Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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72. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will report on the scheme for free travel for five- to eight-year-olds; if he will report on the roll-out of the scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63434/25]

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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If the Minister for Transport was here, I would ask him to report on the scheme for the free travel for five- to eight-year-olds. I would also ask him to report on the roll-out of the scheme.

This has been heralded for a long time. I do not know how much money was spent on it or what testing was done but there have been problems with it. We have had complaints that the cards do not actually work. There seems to be problems on both Bus Éireann and Iarnród Eireann services. What is the Government doing to address them?

Jerry Buttimer (Cork South-Central, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for his question. I have no doubt he will join me in welcoming this initiative, which was launched in September and extends free travel on all public service obligation, PSO, services to children between five and eight years of age. This initiative was announced as part of the budget 2025 package of measures and delivers on a key programme for Government commitment to make public transport more affordable and accessible for families. The extension of free travel for children under nine builds on the 2017 introduction of free travel for children under five on subsidised public transport services.

The initiative is important as it both makes public transport more affordable for families and develops a familiarity with using public transport from an early age that will hopefully continue much later in life. The National Transport Authority, NTA, has advised that the card application process is straightforward and efficient and to date, cards have been issued promptly to eligible children.

Approximately 25,000 cards have been issued since 4 September, reflecting strong uptake. While some concerns were raised about the practicality of applying for a card for each child, this requirement is necessary for several reasons: children may travel alone or with different adults; and current validator technology does not permit multiple taps of the same card within a short timeframe, which prevents accidental double-charging. The Leap system, introduced in 2011, is now a legacy platform and cannot support new features such as multiple identities on one card. Individual cards also allow operators and the NTA to monitor usage, providing valuable data on the success of the scheme in promoting public transport usage. The child Leap card expires at the end of the month in which the child turns nine, after which they transition to a child Leap card offering a 67% discount on adult fares. These measures, along with the NTA's recent fare zone adjustments, aim to make public transport more equitable, inclusive and affordable for young people.

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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It is true we in Sinn Féin support this measure but it has to work in practice. I agree it is good there have been 25,000 cards and agree on the gathering of data to ensure public transport is available to more children and citizens into the future. However, the roll-out has not been going to plan. First of all, it took about a year to get it off the ground and the scheme was not officially launched until September. Even worse, some of the cards required to access the scheme do not work. Parents have contacted us to say not only does their child's Leap card not work but many bus drivers had not heard of the scheme. That is hardly a ringing endorsement of a successful roll-out. The NTA has confirmed to us there are problems with the scheme and has claimed the issues will be resolved when a fix is found and proper testing carried out. How is the Minister of State planning to do that? Why was this situation not anticipated and dealt with before September?

Jerry Buttimer (Cork South-Central, Fine Gael)
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I will bring the Deputy's concerns back. As he knows quite well, the whole piece of the individual cards and the validators on Luas and rail is about ensuring there is not accidental double charging. I disagree with him on the uptake - 25,000 since 1 September is quite a significant uptake. Equally, it is important to recognise that since the launch over 9 million Leap cards have been issued, accounting for €2.7 billion in fare payments. The fundamental core architecture is nearly 20 years old and cannot absorb further functionality. We must work with the NTA to ensure it is accessible and practical and we have as many people using public transport as possible.

I will bring back the concerns the Deputy expressed because we share common ground. It is about accessible, affordable public transport and increasing usage. We must make it easier for people to use the card. This has been a successful scheme but I take the Deputy's point on board.

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister of State mentioned introducing subsidised public transport services. I want to raise the issue of rural children being excluded from the scheme because it has not been extended to commercial operators. At a recent appearance at the transport committee, David Conway from the Coach Tourism and Transport Council of Ireland said his operators are excluded from the scheme. He found that surprising given they are included with some other elements. Our heavy reliance on commercial transport operators in rural areas is maintained because public transport has not been expanded over the years as it should have been. As a result of this failure and lack of planning, some parents and children have no choice but to use a commercial operator. They were included in the young adult fare scheme but have not been included in this. That is the call from that organisation and from many people in rural Ireland who are obliged to use the commercial operators.

Jerry Buttimer (Cork South-Central, Fine Gael)
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The budget of this year has provided for the continuation of the free child fares on PSO services. The Deputy raised commercial bus operators. The previous Government decision did not include provisions for extending free travel for children reliant on commercial bus operators. While the NTA is responsible for licensing commercial bus services, any decisions regarding fares charged by these services are managed by commercial bus operators themselves, who largely operate without State subvention. Notably, the young adult card scheme was broadened three years ago to include eligible services operated by commercial bus operators on an opt-in basis, with individual operators choosing to participate and the NTA compensating them for the agreed discount. We must encourage and provide for the continuation of public transport for people in rural areas, in particular. As the Minister of State with responsibility for rural transport, I was in Kilkenny this morning at a seminar on that. I look forward to working with the Deputy to have that extended.