‘If bus strike was hitting Dublin it would be fixed’. Anger turns to fury in Cork

IF this bus strike had hit Dublin then it would have been resolved long before now.

Those were the words of Lord Mayor Des Cahill as anger turns to fury over the ongoing bus strike that has crippled Cork’s public transport system.

Transport Minister Shane Ross yesterday again refused to intervene in the dispute, which has now entered its seventh day.

Cork's 330 bus drivers and 170 buses are expected to remain off the road until next week at least, as Dublin Bus and Irish Rail workers are set to join the dispute in the coming days.

Lord Mayor Des Cahill said:

“If it was in Dublin, it would be on every front page of every national newspaper. I'm the last person you will find going 'oh poor us in Cork, look at Dublin' but in this instance it's correct.

“The one question that everyone has is; why isn't the Government intervening? I don't know why. If for whatever reason the Minister has chosen not to get involved over the last few months, there comes a time when he needs to and we've gone past that point,” he added.

Fianna Fáíl leader Micheál Martin also told the Dáíl that the situation would not have developed in Dublin.

"If this was Dublin Bus or if it was affecting the capital city, the issue would have been resolved much earlier. It is interesting that the Luas dispute was resolved, the Dublin Bus dispute was resolved and the Garda pay issue was resolved. The Minister was involved in that and it broke the Lansdowne Road agreement.”

Meanwhile, the Black Ash Park & Ride was still operating after a private operator had been brought in, Cork City Council confirmed, but many Cork city businesses were reporting reductions in footfall.