Summary of ideas submitted in the Transport category…

• Ask commuters to load Google latitude on their phones to make themselves visible. Commuters can then be traced and thus improve transport services. Commuters would be keen to sign up because they could get warnings of traffic jams.
• Ask people to consider alternative modes of transport.
• Ban all non-residential public and private office cars parking during rush-hour times in areas of high commuting concentration. Integrate all train services under one terminal from an expanded and modified Connolly terminal.
• Ban cars from the city centre. Introduce large Park and Ride facilities outside the city.
• BIK for cars, align it with the VRT changes made last year.
• Bio fuel producers should be given tax incentives.
• Biofuel should be made more readily available.
• Build a bridge at Newlands Cross and similar bottleneck regions. This would improve traffic flow and prevent crashes while creating jobs in the building of the bridge.
• Build a bridge from Dublin to Wales.
• Build a bridge from Howth to Sandymount.
• Build a northwest and western rail corridor. This would generate much needed employment in these areas and would be attractive for tourists to visit these areas. Also to promote businesses here we need faster trains between cities, with internet access for business users.
• Build a proper high-speed train line linking Cork and Dublin.
• Build a safer cycle route which is covered. This would entice people to cycle more.
• Build an underground tunnel in Dublin and allow the construction company to profit from the fares for the first 10 years.
• Build bus hubs outside M50 coming into Dublin. Every passenger travelling into Dublin will eventually have to stop in bus hubs to get on to the next bus to the city centre. Introduce a feeder bus from hubs to smaller rural areas which will have smaller buses running frequently in between.
• Build car parks just off commuter routes. Have buses connecting them to business centres, city centres etc.
• Build Ireland’s answer to the Channel Tunnel. France and Britain did it during a recession - it is the cheapest time to do it.
• Build two hubs north and south of Dublin city. Passengers for destinations north of the city board a local bus to Terminus North and link with the connecting service at this point. Termini should be located at points of connection with Luas lines.
• Bus stops should have electronic timetables indicating waiting times.
• Buses should be allowed to pick people up anywhere along their route.
• Cancel the Metro for Dublin
• Car insurance/tax should be included in the price of diesel/petrol so that people pay per use rather than paying an annual lump sum regardless of how often the car is used.
• Car pool government cars.
• Car pooling should be encouraged.
• Carpool stickers should be introduced to allow cars which are full to use the bus lanes.
• Cars driven without tax or insurance should be immediately impounded, fined €2,000 and a levy placed on them when claimed by the owner.
• Centralise all common functions within the public sector into one ‘Shared Services Centre’, and standardise the operations. Reduce costs for a small country. It is used with large companies so why not the government?
• Change all pedestrian crossings to zebra crossings instead of traffic lights
• Change the times for the dedicated bus lanes from 7am-7pm to 7am-10am in the morning and from 3pm-7pm in the evening. This will change the bus lane to a dual carriage way at off-peak times, enabling business people to carry out their business in a more efficient manner.
• Change unused railway lines throughout the country to green bus lines or cycle lanes
• Charge all taxi drivers to take the Irish “Knowledge”. Enforce them to understand Dublin better.
• CIE should not be run with the expectation of profit making. It should run on the idea of improving the environment. Drop prices of buses to 75c and make it attractive to use. In rural areas use smaller buses but more regular. Transport goods via rail and cut out short flights
• Clamp down on all the non Irish registered cars being driven in the Republic.
• Connect the Luas lines linking Dublin Airport to Connolly Station by Luas.
• Connect the Red and Green line on the Luas. Maintain the Metro and Luas extension.