Privatising Public Transport in Ireland:
Questions and Answers

Summary

The booklet argues the following nine propositions (though not in the order presented here):

  1. The record of governments in relation to CIÉ, throughout most of its existence, has been niggardly, wasteful, and contradictory.
  2. For purely ideological reasons, and without any strategic plan, the Minister for Transport proposes to privatise CIÉ services. He wants to establish a regulator to manage the networks and procure services by tender. With tunnel vision he concentrates on market regulatory structure and ignores the needs of people.
  3. The evidence from similar privatisation exercises in Britain and Europe shows that this will not resolve the problems besetting public transport, but will very likely aggravate them.
  4. There are three key factors that influence public transport and that are much more important than market regulatory structure. These are:
    1. The mandate given by the state to the public transport operator;
    2. Road traffic management, to give freedom of movement to buses;
    3. The availability of state financial support for public transport.
  5. Public transport has a key role to play in providing environmentally sustainable transport. This it does far better than the private car or truck. Privatisation will undermine this role.
  6. Privatisation of CIÉ services will lead quickly and with virtual certainty to the following adverse consequences:
    1. Vicious downward pressure will be brought to bear on pay;
    2. Fares will rise in real terms;
    3. Network benefits will be eroded;
    4. Many socially necessary services will disappear;
    5. Separation of network planning from operations will push up operating costs;
    6. Administrative costs will increase significantly;
    7. Giant transnational transport corporations will dominate the market.
    8. Control of Irish public transport will be ceded to these unaccountable corporations, in places like London or Singapore.
  7. Other adverse consequences may ensue, such as:
    1. Deterioration in safety and other standards;
    2. Decline in the number of passengers using public transport;
    3. Reduction in the percentage of total trips made on public transport;
    4. Handing over state assets to transnational corporations;
    5. Job losses in the CIÉ group of companies;
    6. Erosion of working conditions and benefits of CIÉ workers.
  8. Irish private bus operators are probably not fully in favour the Minister's approach. They seem fairly satisfied with the growing business they get by contract from Bus Éireann, they do not have the capacity to operate large networks, and they fear being put out of business by the giant transnational transport operators waiting to take over the Irish bus industry.
  9. The best solution is to reorganise CIÉ to establish it as the national transport regulatory authority, controlling the network, regulating competition, setting standards, operating core services, and subcontracting services from private operators where necessary. Some of these functions could be carried out by the subsidiary companies. This will avoid duplication of functions and personnel, preserve the invaluable expertise which exists in CIÉ, and maintain the link between network planning and operation, making for better services and lower costs.

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