eolas magazine

Transport Ireland 2012
Wednesday 28th March
Chartered Accountants House, Dublin

Transport Ireland, now in its fifth year, has firmly established itself as the annual conference event for Ireland's transport sector. The 2012 conference will once again bring together all the key players from across Ireland, north and south, to focus on the most important issues facing transport policy-makers and the transport industry. It provides a unique opportunity for all those operating within the sector to come together for a day of valuable business networking and discussion.

While there is no doubt that transport is a key economic driver, and will play an important role in facilitating Ireland's economic recovery, like other sectors, transport is facing a challenging budgetary period with reducing budgets set against the need to ensure our transport network remains fit for purpose. The Minister is facing a reduction in his capital budget in 2012 to €1.2 billion and in current expenditure, cuts of €45 million are being implemented. While the levels of investment are being reduced, it is important that maximum return for the taxpayer is generated from that investment which does still proceed.

Alongside this challenging budgetary environment, the transport sector is facing major policy changes - with the ongoing review of the future structure and role of state airports and a new ports policy to chart the way forward for the ports sector due to be published soon. In public transport, the operating companies face the challenge of trying to win back passengers while adjusting to reducing budgets and rising costs. Initiatives such as integrated ticketing and other 'smarter travel' incentives will play an important role in achieving this objective of facilitating more public transport journeys.

Featured speakers include:

	Leo Varadkar, TD Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport		Danny Kennedy, MLA Minister for Regional Development
	Tom O’Mahony Secretary-General Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport		Nigel O’Neill Senior Project Manager Strategic Planning, National Roads Authority
	Eamonn O’Reilly Chief Executive Dublin Port Company		Matthew Shepherd Senior Consultant Oxera
	Professor Austin Smyth University of Westminster		Denis Twomey Commercial Manager Bord Gáis Networks