Has Michael O'Leary Finally lost it?

D

daltonr

Guest
Michael O'Leary has been on every RTE show he can get on today raging against a proposed Metro Line from Stephen's Green to the Airport.
He's so vehement I'm wondering if the guy has some sort of Financial stake in Buses or on not having the Metro built.

His argument seems to be that it's a complete waste of money because only 20% of people going to the Airport will ever use it. I don't know where he got these statistics from. For starters not everyone on the Metro will be going to or from the Airport, there will be other stops beyond the Airport E,g, In Swords.

He actually said on Liveline that even if the Metro has to pass under Dublin Airport to get to Swords, we shouldn't put a Metro stop in the Airport.
Hence the title of this Thread.

Has the guy completely lost it? Can you imagine what he'd have to say if a 1.5 Billion Metro passed under the Airport and noone bothered to put in an Airport stop.

He also claimed on Live line that the Two Luas Lines can't be linked up because they have different Gauge Sizes. An old chestnut that I thought had long since been laid to rest.

One more time Michael, for the slow learners. The Luas Tracks are a different Gauge to CIE's Heavy Rail. That's because Luas is LIGHT rail. They are the same as each other.

Michael. In the name of all that's good and wholesome, before you embarass yourself again on the National Airwaves would you at least do a quick Google and check your facts.

I'll accept our Tabloid Journalists lying to me, I expect it from them, but when I'm 30,000ft up in a flying Tin Can, I'd like to be at least somewhat sure that the guy running the company is actually running the company and not just running his mouth off.

-Rd
 
What's his angle? Simple. There will be ONE metro stop at the airport for the existing one terminal (the second terminal is really only an extension of the first.) Micko's preference was for a totally NEW terminal over on the west side of the airport which would need a separate metro stop. He didn't get what he wanted so he sulks and cries!:p
 
On the face of it a metro stop at each terminal sounds like a good idea. Why is there only going to be one?
 
On the face of it a metro stop at each terminal sounds like a good idea. Why is there only going to be one?
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Because as far as I know we're not really getting a second Terminal. If the location is where I think it is then the 2nd Terminal will be on the Site of the Georgian House on the Left as you drive up to Departures.

As described above it'll be an extension of the existing one.

That said, I'd prefer that to Brisbane's Airport where it cost €12 to get a Taxi from the domestic terminal to the international terminal, because the Airport Light Rail system stops running at 7:30PM !!!!!

I thought I was in Ireland!

-Rd
 
daltonr said:
He also claimed on Live line
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Carrying on from the RTE thread - I'm surprised anyone would admit to listening to Liveline! I find it the to be by far the worst radio show their is, its just endless rants...

Keeping to topic; as Observer said, Mick is just sulking because he's not getting his way. He's a bully who will do anything to a) get what he wants, b) get publicity, c) insult the government, d) destroy his competition and e) grow Ryanair. Just sit back and enjoy the Mick O'Leary show (its far better than Liveline anyways!)
 
My observation is that Michael O'Leary will say anything he percieves will go down well with his shareholders

aj
 
I'm surprised anyone would admit to listening to Liveline! I find it the to be by far the worst radio show their is, its just endless rants...
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I only get to listen when i'm driving. It's unfortunately the only thing worth listening to at that time of day.

You fairly regularly get gold dust like O'Leary making a fool of himself or Dick Roach squirming over his lie that the WEEE Directive woudn't increase the cost to the consumer.

Also the case of the solicitor's overcharging abuse victims was given good coverage and seems to have forced them into an admission of guilt.

It's a long way from the late night chat radio that some Dublin stations broadcast.

And for what it's worth i have heard the Liveline risk factor being discussed in many large companies, when rolling out new systems etc.

-Rd
 
Maybe he is worried that it is going to interfere with his taxi business


Murt
 
In fairness, O'Leary's argument, as outlined on the Last Word yesterday evening was a lot more reasonable, coherent and logical than represented above. Whether or not one agrees with him is a different matter but it is totally misleading to portray his argument as that of someone who "has lost it" or is "raging". Some of the points he made were also made by the eminently sane Brendan Keenan and Frank Convery on the Dunphy Show this morning.
 
I heard him on Morning Ireland and he was coherant. By the afternoon on Liveline he had lost it completely. Perhaps someone took him aside and explained what a fool he made of himself and he got his facts right before he went on the Last Word. I didn't hear the Last Word yesterday.

Anyone who spends as much time on the National Airwaves as he did yesterday has an agenda. And if you're going to go on the national Airwaves you need to get at least some of your facts right.

The Metro IS NOT solely for transporting people from Stephen's Green to the Airport. It also carries people in the other direction, and also carries people to and from other stops on the way to and beyond the Airport.

The Two Luas Lines DO NOT have different Gauge sizes.

It is LUNACY to even suggest building a 1.5 BILLION Euro Metro under Dublin Airport and not putting in an Airport Stop. If that's what had been proposed O'Leary would have been on the radio slamming the governments stupidity for doing that.

His performance also included his usual railing against politicians and the government, something I have no problem with, but his demenour was far more aggressive almost hysterical than I've heard from him in the past.

There are enough reasons to criticise this government and indeed elements of this Plan without making stuff up as O'Leary did. I'm sure someone took him aside and sorted him out because On the Last Word if he made the same claims he made on Livelive he'd have been eaten alive.

I'm sure the LiveLine performance is available online. People can judge for themselves whether my characterisation of it is accurate.

Just because 1 or 2 of his points happen to be valid doesn't excuse the nonsense he dished out yesterday. Quite frankly he sounded like one of the Uninformed masses who jump on an issue and shoot their mouth off on Liveline.

The last thing on Par with yesterday's performace that I can remember was in 1990 a guy on Local Radio in Waterford claimed we shouldn't send a team to The World Cup in Italy because if we won we'd have to host it and we don't have any stadiums.
He claimed we'd be a laughing stock.

To be fair to the guy at least he didn't have an agenda. You don't leave your company to run itself for a day and appear on every national radio show you can get on unless you have an agenda. The agenda might be as simple as publicity for Ryan Air, but I think there's more to it than that.

-Rd
 
The agenda might be as simple as publicity for Ryan Air
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I reckon you are correct when you suggest this as the reason. He will do whatever it takes and if this means driving a tank up the gates of Leinster House then he will do it. (or has he pulled this stunt already?).


aj
 
O'Leary summed up his agenda quite explicitly on the Last Word - to discredit Bertie Ahern and his government and convince the rest of us to agree with his analysis, in order (according to him) that someone else might devise better transport policies.
 
I'd share his hopes for a New Taoiseach, but Performances like yesterday don't help.
He made the Politician on Liveline sound reasonable and rational.

Don't give up the day job Mick. I don't see a career as a Lobbyist.

Incidently if anyone thinks he won't be pulling the same crap with a New Taoiseach think again.

-Rd
 
Long live Michael!! My hero!
I think he needs to give his opinion on everything: for gawd's sake ryanair is a success story the envy of the world!
Down to the begrudgery and Bertie's lilly livered approach to the unions!
If only O Leary and co could put a stop of the waste in the public service!!!!!!!!!
O Leary is a breath of fresh air and is badly needed
O Leary for Taoiseach and Eduardo Hobbs for Minister for Finance.............
 
markowitzman said:
O Leary for Taoiseach and Eduardo Hobbs for Minister for Finance.............
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I'll go with you on O'Leary... but keep Hobbs out of my sight! I can't stand him!
 
"Also the case of the solicitor's overcharging abuse victims was given good coverage and seems to have forced them into an admission of guilt."

Just not true.

Undoubtedly, the Liveline coverage pushed the matter up the priority list; but the solicitors profession itself, well before any Liveline coverage, had already publicised this issue in the monthly solicitors magazine (The Gazette) and the Law Society was ready to act upon receiving complaints (admittedly not a pro-active stance but certainly not a wholly unreasonable position, )
 
The day after the liveline show the first solicitor admitted guilt.

I don't know if there was cause and effect. But it's a mighty big coincidence.

I didn't say there was a cover up or that it wouldn't have eventually come out. Simply that Liveline gave ut valuable attention, and in my opinion was probably a factor in the timing of the first admission of guilt.

-Rd
 
Sean D. Barrett, the respected TCD transport economist had an excellent article in yesterday's Indo re the Transport 21 plans. His views on the metro etc were pretty much the same as what O'Leary said last week.
 
Did anyone notice that Ryanair is launching a new direct daily route from Dublin-Riga for €9.99 each way? Not only is O'Leary the only one talking sense about public transport in Ireland... but now he's going to solve our labour shortage too :D !!!
 
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