Public Transport and Fare Increases: Motion [Private Members]
Dail Éireann — 2026-09-29
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Mark Wall (LAB), Kildare South

First, I wish to thank Sinn Féin for bringing forward this very important motion. I am not sure who the Government is listening to but the proposed public transport increases are being met by simple disbelief by people in Kildare South. Time and again in this House and the Upper House, which I am a former Member of, I have raised the need to improve reliability and availability and address the overcrowding on our public transport services. We are now met with, "Hold all that; we're going to increase the fares."
I will make this plea. Has anyone from the opposite side of this House sat on the M7 in the morning for hours on end trying to get into the capital for work, knowing the stress it is putting them through and knowing that they are going to be late for work? Has anybody sat on the M7 waiting to go to a hospital appointment? I have mentioned cancer patients here before who have been late for appointments because of this stress. God forbid if anyone needed to get to the airport. It would seem the opposite side of the House is not listening to those commuters. Despite the motions that we in the Labour Party have brought forward to assist with this traffic congestion and get commuters out of their cars and onto public transport, the Government has simply rejected these. The Government's big idea, its answer, was to propose, as we know, an average increase of 15% in public transport fares.
For those who may say we only give out here on the Opposition benches, let me be clear. My colleagues have been clear. Time and again, I have welcomed the new rural links in my area, the new priority bus lanes on the M4 and the one under construction on the M7. I have welcomed them and will continue to welcome them. I have welcomed the investment in our train stations, such as Athy, but I cannot for the life of me welcome a fare increase for the commuters of Kildare South.
What we need to do is encourage commuters off our roads and onto public transport. That needs to be a priority for this Government. Increasing fares by 15% will, as has been pointed out, including by the NTA itself, reduce the number of those using public transport by more than 4.5%. It is time to cut fares on public transport. It is time to deliver a reliable, available and comfortable service, which everybody in this State deserves.

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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