What is new about Cullen’s bus pledge? - Mitchell

Well as bus drivers go on strike today (how am i going to get around I'll have to walk!!:( ), FG have the following press release about Minister Cullen's promises

Fine Gael Transport Spokeswoman Olivia Mitchell TD has ridiculed Martin Cullen’s commitment to provide additional vehicles to Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann, describing it as the latest in a long line of hollow promises.

“There is no new proposal here for new buses, either on the Cabinet table or apparently between the Government parties. This issue has been discussed at Cabinet recently and there was an ideological logjam between Fianna Fáil and the PDs that blocked any new buses. Has that logjam now been cleared? I am very doubtful that it has. Indeed, CIÉ has confirmed to Fine Gael that it has received no notification that funding will be made available for new vehicles for Dublin Bus or Bus Éireann. Minister Cullen’s intervention is more about avoiding an unnecessary bus stoppage than a clear commitment to buy extra vehicles.

“It is also worth remembering that:

• The Minister has been promising an additional 200 vehicles for Dublin Bus for five years, but has been blocked repeatedly by the PDs at Cabinet level. Have the PDs done a U-turn on this issue, or will this proposal be blocked once again?

• It will cost around €30 million to purchase 100 Dublin Bus vehicles, and another €50 million for 160 Bus Éireann coaches. This money has not been allocated to the Department of Transport in the 2006 estimates and there is no supplementary estimate for this purpose. So the new vehicles cannot be purchased before the end of the year.

• None of these new vehicles will be available for immediate delivery, and it will take at least a year before any new buses or coaches are available for service. So not a single new bus will be available to Dublin Bus or Bus Éireann before the next general election, and probably not before 2008.

“This looks like just another hollow promise from Minister Cullen to prevent the strike from going ahead. The truth is that Government policy on public transport is likely to be brushed under the carpet until after the next election, with the travelling public conveniently forgotten. This is yet another example of the weak and indecisive government practiced by Fianna Fáil and the PDs.

“There is enough demand for bus services from both CIÉ and the private sector. Regulated competition in the bus network would improve services for the travelling public, and would not disadvantage Dublin Bus which has the experience to compete with private bus operators.

“The current public bus model is woefully inadequate to meet the needs of an expanding city like Dublin and an expanding national population. CIÉ has been struggling for years with an outdated and under-resourced fleet of vehicles because Fianna Fáil and the PDs cannot make up their minds on how to reform the bus market.

“The travelling public has borne the brunt of this fudge. Car use has rocketed in the absence of new bus routes, while services on existing routes have not kept pace with demand. Dublin Bus carried the same number of passengers in the peak rush hour in 2004 as it did in 1997. Private bus operators are prevented from opening new routes which the public is crying out for, particularly in the new urban areas which have sprung up around Dublin. Their frustration is all the greater when they see the brand new bus lanes which are largely empty, or in some cases never see a bus at all.

“Earlier this year Fine Gael produced a comprehensive policy document on bus services, A Better Route. This calls for the Dublin bus market to be opened up to new operators to increase and improve services, when and where they are needed. A similar approach adopted in London saw passenger journeys increase four-fold in a few years. This type of change would radically transform the bus market in Dublin and mark a huge shift in use of public transport.”