Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)

I move:

That Dáil Éireann:

acknowledges as hugely positive: — the increase in public transport usage in recent years and, in particular, the fact that over 1 million public transport journeys are now taken each day;

— the reductions in all public transport fares that were introduced in April 2022;

— the additional reductions in public transport fares for young adults between 19 and 25 via the Young Adult and Student Card, which was introduced in 2022 and extended in 2024; and

— the roll out of additional Local Link services since 2022, which has seen a five fold increase in the number of people using these services, with 100,000 journeys taking place on Local Link services every week; notes that: — further reductions in fares, balanced with investment in capacity, will bring even more people onto public transport;

— a focus on continuous improvement in passengers' experience is now critical to further growth in public transport usage, in particular efforts to improve timetabling and eliminate ghost buses, ease of access for all, easier contactless ticketing, and real, accessible customer service when something goes wrong;

— transport remains one of the most urgent sectors of Ireland's carbon emissions to reduce;

— the All-Island Strategic Rail Review outlines economic, social and climate benefits for both Ireland and Northern Ireland;

— the Connecting Ireland rural bus programme has transformed public transport use in rural Ireland, connecting communities for the first time and delivering regular, frequent services; and

— people with disabilities or with a mobility impairment continue to face unacceptable obstacles to enjoying equality of access to public transport; further notes: — the Programme for Government 2025 - Securing Ireland's Future is completely lacking in measurable commitments in terms of the amount of additional funding envisaged, and timelines by which the public transport commitments in it will be achieved; and

— that public transport needs to be affordable, accessible, convenient, connected and safe, and that this will require sustained multi-annual investment from central Government to achieve; and calls on the Government to commit to: — a further reduction of 20 per cent in public transport costs for all, across the lifetime of this Government;

— establish a new Public Transport Passenger Experience Office, which will work to diagnose and deliver solutions on issues in the current provision of public transport and advocate for the rights and experience of passengers, this office will provide timely information to passengers, particularly where a service is delayed or cancelled, and which will enhance the accessibility of services for passengers with a disability;

— pass the legislation, and provide the necessary funding, to ensure that the Transport Security Force is established and operational by Quarter 4 of 2026;

— complete the rollout of the contactless fare payment system in 2026;

— a €10 billion increase in capital for public transport in the National Development Plan review;

— ensure the full implementation of the Connecting Ireland rural bus programme, expanding on current levels of services and working towards an "every village, every hour" bus service;

— achieve 150,000 journeys per week on Local Link services by Quarter 4 2026; and

— outline in the Revised National Development Plan those recommendations of the All-Island Strategic Rail Review that the Government plans to deliver by 2030.

I thank the Minister of State for attending.

The Green Party believes that a focus on continually improving the experience commuters and passengers have on our buses, trains and light rail is absolutely critical to further growth in public transport usage. Too often, the stories of being late for work because two services did not connect, standing at a bus stop and seeing numerous services appear on the real-time app and then disappear, listening to someone loudly doomscrolling TikTok in the seat beside you, or feeling menaced on a late evening train carriage when another passenger decides to act up, when shared by word of mouth and put up on social media, undermine confidence in our public transport services. They are a disincentive to people making the change in the way they travel. These stories are effective in doing so because all of us who take public transport have experienced the same situations; we can relate to them when they are reflected back to us.

The programme for Government contains a lengthy section on transport and a significant number of worthy commitments on public transport. However, it is completely lacking commitments in terms of the amount of additional funding that will be committed or timelines by which the public transport commitments will be met. There is not a deadline in sight in the programme for Government.

The absence of anything measurable has real consequences. Where there are no clear timelines being worked to, it lessens the pressure on agencies, Departments and Ministers. I know the Minister of State will agree from his own experience that, without constant pressure from the top, no major reform in this country will ever succeed.

With this Green Party motion, we seek to fill that gap. We are including eight important commitments, with key measurements around them. At the heart of each of these commitments is the belief that we owe commuters a duty to improve their experience on our public transport systems. I welcome that the Government is not opposing this motion and that the Dáil will agree these eight commitments at the end of this debate.

These eight commitments are not an exhaustive list addressing every challenge faced by public transport, but if they were achieved in the lifetime of this Government, they would make a meaningful difference to commuters all over Ireland, urban and rural, North and South. Ultimately, our goal must be to build a first-class public transport system that gives every person on this island a service that works every time. The benefits that flow from that, in terms of emissions reduction, reduced air pollution, more sustainable communities and healthier people, are all well known.

Commitment No. 1 is to a further reduction of 20% in public transport costs for all across the lifetime of this Government. At minimum, the new Government needs to guarantee that the cuts to public transport fares that were introduced in the previous Government will be maintained. We will be watching that closely in budget 2026. However, the Government needs to go further. We know that public transport users are price sensitive. Let us continue to make the use of public transport as affordable as possible for commuters by continuing to cut fares.

Commitment No. 2 is to demonstrate that the Government is serious about tackling ghost buses, inadequate information about cancelled services and the hoops that users with disabilities have to go through in order to be able to access a train by establishing a new public transport passenger experience office. This would be a division within the National Transport Authority to diagnose and deliver solutions on issues in the current provision of public transport. It would also advocate for the rights of passengers.

Commitment No. 3 is to pass the legislation and provide the necessary funding to ensure that the transport security force is established and operational by quarter 4 of 2026. This means starting to provide funding for it in this year's budget, that the legislation would need to be introduced in September or October of this year and that drafters would be put under pressure, but there is widespread agreement that we need to improve the perception of safety on our public transport services, so let us deliver that now.

Commitment No. 4 is to complete the roll-out of the contactless fare payment system in 2026. We all recognise that the lack of a contactless system, whereby one can pay with one's card or phone, leaves Ireland way out of line with most European countries. The Minister of State and I have discussed in the House the significant contract that has been signed with a private company, but I am worried about the lack of timelines. The situation as currently envisaged does not provide a clear line of sight on the delivery of this ambitious and expensive project, and that is why I argue it is essential that we put an ambitious, but doable, timeline into these commitments.

Commitments Nos. 5 and 6 are linked, and they relate to the Local Link services around the country. Due to the investment provided by the Green Party in the previous Government, these have seen huge growth in recent years. The number of passenger journeys have grown fivefold on Local Link services, from 20,000 journeys in 2022 to 100,000 in 2024. We believe that, with continued investment and prioritisation, we can continue that upward trend and grow it to 150,000 journeys by the end of 2026. We want the Government to set this ambition for the completion of the Connecting Ireland rural bus programme and work towards the concept of an every village, every hour bus service. That opens up new options for people living in rural Ireland and gives them real choice in how they plan their journeys.

Commitment No.7 is probably the easiest. We have already completed the all-island strategic rail review. What elements of this does the Government plan to deliver by 2030, which is the end of its term in office? The strategic rail review lasts up to 2050, but I know from my engagement with Irish Rail that it has big plans. It is ready to deliver on significant projects if it can be assured that the budget is there for them. This is specific to the Minister of State's remit, so I would love a clear list of what he intends to achieve in his term of office.

The final commitment - No. 8 - relates to that key issue of budget. If we are serious about improving the commuter experience, we have to invest in it. What is currently allocated to the Department of Transport under the existing national development plan will not be enough to deliver all the big transport projects as well as the other transport projects within the programme for Government. That is why the Green Party advocates for an additional €10 billion in the review of the NDP to public transport projects - €7 billion from the Apple receipts and €3 billion from the surpluses. This sort of investment will make sure we can deliver key large-scale public transport projects.

I will give the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, a little illustration of the commuter experience. I was getting the 7.34 a.m. train in from Castleknock this morning. The train did not arrive. There were horses on the track between Hansfield and Clonsilla. It happens. I found that out on the Irish Rail Twitter feed. We had an announcement on the station's intercom but nobody could hear it because of the noise of a train engine idling over on the other side. No one knew really what was going on. I had to make the call as to whether or not to go the No. 39 or the No. 37 bus. Each of the apps was telling me a different time for the different buses. I took the risk went for the No. 37 but as I was walking to get it, the No. 37 went sailing past and I missed it. When I arrived at the bus stop the real-time machine there was not working. Another No. 37 arrived and Dublin Bus got me in half an hour later. Again, it is not the end of the world but these are just a small few additional stresses that were added to every commuter who was taking that particular route this morning. These are stresses that could be resolved with a greater focus on the experience that public transport users have. When I talk to commuters and to passengers, they talk glowingly about their service, about their bus, and about their train, when those services work. They recognise it when they see additional services being laid on by the public transport companies. Too often they have another feeling, however, which is a feeling of being abandoned. They feel abandoned by the bus that did not turn up. That wrecks a person's morning, being abandoned by that real-time display that bears no reality to the buses arriving and departing and by lifts that are not working or where there are no staff to provide a ramp when a passenger has mobility issues. We have got to make this a thing of the past. We have got to build confidence in our public transport system. It must works all the time and for every single passenger. These eight commitments are about putting measures in place. They are ambitious but I put it to the Minister of State that they are absolutely doable in the lifetime of this Government. If the Government does manage to undertake and complete these commitments, it will show that it is serious about public transport.

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