Sir, - If there is to be any improvement in the capital's chaotic traffic congestion, the Government is going to have to do something radical about funding public transport and discouraging single-passenger private cars. In the meantime, it could stop Dublin Bus cutting back on services.
One example of madness - I'm sure there are others - is the no. 13 bus route, which used to cross the city from Rathmines to Ballymun Road, passing several schools and one university. The new schedule just announced provides for the 13A running from Ballymun to the city, and the 13B running from the city to Rathmines. No more cross-town service! Passengers must pay twice, and on top of that, the service has been cut in half - from almost 50 buses a day to under 20. No wonder commuters insist on using the car.
Dublin Bus will plead that the Government subsidy is being cut. I agree that public transport in major cities requires proper funding. The economic pay-off is in cleaner air and quicker journeys. But the bus company only damages its case for more support by making the existing service more difficult to use. - Yours, etc.,
Dartry, Dublin 6.