Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for selecting this matter for debate. I thank the Minister, Deputy Harris, for being here in the Chamber in the absence of the Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan. I raise this matter to bring attention to the critical issue of public transport in rural areas, especially in my constituency of Mayo. It is imperative that the Government continues to invest not only in urban transport but also in connecting our regions and providing adequate transport facilities in rural areas. While Government has made progress through initiatives like Local Link, which connects our rural areas to local towns, there is still much work to be done. The Connecting Ireland plan from the National Transport Authority, NTA, aims to improve mobility in rural towns and villages, but our focus must extend to improving connectivity in our regions and establishing inter-city links.

There is currently no direct bus service from Mayo to Dublin Airport, or from Castlebar or Claremorris, and the Expressway bus service travels from Ballina only. It serves parts of east Mayo with a connection at Swinford. At this stage, it is deplorable in terms of what we require in order to provide high-frequency public transport to a county like Mayo, which is the third largest in the country. This is a significant inconvenience for constituents who rely on these types of services. I therefore call on the NTA to establish additional bus services to and from Dublin city and the airport to cater for the needs of those in Mayo who wish to avail of these essential services.

Furthermore, the Government's climate action plan includes a commitment to reduce the number of kilometres driven by private cars by 20% and also seeks a 20% reduction in fossil fuel usage by 2030. Achieving these goals in our rural towns and villages is impossible without proper public transport facilities. While there has been a commendable uptake in electric vehicles, EVs, people outside Dublin often need to travel long distances where EVs are not viable.

The provision of public transport is of critical importance to our climate ambitions as it enables sustainable transportation through our public transport system. It connects counties like Mayo to Dublin more efficiently. We need a more ambitious approach around this. There is no reason we cannot increase investment in luxury coach lines with modern facilities such as USB ports, Wi-Fi and toilet facilities similar to those we avail of on rail services. Currently in both transport and bus services, there is a serious deficiency for students attending colleges in our cities and towns. It is completely inadequate. While there are plans in place for additional carriages for Irish Rail up to 2025, we cannot wait years for improved services. I call again on the Department of Transport and the NTA for an immediate increase in bus service capacity for our students, the elderly and everyone travelling to and from Dublin city and its airport. The recent acquisition of GoBus by Citylink presents an opportunity to enhance connectivity to Mayo given that GoBus has established excellent services between Ballina, Galway and Dublin. We can leverage this acquisition to provide additional connections for our constituents. I urge the Minister to take this message back to the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, and the NTA to allow the Department to take swift action in addressing the delivery of rural transport provision in areas like Mayo. By investing in improved bus services, facilitating convenient connections and adapting a more ambitious approach, we can ensure our rural communities have the necessary transport facilities. This can also contribute to our climate objectives.

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