Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

The key is to deliver it before next September to benefit those going to college. It is equally important that young people travelling to work benefit. However, the return of college is the deadline by which we have to have the reduction in place for the commercial operators. Included in this is Bus Éireann.

It is a matter of differentiation. Ideally, we would prefer to apply the reduction to every bus service straightaway but there are characteristics of commercial operations to be considered. We do not set the fares. We do not monitor, regulate or check in respect of cash and other fares of private operators, so it is not as easy to apply the reduction. We can and will do it with regard to the youth travel card, however. It will be done in the September timeframe to allow those going to college at that time and young workers to avail of it. There is a working group established with the commercial operators to deliver it in a timely manner.

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