Anyone waiting more than three months for a driving test should have €100 put on their Leap card as an incentive to use whatever public transport is available in their area, the Dáil was told.
Social Democrats TD Aidan Farrelly said that given the backlog in driving tests for young people he called on the Minister for Transport to consider, as part of the next budget, putting €100 on learners’ travel cards, for anyone waiting more than 10 or 12 weeks.
“This would give people an incentive to use whatever public transport is available be it rail or Local Link, he said.
An estimated 100,000 people have applied for the test with an average waiting time of 20.6 weeks.
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The Kildare North TD was speaking during a private member’s debate on public transport.
Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman said the programme for Government contains significant commitments on public transport but is “completely lacking” on the amount of funding and “there isn’t a deadline in sight”.
Introducing the motion, he said that with no clear timelines there is less pressure on agencies and “without constant pressure from the top no big reform in this country will ever succeed”, Mr O’Gorman said.
The motion calls for a further 20 per cent reduction in fare prices across the lifetime of this Government, the establishment of a new public transport passenger experience office and ensure a transport security force is operational by the end of 2026.
To ensure this target is met funding for it should be included in this year’s budget. The legislation would have to be introduced in September or October this year, he said.
“It means putting drafters under pressure, but there is widespread agreement that we need to improve the perception of safety on our public transport services, so let’s deliver that now.”
Minister of State for Transport Seán Canney said there is a “strong commitment” to establish a transport security force with similar powers to the airport police and customs officers and operating under the National Transport Authority (NTA).
The department is working to examine options for the establishment of a force but he warned the legislation will have a “significant lead-in time”.
100 per cent Redress Party TD Charles Ward said the lack of public transport in Donegal had led to “chronic traffic issues” and “Letterkenny is a disaster”. He said ambulances “constantly struggling to reach Letterkenny Hospital and what used to be a five-minute journey now takes 45 minutes and it’s putting lives at risk”.
People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy called for free public transport and said it was a “question of political will to implement it”. He said it would cost €650 million but that “needs to be matched with significant capital investment” to expand services.
Independent TD Brian Stanley said it was time to tackle the “nonsense” of drivers over the age of 70 not being allowed to drive schoolbuses when they drive private coaches with 52 passengers on board.
Mr Stanley said the age limit should be pushed out to 75 with strict annual medical and driving tests for them. This would help reduce the shortage of bus drivers.
Sinn Féin TD Pa Daly said “we only have to look at Dublin’s MetroLink, which has been stuck in the pipeline for decades, to see why Ireland regularly ranks as having one of the worst public transport systems in the EU”.
The Kerry TD said there is still no rail in Donegal and that region “ranks in the bottom 10 per cent of the EU’s 234 regions in terms of transport infrastructure”. He said “the Government cannot stand over that any more”.
Labour TD Ciarán Ahearn there is “no vision for public transport” in the Government’s plans. “There is no lodestar to work towards, and the programme for Government is beyond bare on details. Instead, it is bypasses for the boys, lay-bys for the lackeys.”
