Christopher O'Sullivan: Free public transport would reduce emissions and improve communities

With cities and countries across Europe introducing free public transport, Ireland should join the experiment as it attempts to meet its climate objectives, writes Christopher O’Sullivan

Clearly, there is an urgent need to expand our public transport system to ensure all regions of the country are connected and, for that to come to fruition, a lot of difficult decisions will have to be made.

The idea of free public transport is by no means new. It has been a reality for hundreds of thousands of people living across various European cities, such as Tallinn and Dunkirk, for quite some time. In 2020, Luxembourg took those initiatives one step further and became the first country to make public transport free in a bid to tackle the country’s high level of private car usage and the resulting emissions.

In 2018, Dunkirk introduced free travel for both residents and visitors. A subsequent study found that bus use had increased by 65% during the week and by 125% during the weekend over the course of eight months.