Dublin City Council is to advise Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey not to agree to the Taxi Regulator's request to allow hackneys and limousines to use bus lanes, writes Olivia Kelly
The Commission for Taxi Regulation has asked Mr Dempsey to extend the dispensation which allows taxis to use bus lanes, to all SPSVs (small public service vehicles), following ongoing requests from the hackney and limousine sectors.
In a submission to the Department of Transport the commission said it can see no reason why hackneys and limousines have been excluded from bus lanes, other than they could cause congestion, are not as easily identifiable as taxis, or that the low cost of a licence, €250, would encourage private individuals to buy access to the bus lanes.
However, the commission said that these did not justify their exclusion. A tamper-proof disc could be affixed to the side window so as to be visible to gardaí, the training required to hold a licence would deter private individuals, and the number of hackneys and limousines on the road, about 5,000, would have only a "marginal" impact on bus lanes, the commission said.
The department has written to the council asking for its views in relation to the submission. Executive manager at the council's traffic department Tim O'Sullivan said the addition of hackneys and limousines would mean a "very significant increase" in the number of vehicles in the bus lane.
Ciarán de Burca of the Quality Bus Network Office also told the council's transport and traffic committee yesterday that many bus lanes were reaching capacity and the addition of more vehicles would cause a "diminution of capacity and reliability" of buses.
Labour councillor Andrew Montague said the proposal was a retrograde step, would be deeply unpopular with the public and should be rejected.