One of his passions - greyhounds - is back on the agenda. He has six on the go now. One of them has recently won a race, but received a minor injury. It's called Dog. One of O'Sullivan's sons came up with the name.

From the mouths of babes and all that.

Since selling 90% of Aircoach in 2003 for Euro15m to British operator First Group, which netted O'Sullivan Euro7m, he's been concentrating on his Quickpark enterprise at Dublin airport.

The parking facility has been a resounding success. Within 10 months of opening in 2004 it had hit capacity, holding its maximum of 3,500 vehicles on most weekends and remaining busy on weekdays.

The facility, operating on a site leased from developer Gerry Gannon, has been so popular that it almost became a victim of its own success.

O'Sullivan admits it is a "tricky balance" maintaining effective marketing without disappointing potential customers.

He hopes to rectify the issue of space availability to some extent very soon. Gannon has a planning application lodged with Fingal County Council to provide an additional 2,600 spaces and O'Sullivan hopes that will be approved soon.

The likelihood is, of course, that the new spaces will be filled almost as soon as they become available, leaving him almost back at square one.

Still, it's not a bad complaint to have. Land availability constraints around the airport make it virtually impossible for a competitor to encroach on the business and the money has been rolling in.

Quickpark made a profit of about Euro1.2m in 2005 and the figure is "broadly similar" for 2006, according to O'Sullivan.

He also hopes to reintroduce a text-based booking system within the next few months after a previous and successful attempt had to be pulled when the service provider underwent a period of restructuring.

While O'Sullivan may have been enjoying the good life of late (he's even been helping his wife Una get a nascent farming operation going on the Kildare homestead), it's likely that he'll have a lot more on his plate in the coming 12 months as he gets back into the bus business that he knows best.

"I suppose it's in my blood, " he says, revealing that he plans to establish a new bus operation within the next year. His personal links with Aircoach, apart from a strong working relationship at Dublin airport, are now completely severed. He sold his remaining 10% stake in 2005 to First Group for Euro1.5m. The non-compete clause has also expired, leaving him free to wage a fresh assault on the transport market.

While he may initially focus on the Dublin area, he thinks there is plenty of opportunity elsewhere too.

"The capital is obviously where the population, and the gridlock, is, " explains O'Sullivan. "But the way I think I'll approach this is from it being a broader issue. What I want is a transport company that can provide different services."

Those services won't necessarily be confined to Dublin, he adds, pointing out that he believes there is still room for more capacity on intercity routes. But his latest business move is predicated on the expectation of a change in thinking at a governmental level.

O'Sullivan is hoping that post-election there will be "renewed enthusiasm" for a marked liberalisation of the transport market and says he is positioning himself with the belief that that will happen.

O'Sullivan also thinks it is only a matter of time before a case is taken to the European Commission concerning state subvention to Dublin Bus and Bus �?ireann.

"There are a lot of big players in the market now, " he says, hinting that an operator with deeper pockets could ultimately be the one to take on the battle. And it would surely be epic.

Various transport ministers from Mary O'Rourke to Seamus Brennan and Martin Cullen have promised to expose Dublin Bus, for example, to increasing private-sector competition, only to cave when their own deadlines approached.

Post election, things might change. If the government is serious about improving transport links, O'Sullivan reiterates that liberalisation is key.

"The new National Development Plan calls for a 60% increase in bus capacity, " he says, "and that could happen almost overnight if the barriers to competition were removed.

"One thing that I noticed about the Transport 21 initiative announced last year is that there is no mention in it of competition within the transport market. It's completely overlooked."

O'Sullivan isn't against investment in the rail network, but he points out that the way in which Dublin has expanded beyond its traditional hinterland makes it effectively impossible to provide rail services to vast swathes of the population. It comes as little surprise that O'Sullivan envisages buses neatly meeting the transport shortfall.

"Better value for money could be available by using guided busways. They'd be a fraction of the cost of a metro.

I think rail is just perceived to be sexy." True - 'Murder on the 45A' would hardly have been a likely Agatha Christy title.

If the jigsaw pieces fall into place, his new venture would surely be an attractive proposition for investors. O'Sullivan says that it is too early to speculate as to what level of financial kickstart might be required because he has to wait to see what happens when a new government is formed, but he is confident that obtaining backing will be among the least of his worries.

"I don't think there'd be any difficulty in getting outside investment."

It's all very different days from when Aircoach made its maiden voyage into Dublin airport back in 1999 as the first private operator to service the facility. While O'Sullivan tried to provide life support in Aircoach's fledgling years, the company was suffering because of favouritism shown by Aer Rianta to Dublin Bus and Bus �?ireann and later with competition issues as it tried to expand by offering services to cities such as Cork. Perseverance won through and, while the initial payday must have been sweet, O'Sullivan says he felt no emotional tug as he offloaded his remaining stake.

He's just been too busy with Quickpark.

"I've been very fortunate, but I never sit back and think about it too much. It's certainly very satisfying though."

CV
John O'Sullivan
Occupation: Managing Director, Quickpark
Age: 42
Marital Status: Married to Una, six children
Education: Degree in mechanical engineering from NIHE Limerick (Now, University of Limerick)
Background: Worked for various firms including Dublin Bus as chief engineer. Founded Aircoach in 1999 and sold 90% of the business to British firm First Group in 2003 for Euro15m, netting himself Euro7m. He sold his remaining 10% stake in 2005 for a further Euro1.5m.
Established Quickpark at Dublin airport while running Aircoach.
In the news: With his noncompete clause now expired, O'Sullivan is planning to reenter the bus business.