We start building next year.

Me too.

I am.

There was no delay.

Construction starts next year.

I thank all Deputies for the contributions they have made. I thank them for the constructive contributions that were made by most. It is unfortunate that the Members who were some of the most vociferous opponents and made the most impassioned pleas have not remained in the Chamber to get an answer to the questions or the points they have raised. I hope that will be what Committee Stage is for. I will deal with regional growth and regional airports in a moment, but first, this Bill provides us an opportunity to deal…

I move: That the Bill be referred to the Select Committee on Transport pursuant to Standing Orders 103 and 188.

Sustained investment in the public service obligation, PSO, programme has driven record public transport use, with passenger numbers up 23% and continuing to grow this year, alongside an expanded network serving over 240 towns and villages. As demand rises and congestion issues remain, Ireland’s public transport system has reached a pivotal point, with an increasing need for reliable services. A fundamental reset in funding was required to place the PSO programme on a sustainable, long-term footing in line with the…

The 6.50 a.m. service is not going. Let us be clear on that. I know that the Deputy has been running a bit of a campaign locally. The 6.50 a.m. train service will be retained; end of story. What I was trying to explain in my answer was that we got a big uplift in PSO funding. For the past five years in the Department of Transport, a big supplementary budget was requested at the end of the year to basically backfill new services. I did not want to do it that way, which is why we got a big uplift - a 42% increase - i…

I have spoken on the record of the House about the 6.50 a.m. train. The Deputy has raised it. Deputy Albert Dolan has raised it with me as well. That service is being retained, and I will relay that information. I am not sure how it got to the stage where there was uncertainty around it. The broader point, which I have explained, is that about €1.6 billion is the operational cost of our public transport network across the board, most of that being PSO and fares. That is what it costs to run what we have, which is a…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue again. I know there is a campaign on the ground supported by her. This is an important service that we want to get into use. I mentioned in my previous answer that this year has been a year to ensure that we got an increase in the PSO funding, which is very significant. There has been considerable investment in services throughout the country under the Connecting Ireland Rural Mobility Plan. I think everyone is agreed that has been a real success. I have met many of the Loc…

I have outlined that this is an important service for people. I have outlined what has been done in just the past two years in relation to Local Link services in Wicklow. I think everyone acknowledges that there has been a significant increase. This route, this service, is a priority. I want to see it in place as soon as we can. I am trying to give a realistic timeframe for its implementation because the Deputy is right that people need certainty around it. They do not need to be told it might be next week and next…

I know people have been told this is funded. I know that the bus is purchased. People have been employed. If we can get it started earlier, we will do so. I will go back and specifically ask why that was advised previously. What the Minister of State, Deputy Buttimer, and I have tried to do - and I think we have done it pretty well - is to get that big uplift so we are starting from a higher base and then we can really be sustainable. As to what happened over the past five years, it was great to see the increases i…

-----because it was just a matter of going in every year for additional moneys towards the end of the year. I will specifically and personally check this one out and I will revert to the Deputy. I am trying to give a realistic timeline and, in fairness, she has accepted that. If it can be done sooner, we will do it sooner because I know the bus has been purchased. Let us see what we can do in that regard and I will come back to the Deputy directly.

The National Train Control Centre building was completed in November 2022, on time and within budget, despite significant disruption to the construction sector throughout the Covid pandemic. While the building today houses some signalling operations and Iarnród Éireann staff, as well as approximately 100 personnel of An Garda Síochána overseeing communications in the Dublin metropolitan region, bringing the centre into full operation has been delayed by slower-than-projected progress in developing and rolling out t…

It is a very important system. We need this system in place. It is not a question of just pulling the plug on it. It has to be managed through. I have said very clearly to Indra myself that I am most unhappy with the manner in which this is being delivered and the delays in the system. In relation to the write-down amount, I note that the asset value of the national train control centre, NTCC, is also considered in the CIÉ Group accounts for 2025. These accounts were received by my Department on 18 May and are curr…

We are on track to deliver contactless payments. I have met Indra specifically about the contactless payments. That is critical for the public transport offering that we have across the country. Real-time testing rolls out on a phased basis next year, leading to a phased roll-out from 2028. That is a very intricate system. It has to operate in tandem with Leap as well, so we have to operate dual systems. On this specifically, I want to be clear that from a rail safety perspective, contingency plans are in place to …

We are about to start MetroLink out in Dublin north. MetroLink to the south west would be another transformational project. I welcome the Deputy’s question on this. If we want people choosing public transport instead of cars, which they are in many areas whether for cost, congestion or climate reasons, we need to provide an integrated transport network that lets people travel throughout the city. It is for this reason that we do not try to bring forward rail lines or routes in isolation but use the Greater Dublin A…

It is a very good point. This year has been really significant in the delivery of metro. We have our full railway order and clean planning permission. It is out to tender and some of the enabling works have started already in the Swords area, with the realignment of the roads, and construction is to start next year. On a MetroLink to Dublin South-West, I fully get what the Deputy is saying. This will be a six-to-eight-year build. While that is happening, this review will have been undertaken. MetroLink will be the …

This is a very exciting time for public transport. This five-year period is a delivery period of major projects that people have heard and spoken about, including the expansion of the DART and, as I mentioned, DART+ West, DART+ South-West, DART+ Coastal North, Cork light rail, phase 1 of Cork commuter rail, which is concluding, and the commencement of MetroLink. These are transformational projects that are badly needed. A lot of them will deal with an infrastructural deficit that we have carried for a long number o…