Danny Healy-Rae Calls 70-Year Rule 'Ageist' and Demands Bus Stop Fixes
Danny Healy-Rae challenged the 70-year driving rule, calling it ageist and urging consideration of twice-yearly medical checks or raising the age to 75 pending research. He also highlighted local bus service problems — missing or unsafe stops, buses failing to enter a railway yard, and a shortfall in a children's bus service in Headford - Baradou Valley.
Danny Healy-Rae argued the 70-year rule is a form of ageism and pointed to healthy older drivers who continue to transport children and travel long distances. He cited an example of a driver in Tralee, Kellar, who drove until age 86 and worked routes including Galway, Dublin and Belfast - Paul’s transport services - as evidence older drivers can remain capable.
He noted the RSA produced a report that raised concerns about risk, particularly in relation to school bus drivers, but said the report did not allege dereliction. He proposed exploring a pragmatic approach - including the possibility of twice-yearly medical tests and commissioning research to consider moving the age from 70 to 75, or other measures informed by evidence.
He pressed for the development of proper bus stops where buses can pull in and passengers can wait and board safely, describing incidents where buses have passed passengers or dropped them miles beyond their intended stop. He acknowledged that 99% of drivers are fine but said specific safety and accessibility issues must be rectified.
He described a local congestion issue where buses bound for Tully and Killarney park in a chemistry yard all day rather than using the nearby railway station yard and shelter 50 yards away. He asked for checks on why buses will not use the railway yard and called for the traffic and bus stops to be reorganised to reduce disruption.
He raised a case in Headford - Baradou Valley where a proposed children's bus service failed to proceed because only nine children registered when ten were required, meaning the scheme was postponed. He warned some children could be left behind and urged targeted action to resolve the shortfall.
He thanked staff operating bus services, naming personnel in Flee and Limerick who are "over-carrying" and doing their best, while reiterating his calls for targeted fixes on the age rule and local service problems.
Age rule criticism
Danny Healy-Rae argued the 70-year rule is a form of ageism and pointed to healthy older drivers who continue to transport children and travel long distances. He cited an example of a driver in Tralee, Kellar, who drove until age 86 and worked routes including Galway, Dublin and Belfast - Paul’s transport services - as evidence older drivers can remain capable.
Medical testing and research
He noted the RSA produced a report that raised concerns about risk, particularly in relation to school bus drivers, but said the report did not allege dereliction. He proposed exploring a pragmatic approach - including the possibility of twice-yearly medical tests and commissioning research to consider moving the age from 70 to 75, or other measures informed by evidence.
Safety and proper bus stops
He pressed for the development of proper bus stops where buses can pull in and passengers can wait and board safely, describing incidents where buses have passed passengers or dropped them miles beyond their intended stop. He acknowledged that 99% of drivers are fine but said specific safety and accessibility issues must be rectified.
Station access and congestion on routes
He described a local congestion issue where buses bound for Tully and Killarney park in a chemistry yard all day rather than using the nearby railway station yard and shelter 50 yards away. He asked for checks on why buses will not use the railway yard and called for the traffic and bus stops to be reorganised to reduce disruption.
Children's service shortfall and local delivery
He raised a case in Headford - Baradou Valley where a proposed children's bus service failed to proceed because only nine children registered when ten were required, meaning the scheme was postponed. He warned some children could be left behind and urged targeted action to resolve the shortfall.
Acknowledgement of staff
He thanked staff operating bus services, naming personnel in Flee and Limerick who are "over-carrying" and doing their best, while reiterating his calls for targeted fixes on the age rule and local service problems.
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Transcript
First of all, I'll finish, I'll start where Michael Collins finished in relations to the 70-year-old rule and where we were at with Deputy Collins. I spoke to him before, Mr. Kint, on this issue and I'm very concerned about it. It's a kind of an ageist rule and you're saying, you went as far as saying there that RSA or some group were saying that he'd be derelict in age duties if he allowed 70-year-old drivers or beyond 70-year-old to drive. But I have to say to those people, what about all the other 70-year-olds that are driving children to football matches, driving them to swimming and to all the other events and all the other 70-year-old drivers that are driving in many instances. There was a driver in Tralee, driving up until the other day, driving all over Ireland. Kellar was his name. He was 86 years of age when he finished and he was doing the ring of carry every day and he was going to Galway and he was going to Dublin. He was going up to Belfast for Paul's transport services in Tralee. So, like, we're being very unfair there and what I have been asking and I think I said it to you before, even if these drivers had to do two medical tests a year or even more than that, if you wanted different types of medical tests organised by Borsi, what would be wrong with that? Just to make sure that you capture it correctly, the RSA didn't say that we're derelict. They produced a report that when we read it, I believe that given the risk, there's a concern. But I do want to just say, look, what we're trying to do is to be pragmatic here as well. Now, one-third of what we deliver through the scheme are delivered through vehicles that are under eight seats, small public service vehicles. And we're trying to see, based on this report, so this report that he did last year was based on the school bus driver. And what he was looking at was all of the issues attached to that on a daily basis. And, of course, what he's not doing is trivialising anything in relation to it. So, somebody might be out there who is fit today and I would fully regard them. And, by the way, what Bus Aaron is doing is not any different than, say, the rail is doing or Dublin Bus is doing. We're all trying to just address a policy. There's no such rule in the USA or in the UK. No, and nobody is operating a scheme of this size, as far as I know, with 10,500 routes that's for us in the UK. So, our issue is that we're trying to just manage it safely. And so far, we're doing okay on that. What we are looking at is, for those 3,000 vehicles odd, maybe 3,000 vehicle taxis, we're looking at a piece of research to say, okay, there's a smaller vehicle and there's escorts in that. Now, could we move and do what you're suggesting to maybe introduce a twice-year medical and move that age maybe from 70 to 75? We're going to try and get a piece of research that would inform a move that way, that we could dip our toe in the water and doing it. But as long as this piece of research sits out there for school buses, and remember, our buses go all the way up to an 80-seater bus, it's very difficult for us to move, recognising the risk that's been called out by this professor. Right. I appreciate what time is out there since here and I have a number of other questions to ask. But in relation to the 270 bus room from Kilmer to Kilmer, it's a great service. But I'm asking you, have you any notion in the world of developing bus stops, proper bus stops where the bus can pull in and where to sit down and a bus stop sign saying here, we're stopping here, we're picking up here, and we're leaving out people here. We don't have that along this road. And some bus drivers won't stop, and the bus goes whistling by, and the bus is grand, which is, no, but if we can't get on it, and get off it. Well, it has happened that a person was taken four miles down the road beyond where they wanted to get off, and their mother had to follow him down, a young girl, into the middle of the wood till he found a place where he thought he could stop. Now, 99% of the drivers are fine, but, you know, I was getting one for that, I can't stop here, it's safe. So, I want that rectified, and he must develop proper stops where the bus can pull in. This is the place. Then, I have another issue in front and forth. There's a bus going to Tully from Killarney every hour, and there's a bus coming from Tully to Killarney the other way, so there's a bus landing there every half hour. They're parking, so in the busy chemistry yard, and the people that are bringing people to the bus, and people waiting for them to collect people off the bus, the man's yard is full all day with people waiting for, picking up or bringing people to the bus. Down the road, 50 yards is the railway station, in front and forth, where there's a shelter and everything, for some reason or other, the buses won't or can't go into the railway yard where everyone else can go in, but they won't go in. I'm asking you to take the traffic and the bus stop out of the middle front, four villages, only up the traffic. I'll check that. What? I'll check that. I'll check that. I want you to check it out, please. It's a very serious matter. And then we have an issue. All the summer, we were trying to get a bus room going for children in the Headford, Baradou Valley, and they had only nine children, and who need 10. But lo and behold, about the last week of August, we found the team site. But we thought, no, we must wait till next year. And probably they'll be one of the older ones gone next year. If we could get, we're left behind. And look, I thank the people that are operating the bus services, the people, the personnel in Flee, and Limerick that are over-carrying, that are doing their very best. But I want those issues targeted and sorted out. That's what I'm up here for. And that's what I'm asking this morning. And along with the 70-year-old rule, because it's not fair, it's ageist. And people are leaving longer, people are healthier, and that has to be taken into recognition. Thank you, Deputy Healy-Ray. Thank you.