As the country starts to move slowly again, the Coach Tourism & Tourism Council (CTTC) is concerned that the current requirement for people arriving in Ireland to go into self-isolation will unnecessarily slow the return of inbound tourism. In its submission to the recently appointed Special Committee on COVID-19 Response, Irish Tourism must not be disadvantaged.
CTTC Chairman John Halpenny stated that that the submission asked that the new regulation seeking people to self-isolate for 14 days on their arrival in the country be reconsidered: “We are not medical experts but our primary concern is the safety of our staff and passengers,” he said. John continued to say that if other European countries are open for business, then Ireland should also be in a position to welcome visitors, “the sooner we get up and running, the sooner our staff will be back on the road.”
As demand for public transport increases, social distancing has come back into focus. While the guidelines still recommend 2 metre separation, the norm in most European cities is 1 metre. However, there is a requirement that passengers wear face coverings. CTTC members are anxious that more guidance should be made available to public transport users in order to keep staff safe and allow public transport operate efficiently.
The CTTC is working closely with Dominic Hannigan (Hannigan Advisory) to gain support both from Government and from the general media, to get the message across on what ongoing issues the passenger transport sector is facing. To date nearly 5,000 people have pledged their support to its “Support the Coach and Bus Industry” campaign.
“I would like to thank all who have shared the link. For anyone that have not logged in yet and included in their social media platforms please do so, as the more support we get the better chance of success we will have in getting people back to work,” concluded John.