Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Operators in Cavan, Longford and other areas have stated recently that they cannot afford to run the free travel pass scheme and have withdrawn from it. The Government is planning to outsource 10% of the orbital routes in Dublin. It is already clear from the evidence coming in from private operators who were able to provide a free travel scheme that they cannot now afford to do it. This is exactly what will happen when the orbital routes are implemented. My area will be particularly badly hit with the outsourcing of the 59, 65, 75 and 111 routes to private companies which will not be able to afford to run the free travel pass scheme unless the Government gives a commitment. Such a commitment has clearly not been given to date as some of the private operators are already pulling out of the scheme. They say a cast-iron condition for the outsourcing of routes will be a requirement that tenderers operate the free travel pass scheme. I bet the Government will not demand that. If it does not, it is the stealth removal of the free travel scheme.

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