Joe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy O’Rourke for raising this important topic, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Ryan.

I understand that the Deputy’s question is with regard to the inclusion of private bus operators in the young adult card and other fare-reduction initiatives. From the outset, I would like to assure the Deputy that I have been advised that it has always been the intention of the Minister, Deputy Ryan, to include commercial bus operators as part of the young adult card initiative. Licenced bus and coach operators are an integral part of the overall public transport system, particularly in areas around the country that are not covered by existing public service bus and rail services.

In recognition of the important role these operators play, the Government has continued to provide temporary financial supports throughout the Covid-19 pandemic for certain licenced commercial services with a view to protecting capacity across the public transport sector throughout the crisis. In acknowledgment of the continuing difficulties facing this sector, I am pleased to inform the Deputy that these supports for the commercial sector were recently extended up to 30 June 2022. To date, more than €60 million has been provided to support the commercial bus operators during this challenging time.

In relation to the Deputy’s question regarding the young adult card, recognising the importance of incentivising more young people to use public transport, €25 million of funding was secured for the scheme's introduction as part of budget 2022. This initiative will allow any person nationwide who is between 19 and 23 years old to avail of an entitlement for discounted travel costs and to increase the level of discount over and above the current student discount to an average discount of 50% across all services including city, intercity and rural services. It is expected that the young adult card will be launched on PSO services next month. It will then be broadened to include commercial operators later this year with the aim to have it in place before the recommencement of third-level colleges.

With regard to other public transport fare initiatives, as the Deputy will be aware, a 20% average reduction is being introduced on PSO services as part of a suite of Government measures to help combat the rising cost of living. This fare reduction was applied to all services outside the greater Dublin area from 11 April and it is intended to roll out the next stage of the reductions on greater Dublin area services from 9 May. The fare reduction will be in place until the end of the year.

It is clear that these fare initiatives will be of great benefit to public transport users. They will not only promote modal shift in the transport sector but should also contribute towards a reduced reliance on private transport, with the associated benefit of transport emission savings. It is important to note, however, that it is technically more challenging to roll out fare initiatives such as the young adult card on the commercial bus network than it is on the Leap-enabled PSO network. As such, it will take longer to make this fare discount available to commercial bus operators.

The National Transport Authority, NTA, is in detailed discussions with transport operators and the Department of Transport regarding the range of issues that need to be addressed. To assist with this process, the NTA has established a joint working group with commercial bus operators to consider options and develop a plan to implement the young adult card on commercial bus operators in as timely a manner as possible, taking account of current ticketing capabilities to ensure a viable scheme is implemented, with the second meeting of this group taking place this morning. The invaluable industry experience on the working group will help expedite the process of deploying the young adult card to the wider commercial bus sector.

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