Sir, – Dubliners really are being ripped off. Fiona Reddan ("Is it time to wave goodbye to your car?", July 15th) tells us that an annual bus pass in Dublin costs a breathtaking €1,230 per year.
In Vienna, an annual public transport pass costs €365, which works out at one euro a day.
For that, you get unlimited use of one of the world’s best public transport systems, with five underground lines (which are continually being modernised and extended), 29 tram routes and 145 bus lines, as well as an overground urban rail network. – Yours, etc,
RICHARD MURPHY
Stanislausgasse 8,
Vienna,
Austria.
Sir, – Fiona Reddan’s article mentions car-sharing. I would like to draw your attention to the electric car-sharing available in some European cities.
This system works very much like our Dublin Bike scheme. There are a few cars and perhaps a small van parked at dedicated charging stations.
They can be rented casually, once registered, by swiping with a rental card, and once you have finished with the vehicles, they are returned to the charging bay.
A perfect solution for town and city dwellers who need only occasional use of a private car.
Can we envisage a city centre with just bicycles, the Luas and electric cars?
How quiet that would be! – Yours, etc,
JENNY O’LEARY,
Old Carrickbrack Road,
Howth,
Dublin 13.