The European Commission has requested detailed information about the Department of Transport's annual subvention to the state bus companies. A spokeswoman for the department said last week that it was working on the submission and would submit it "as soon as possible". The investigation follows a complaint to the EU by the private bus lobby group, Coach Tourism and Transport Council of Ireland (CTTCI), that the state aid to Dublin Bus and Bus Eireann prevents private operators from making a reasonable profit on new routes, particularly in the ever-expanding 'suburbs' of Dublin such as Lucan and Celbridge.

Cora Collins of the CTTCI said her organisation was not seeking to have the state bus company's annual subvention reduced. She said the CTTCI believed it should actually be increased so Dublin Bus and Bus Eireann could fulfil their public-service remit to provide a comprehensive public transport service.

However, state aid is given in one block with no distinction made between the routes that are profitable and those that are not, she said.

"What has been happening is that a private operator gets a licence to operate on a route which it has identified as being poorly serviced by the state bus companies but is potentially profitable. But once Dublin Bus sees that the private operator is doing well, it suddenly pours buses onto the route and uses state aid to undercut the private operator."

Last year, agreement was finally reached with Dublin Bus and the unions which would see Dublin Bus get 100 new buses (bringing the total to 1,182) in return for allowing private operators exclusive access to new routes until such time as they have 15% of the total Dublin market.

After that Dublin Bus can compete for new routes with the private operators.

But a department spokeswoman confirmed that at present only five private operators . . .

Mortons, Aircoach, Executive Express, Dualway and Eirebus . . . are providing bus passenger services in the Dublin area. The spokeswoman added that transport minister Noel Dempsey is also considering a Dublin Bus request for an extra 100 buses, at an estimated cost of 30m.