Public Transport and Fare Increases: Motion [Private Members]
Dail Éireann — 2026-09-29
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Cathy Bennett (SF), Cavan-Monaghan

When it comes to transport this Government and the Minister seem to be entirely without any direction at all. The carbon tax, which is supposedly a behavioural tax, is intended to change people's behaviour. The Government's carbon tax is supposed to encourage people to switch to electric cars and public transport, never mind that some people cannot afford electric cars. It is not a viable option.
In communities like mine in Cavan and Monaghan, public transport is not a viable option either. It is very sparse. Buses frequently run late and students cannot access school transport. What we do have, however, are viable commercial operators we are very fortunate to have in Monaghan. They have been excluded from schemes that deliver reduced fares, such as those for young adults and children. Sometimes a solution for rural Ireland might be found later, and much later at that, with rural people being the afterthought they are to this Government. With regard to rail, for all the talk of an all-island strategic rail review, perhaps my grandchildren might actually see a railroad in Monaghan some day because the Government has put that on the long finger too.
Plenty of money can be found to support transport CEOs, and the Government can find €500 million yearly for school transport for Bus Éireann, yet this Government thinks that we should pay more to access what little unreliable public transport it has to offer us.
I have very little confidence in this Government to deliver public transport for rural people but for the love of God, could the Minister please not make it worse? Scrap the hike now.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-09-29/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-10-05T01:00:59+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-09-29