Rural bus services to increase by 25% over five years

Currently, six million vehicle kilometres are provided annually across the country by TFI Local Link, and this is set to increase to 18.3m under Connecting Ireland plans, a rise of 200%.

There will be a 25% increase in the number of rural bus services over the next five years, under proposed plans published by the National Transport Authority (NTA).

On Friday, the NTA published its Connecting Ireland plan for public consultation, which seeks to increase public transport connectivity, particularly in areas outside of the country’s big cities and towns.

Currently, two in five villages are not connected to their nearby big town by public transport, and there is an inconsistency of connectivity between different parts of the country.

However, under the proposed new plans, 70% of people in rural Ireland will have access to public transport service that provides at least three return trips daily to the nearby town, compared to the current figure of 53%.

Three return trips daily

Over 100 rural villages will benefit from frequent public transport service, of at least three return trips daily, for the first time, while over 100 rural areas will benefit from a regular service, of at least three return trips daily to their county town for the first time.

There will also be over 60 new connections to regional cities from surrounding areas and improved mobility options for those in remote areas with the provision of demand-responsive and other innovative transport services.

The NTA said it already supports demand responsive services and local area hackneys, but said the provision of these may need to be enhanced through an app-based service.

Currently, six million vehicle kilometres are provided annually across the country by TFI Local Link, and this is set to increase to 18.3m under Connecting Ireland plans, an increase of 200%.

The NTA said it intends to finalise its implementation plan during the first half of next year, before proceeding with the implementation in the second half of the year.

Anne Graham, chief executive of the NTA, said the minister had allocated €5.7m next year which will be used for an additional subsidy that will provide for the increase in services.

The overall cost of the programme will be around €57m by the end of the five-year plan, she added. 

Ms Graham said the plan is among the “most important" the authority has produced in recent years.

“We know that for many people, living in a village or in a rural area can mean that accessing services, or employment, or education, or even retail is difficult if not impossible, without using a private car. We want to change that,” she said.

I believe that expanding the public transport network and increasing service levels, in the way we are proposing, will mean that more people in rural areas will have greater levels of freedom whether or not they have a car.

She added: “We looked at all kinds of models to see how we can connect even the most remote places to a more scheduled public transport system to give people more options.” 

Speaking at the launch, transport minister Eamon Ryan said the plan represents a "step-change" for rural Ireland.

“If we are to deliver on our emissions targets, we need to make sure that people have the services and alternatives they need. Hundreds of rural villages and areas will for the first time will be served by a viable public transport link," he added.