People Before Profit Alliance (Dublin Central)

Green Party’s shameful record on public transport

Irish Times, Letters Page 22^nd January 2009

Madam, – Amid news of Gaza, Anglo Irish and Obama, it has been easy to overlook the demise of the Green Party as any sort of a force on environmental issues.

I refer to the recent announcement by first, Dublin Bus and then, Bus Éireann that they are cutting services, withdrawing buses from our streets and roads and laying off workers. Coupled with the announcement in 2008 that the Metro North line is going to be downgraded so that it will carry a form of underground tram rather than real trains (heavy rail) it is now clear that the Greens’ policies on public transport are in tatters.

What other country is reducing public transport in this time and taking steps that encourage more and more commuters to take to their cars and avoid an already underdeveloped and underfunded public transport system? As we all know, Ireland lags far behind other countries in provision of public transport and the resultant increase in car usage is a major cause of the growth in production of greenhouse gases. While the Greens might talk endlessly about doing something about that, they have proved in Government that it was just all hot air. – Yours, etc,

COLM STEPHENS (People Before Profit Alliance, Dublin Central Constituency)
St Patrick’s Terrace,
Dublin 3.