asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs what are the peak hours for trunk telephone calls.

The peak hours normally are from 10 a.m. to 12 noon and 2.30 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. but are liable to be extended beyond these periods at weekends and on special occasions.

Rushes of traffic also occur in the evening but follow no fixed pattern.

I am sure the Minister will recognise that I put this quesion down to help him. If the public would co-operate with him by refraining from relatively unimportant calls during these peak hours, will the Minister undertake to expand to the limit of his capacity the personnel attending to trunk calls immediately on the conclusion of these peak periods so that those who had the good manners to wait themselves will not suffer these enormous delays?

During the day, it may be possible to co-operate by withdrawing staff from non-operating duties, and that is being done. It is not really a question of staff but a question of increasing the circuits on trunk routes. The Dublin exchange provides assistance to all other manual exchanges as necessary, as well as catering for Dublin subscribers requiring manually-operated trunk and local calls. The circuits on the trunk routes are being extended and a substantial number of them will be in use in the next two weeks. There should, therefore, be a considerable improvement after the two weeks but I would prefer not to issue a statement in relation to peak hours until I see the effect which the completion of this will produce. What the issue of such a statement might do is to divert the peak hour to other hours, but that would not be of any material benefit either to the Post Office or to subcribers.

It does not seem that the public, by any degree of co-operation, could help, but might I direct the Minister's attention to the simple fact that most subscribers do not resent being informed that there is a half-hour delay, or an hour or two hours' delay? What drives people up the wall altogether is to dial 10 and get no answer. I have relatively frequently in recent weeks dialled 10 and listened to the bell ring 30 or 40 times without effect.

Against that, there are thousands of people who get an answer.

But the whole position is getting chaotic.

The improvement is steadily taking place and the effects will be felt in the next few weeks.

In the meantime, it is getting more chaotic.

If you had not dismissed people from the Engineering Branch in 1956, if about 80 had not been dismissed——

Supposing we go back to 1937 and tell the Minister what he did then.

Approximately 80 trained personnel were dismissed in 1956.

This is 1963——

And business has improved so much that the telephone system is not able to take the increased traffic.

This is 1963, and in 1963, may I put it to the Minister that this is a matter of urgent concern? If the Minister gets a generous measure of co-operation from the public, could he not devise some means whereby the person dialling 10 will receive some signal when he is standing there with the instrument to his ear?

It was tried before but was not a success.

Is the Minister aware that one evening last week I had to telephone his office to intervene after listening to the dialling tone for 20 minutes without getting a reply?

Even when you finish a trunk call they will not cut you off. You are there ringing the exchange trying to get cut off.

33.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs if he is aware that the efficiency of business firms in Dublin is being seriously impaired by reason of frequent delays in the making of trunk telephone calls; and what immediate steps his Department propose to take to remove the cause of such annoyance.

I am aware that subscribers have recently been meeting with unusual delay on trunk calls because of congestion on trunk routes. The provision of additional circuits on most of the main routes, which is in hands, is expected to effect a considerable improvement in the service.

34.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs the number of telephone lines between Dublin and (a) Belfast, (b) Cork, (c) Limerick, and (d) Galway; and if, having regard to the fact that the number of such lines appears to be inadequate for the traffic offering, he will state when steps will be taken to provide additional lines.

The information required is: (a) 48; (b) 121; (c) 78; and (d), 53. Additional circuits are due to be brought into service on all the routes within the next week.

35.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs the number of telephone lines between Dublin and London.

The number of lines is 110.

36.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs the number of exchange operators at 10 and 31 on duty at 11 a.m., 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. daily in Dublin.

The average number of operators employed on 10 and 31, including 345, duties are:

Could the Minister say the number of learners included?

I could not.

The Minister says that there are 147 operators on 10 duty at 11 o'clock. Would it relieve matters if that number were built up to 175 at that period?

If the operators had not circuits to work on, what would they be doing?

Could they not answer the twinkling light and tell the caller the cause of the delay?

I think you would want to go into the exchange and see how it operates before one could deal with hypothetical questions such as those Deputy Dillon is putting to me. There are stations there at which the operators work and you cannot have them standing around unless they have work to do. They cannot deal with telephone calls and deal with the matter Deputy Dillon is putting to me, at the same time.

It is the telephone calls and the delays I am talking about.

The cause of all the delay is the number of learners employed.

37.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs why a Dublin subscriber who phoned 10 at 11.45 a.m. on 14th June, 1963, did not receive a reply until 12.03 p.m.

38.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs if he is aware that a Dublin subscriber who booked a call to County Armagh at 2.45 p.m. on 14th June last was advised at 3.15 p.m. that there would be up to an hour's delay, and at 3.30 p.m. that the lines to the North had broken down; and if he will say where and why the fault arose.

39.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs why the Dublin subscribers who dialled 10 at 3.55 p.m. on 14th June, 1963, experienced delays of seven and eight minutes respectively before receiving replies from the exchange.

40.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs why a call booked by a Dublin subscriber to Crossmaglen, County Armagh, at 11 a.m. on Friday, 14th June, 1963, was not connected until 2.30 p.m.; and when steps will be taken to obviate such delays in future.

With your permission, a Cheann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 37, 38, 39, and 40 together.

It is not possible to identify the calls in question from the information furnished. If the Deputy will supply the calling and called numbers I will have the matters investigated. I should, however, add that it is not possible to handle all calls promptly while the present heavy pressure on the trunk telephone system persists.

41.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs if he is aware that the telephone services in Limerick city and Shannon Airport are at present very unsatisfactory; and whether he proposes to take any action on the matter.

The difficulties being experienced are due to congestion caused by a general increase in trunk traffic. A substantial number of additional trunk lines are being provided at Limerick and when they are brought into use in about a week's time a considerable improvement in the service at Limerick and Shannon may be expected.

42.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs if he is aware of the very considerable delays and difficulties occurring in the telephone service between Wexford and Dublin, and between Enniscorthy and Dublin; and if he will take immediate steps for the improvement of this service and the elimination of undue delays.

The work of installing additional circuits to eliminate delays between Wexford and Dublin will be completed this week.

It is expected that increases in outlets from Enniscorthy which depend on provision of the Enniscorthy-Wexford-Waterford radio link will be effected within two to three months.

Have we the assurance of the Minister that there will be a vast improvement within two or three months?

There will be an improvement and we will have to wait to see if it is a vast one.

Has the Minister any information that delays have increased in recent months?

I have told the Deputy that the increase in calls is the cause of the delay. On the Wexford-Waterford route, the number of circuits has been increased from 14 to 44 and on the Waterford-Dublin route from 79 to 103. Some of the additional circuits are already working and others will be working within a week. The Enniscorthy one will have to wait for two or three months.

There will be an improvement then?

There will.

43.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs if he is aware that a subscriber at Waterville, County Kerry (name and number supplied) made an urgent telephone call to Killarney 4 at 3.40 p.m. on 27th May, and received no reply from the exchange till 4.20 p.m.; and what was the reason for the delay, particularly in view of the fact that there have been several other similar complaints.

A call to Killarney 4 was booked by the Waterville subscriber at 3.55 p.m. on 27th May. Repeated attempts to connect the call were ineffective because the Killarney number was engaged. The call was connected at 4.26 p.m.

44.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs whether he is aware that a subscriber at Waterville, County Kerry (name and number supplied) made two telephone calls to Cork on 5th June at the quick call rate for three minutes at six shillings, and a third call of seven minutes at eighteen shillings; whether these figures are at the appropriate rates; and if he will explain why the rates are so high.

There is a record of three such calls from Waterville on the date in question. The duration of the calls were three, six and nine minutes respectively. There is no record of a seven-minute call. The normal charge for a call from Waterville to Cork is three shillings for three minutes and one shilling for each additional minute. "Urgent Call" service was requested by the caller for these calls and the charges quoted which are double the normal rate, are correct.

45.

asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs why several telephone callers in the well-known tourist town of Waterville, County Kerry, have experienced delays in getting through the exchanges at Killarney and Caherciveen; if there are sufficient staff to deal with these calls; and if he will indicate the number of such staff.

The delay experienced at times arises from shortage of main trunk lines from Killarney. Work is proceeding in the Kerry area on major trunking schemes costing approximately £300,000 which should greatly improve the position. The operating staffs at both Killarney and Caherciveen are adequate.