Bryce Evans, People Before Profit candidate for the local elections in June, is launching a campaign to highlight bus cuts.
Dublin Bus is due to reduce services by up to 30% on routes in this area. These include the 44, the 48a, the 11 and the 11a (all of which pass through Ranelagh) and the 14 and 14a (which pass through Rathmines). There are few things more demoralising than waiting for a bus in the wind and rain. Now people will be left waiting even longer.
These cutbacks come as the price of bus travel has actually risen. Everyone who uses the bus will now be paying more for worse services. By carrying out these cutbacks the government is again signalling its contempt for ordinary people, those whom a recession hits the hardest. Those who rely most on the bus are children travelling to and from school, people on lower incomes, the aged, the infirm, and migrant workers. Most jobs in Dublin are situated in satellite areas outside the city centre and the bus provides a vital service for people who work in these areas. We are constantly told that we need to tighten our belts, but why should we undergo cuts in public transport in an attempt to save what amounts to a paltry sum against the greedy excesses of bankers and developers?
Every advanced European city has a comprehensive and integrated transport system. A good public transport system is the hallmark of a successful and progressive city. Dublin has the Luas, the expansion of which has been put on the long finger, the Dart, which serves only the coast, and a bus service now facing cuts. The citizens of Dublin city deserve better. Dublin Bus has greatly improved its efficiency and service in recent years, becoming a larger and more successful operation. Now the improvements are being unceremoniously reversed, without any consultation with bus users.
Dublin Bus drivers themselves are opposed to the cuts as much as passengers. We need to mount a collective voice that will indicate to the government, Dublin Bus management and the city council that we do not want to see the development of a two-tier transport system. This situation results in the bus being used by the poor while everyone else drives or takes taxis. The pressing need for a reduction in carbon emissions means that we can’t let this happen. Like nearly all large European cities, we need an integrated public transport network of bus and light rail which is state-run and in which workers and users have a real stake.
The massive education march in December and the pensioners’ protests before that resulted in the Government backing down on planned cuts in several areas. This shows that we can fight the cutbacks and win.
