the climate action plan identified and set out policies intended to put the sector on a pathway to achieve an emissions reduction of 50% by 2030. Current indications, however, are that the carbon budget 1, 2021-25, target of 54 MtCO2eq has been exceeded and any overshoot will therefore be deducted from the carbon budget 2, 2026-30, target of 37 MtCO2eq. Achieving that more demanding target will be a challenge. Again, we have to be honest with people on that.
With that in mind, my Department has been working very closely with the NTA over the past 12 months to deliver the CAP corrective action modelling project that the Deputy has asked about. The aims of the project are essentially to identify potential policies and measures to correct the trajectory, which we are doing; determine whether the transport sector can go beyond this in order to address the issue of unallocated savings for carbon budget 2-----
Thank you, Minister.
I will come back on the supplementary question with the rest of my time.
The Green Party has called on the Minister and his Government to publish a plan B to show how, across all sectors of the economy, they will try to get us back on track to meet the emissions reduction targets. This project could serve as a model as to how that could be done across the economy. As regards one of the key consequences of the decision set out in the Department's sectoral plan for transport in November of last year, moving that 2:1 ratio of public transport to roads back to 1:1, I think we are already seeing the negative consequences of that.
If the project recommends, in light of the height of our transport emissions and the importance of investment in new public transport, a return to the 2:1 ratio, will the Government accept that recommendation?
To put to bed this mistruth in relation to the ratio, the Deputy is not correct and has been peddling this mistruth. The 2:1 ratio always was and always will be a relatively rough and ready reckoner. Having said that, based on the NDP sectoral plan, the ratio is as at more than 2:1 in relation to investment in public transport versus new roads. That is a fact. The Deputy cannot dispute that. We are looking at an investment package in the NDP that is heavily weighted towards public transport. On that basis, the ratio is about 2.6:1 in favour of new public transport over new roads. That is a fact.
To get back to the Deputy's question, the corrective actions modelling project is progressing very well. That will feed into the 2026 climate action plan. It will be completed in the coming months. I cannot tell the Deputy that it will be this quarter but it is well under way. I met officials yesterday evening and got a progress update on that. Where we can take corrective measures, we will, and we have a real opportunity to do that in the transport sector.
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