Emer Currie (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

421. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport to detail the budget allocated to Dublin Bus for the introduction of new bus services and the enhancement of existing services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19659/25]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal East, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport; however, I am not involved in the day-to-day operations of public transport. The National Transport Authority (NTA) has statutory responsibility for securing the provision of public passenger transport services nationally and for the scheduling and timetabling of these services in conjunction with the relevant transport operators, in this case, Dublin Bus.

That being said, the Government is strongly committed to providing all citizens with reliable and realistic sustainable mobility options, and public transport plays a key role in the delivery of this goal. To support this objective, in Budget 2025, the Department of Transport secured €658.442 million of funding for Public Service Obligation (PSO) and TFI Local Link services.

This includes funding for the continuation of the fare initiatives and to support the roll-out of new and enhanced bus and rail services under programmes such as BusConnects and Connecting Ireland.

In light of the NTA’s responsibility in this area, I have forwarded the Deputy's request to the NTA for further information and direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a response within ten working days.