Public Transport and Fare Increases: Motion [Private Members]
Dail Éireann — 2026-09-29
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Carol Nolan (IND), Offaly

The sheer audacity of the Government proposal to increase public transport fares is breathtaking. The Government wants to increase public transport fares while large parts of rural Ireland are still waiting for public transport that actually exists. In Offaly, people are not talking about buses being too cheap. They are talking about the bus that never comes or they are angry about the route that does not exist. Only recently, I received confirmation that the long-promised route 826 connecting Mullingar and Edenderry, a service that would finally provide a direct public transport link across parts of Offaly, Westmeath and Laois, is stalled because there is no funding available. It is not delayed because of planning or staffing but because the Government has simply not provided the money. The Minister says fares have to rise to support the system. People in rural Ireland have every right to ask what system exactly he is talking about. The Government is asking people to pay premium prices for a second-rate service.
Let us look at what is happening to motorists at the same time. Figures released to me show that €23.7 million has been collected from motorists at the Portlaoise toll plaza every single year. That is completely unfair on businesses, haulage businesses in particular, that have to go through that toll frequently. Every day, workers, families, farmers, small business owners and hauliers across Offaly hand over more of their income simply to travel the roads they depend on. The M7 and M8 were built over 15 years ago. The concession runs until 2037.
Now, after collecting tens of millions of euro from motorists, the Government wants public transport users to pay more as well. If you drive, they have their hand in your pocket. If you get the bus, they have their hand in your pocket. If you live in rural Ireland, they expect you to be grateful for the privilege. If you work, you are taxed out of existence. The contradiction at the heart of this policy is impossible to ignore. For years, the Government has told people to leave their cars behind, but every action it takes pushes people back towards their cars. It cannot tell people to get out of their cars while failing to provide reliable alternatives and it certainly cannot justify fare increases when new rural services are being frozen because the money is not there, such as the 826 service that would serve Mullingar to Edenderry.

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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