Dublin manifesto:Dublin Bus should lose the power to decide on bus routes in the city to an independent regulator, the Green Party said yesterday when it published its manifesto for Dublin.
"That means taking on vested interests. We have to take some strong, difficult decisions," said Dublin South TD Eamon Ryan when questioned about possible opposition from Dublin Bus unions.
He said Fianna Fáil and the PDs had promised, and failed to deliver, 500 extra buses to the Dublin Bus fleet during the lifetime of the last Dáil.
A regulator, he said, would decide on the geography of routes and open them to tender.Many existing routes do not service newly-expanding areas.
Mr Ryan said bus frequency must be improved to get people to leave their cars at home. "This was done on the 46A route, and numbers increased by 300 per cent."
Under the party's Vision For Dublin, the Greens called for the amalgamation of the four existing local authorities - Dublin City Council, Fingal, Dún Laoghaire/Rathdown and Dublin South.
The party said the four councils do not have the "scale or the skills" to cope individually with the city's growth. "Dublin is one city. It should have one council and one directly-elected mayor."
Pointing to the example of the Greater London Authority, the Greens said the mayor would lead a cabinet of five, with senior managers heading the delivery of services. "The mayor will stand for election on the basis of delivering public services."
College Green, with non-essential traffic removed and stone paving, new street lighting and plants installed, would "transform traffic-clogged streets into an Italian-style piazza".
Pedestrian areas would be created in suburbs and villages "which have been overrun by traffic and lost much of their atmosphere over the last 20 years".
Luas lines should be built to Baldoyle, Lucan, Poolbeg and Rathfarnham, while the existing lines would be linked by an extension running down Dawson Street, College Green and Westmoreland Street.
A Liffey boulevard should be built on the city quays between Butt bridge and Capel Street bridge, offering "an ideal civic space for shoppers, tourists and businesses".
Meanwhile, Cork South West Green Party candidate Quentin Gargan said the Government's failure to encourage renewable energy production in highly-suitable areas like west Cork in the face of peak oil production was disgraceful.
Speaking at a Green Party launch of its candidates in five Cork constituencies, Mr Gargan said west Cork was well placed to maximise energy production from renewable energy sources such as wind, wave and tidal power. There are huge obstacles facing wind-energy producers in getting connected to the electricity grid, said Mr Gargan, adding that with proper planning now there were huge opportunities for farmers in areas like west Cork to develop and own their own wind farms.