Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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19. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if consideration has been given to providing toilet facilities on buses running in rural areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22885/25]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal East, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy raises an interesting issue.

At the outset I think it important to distinguish between publicly subvented services operating under contract with the NTA and commercially operated services operated under a licence provided by the NTA.

The publicly subvented services, or PSO services, are operated by a variety of operators both publicly and privately owned, and typically operate shorter routes running from outlying areas into the nearest town, although I acknowledge that some routes are longer. There are no plans to introduce toilet facilities on those buses.

Commercial services operate without any State subvention and are provided in the main by commercial operators, although Bus Éireann also operates commercial services under the Expressway brand. These services are generally long-distance and some operators do provide toilet facilities onboard. The provision of such facilities is a matter for the individual operator.

I am informed that Expressway for example has toilet facilities on a small number of its fleet. Designated toilet or comfort breaks are included in the schedule for some of longer Expressway journeys with no onboard facilities. In addition, toilet facilities are available at Ballyshannon and Enniskillen bus stations when these locations are open. I am informed that if such facilities are not open – for instance late at night or in the very early morning – Bus Éireann drivers endeavour to stop at a roadside facility if a customer requests to use the toilet if possible.

Additionally for the Deputy's information, all Iarnród Éireann Intercity trains have toilets, including an accessible toilet, on board. In addition, “Changing Places” toilet facilities have been installed at Connolly, Heuston and Limerick Rail Stations providing fully accessible toilets, with sufficient space and equipment for people who are not able to use toilets independently, and including features such as changing benches, hoists, and privacy screens.