2026-06-18

112. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Transport if the discontinued route 4 bus service from Waterford to Dublin-Dublin Airport and the stops along the route will be reinstated following the withdrawal of a service (details supplied). [46260/26]

I want to raise the fact that Expressway has pulled out of providing services on route 4. We are faced with a public service obligation route being provided from Waterford to Carlow. I attended a public meeting on the matter in Mullinavat and have attended two further meetings since. I want to reflect the anger of the people who attended those meetings regarding the lack of a response from the National Transport Authority, NTA, and the lack of proper explanation from the very beginning of this debacle.

I thank Deputy McGuinness for raising this matter. For context, Bus Éireann operates both PSO services and Expressway intercity services. The latter operate on a commercial basis and do not receive any State subvention. We are aware that Bus Éireann recently announced the withdrawal of some services which operate under its Expressway banner. Deputy McGuinness referenced route 4, the Waterford via Carlow service, in this regard. The point the Deputy makes reflects a lot of the frustration experienced by people. He referred to the meeting held in Mullinavat. It is important that Bus Éireann and the NTA communicate with people, the travelling public and public representatives in a very clear and cogent manner. It is unacceptable that the decision in this regard, which was taken following a financial and operational review, was not communicated by Bus Éireann in terms of the need to provide clarity and certainty to people. In saying that, Bus Éireann has said to us that in regard to the Expressway performance over recent years, it was concerned about the long-term financial sustainability of the company as a whole. The NTA, as Deputy McGuinness has referenced, is the licensing authority for the commercial bus sector. As is the case with any such commercial route withdrawals, the withdrawal of these routes triggers the NTA's public service obligation termination process, the outcome of which has been published by the NTA. I know the NTA - and I will ask it to communicate directly with Deputy McGuinness - has undertaken a detailed assessment of the potential impact to customers. The review identified that the loss of route 4 would, as we have heard, significantly reduce the capacity and connectivity between Waterford and Carlow, and that is regrettable. The NTA has introduced a new Transport for Ireland, TFI, route 365, as subsidised by the bus service to maintain vital transport links and support regional accessibility. I would be anxious to hear how that service, which will have four daily returns, will meet the needs of the people Deputy McGuinness speaks about and I would be happy to communicate with the NTA on his behalf as well.

That is a statement of fact, I suppose, in respect of the response given but, in reality, it does not address the real issue of the connection between Waterford and other towns along the route to Dublin and Dublin Airport. There are students who use that route to go to college. There are those who visit the hospitals in Dublin and elsewhere, or those who go to the airport. There are those who are, maybe, socialising and use the bus service. It has been withdrawn. Bus Éireann has shown a total disregard for its customers by the manner in which it withdrew it and by the lack of information it has given. The National Transport Authority has missed the point in relation to the connection through all of those towns from Waterford to Dublin and Dublin Airport. I ask that this route be examined again, that a proper service be provided and that the customers be informed.

The new 365 route will provide four daily returns, which will provide access for passengers travelling from Waterford and Carlow to Dublin via the counties in between. Passengers travelling onwards will benefit from connections in Carlow to existing bus and rail services to Dublin and beyond. As I said, the route will be operated by Bus Éireann on an interim basis. The new service will provide four return journeys. It will ensure continued access for passengers travelling from Waterford, Carlow and the surrounding counties will be provided for. I take the Deputy's point on the need to have the travelling public communicated with. He said it was a "statement of fact". I hear what he is saying. I will communicate the Deputy's frustrations and the concerns of the people in regard to the NTA missing the point about the connection piece. As the Deputy knows, the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, and I are not the people directly engaged in that but we will ask the NTA to account for it and report back to us on the matter. It is an important point. I know the town of Carlow well and the Deputy makes good points with regard to hospital and college. It is a large centre of population as well.

We are missing the point here. The customers are central to all of this and their needs must be met in a modern world. The Minister of State talked earlier on about the need to use public transport. We talk about our carbon footprint and so on. This flies in the face of all of that. They are not being given the service in rural Ireland. There is a real problem here in regard to communication and providing the solution to this issue. The only solution is to speak to the customers and put on a service that will provide the same kind of service as Expressway, to do it more efficiently and to ensure that the connectivity to rural Ireland is maintained and enhanced. It is not good enough. I want to repeat that the communication from the NTA was not what I find acceptable and the customers and the public are not being informed. They are not being listened to. Please engage with them.

First of all, the point the Deputy made in regard to communication is critically important. The NTA should communicate clearly and succinctly people. The route 365 will have four daily return journeys. There will be that continued access but I hear the points Deputy McGuinness has made. I understand what he is saying. Connectivity is important. We have seen the success of Local Link and it has grown exponentially around the country in regard to rural transport. I will communicate the points made very eloquently here this morning with the NTA on behalf of Deputy McGuinness and the people he has spoken about. We are committed, as a Government, to providing all of our citizens, no matter where they are, with reliable and realistic sustainable mobility options. I know that public transport, as I said earlier - I do not recoil from this - plays a significant role in that. The NTA and the Department will, following this morning's questions, liaise with Deputy McGuinness on the provision of services and if the route 365 does not work, then there obviously has to be a reappraisal of what the situation is.