Dublin commuters sick and tired of out-of-sync bus and rail timetables and stops – Boland

Bus and rail timetables and stops must be aligned to allow pressurised Dublin commuters get to where they need to be as easily as possible, a Fine Gael TD has said.

Deputy Grace Boland said that communities living in Dublin suburbs and commuter towns are crying out for greater connectivity to the city centre and at more regular intervals.

Deputy Boland said: “As a daily rail commuter, I acknowledge how fantastic our public transport service can be when trains or buses arrive on time, passengers can get a seat and there are no delays into town. But this doesn’t always happen and for commuters rushing to get to their workplaces to clock in for a day’s work, their mornings don’t always start off on the best footing.

“In areas like my own constituency of Dublin Fingal West, with people travelling from Skerries, Rush and Lusk, if a train is late or delayed, commuters would like the option to hop on a bus instead. Bus stops are rarely within walking distance of train stations and if they are, Murphy’s Law dictates that the next bus will be due a long time after the train you just missed or the one that’s delayed.

“Similarly, local link buses should exist to take people in these towns and villages to the train station, but highlights a gap the NTA need to address. Dublin’s population continues to rise and areas in the suburbs and on Dublin’s border into Kildare, Meath and Wicklow are now heavily populated with people who must get into town every day at peak times to work or go to school.

“Not all transport fixes are complex – there can be quick ones. The NTA appeared before the Oireachtas Transport Committee last week and, having listened to my account of parents’ dissatisfaction, agreed to cap children’s weekly rail tickets in time for school returning in September, proving if there’s a will, there will be a way.

“There are ways to join up the Dublin commuter experience reasonably and not always with a huge financial outlay. Increasing the number of buses on frequently used routes needs to happen – and expanding the local link routes to complement train services to the city is the obvious starting point, along with revising where bus stops are located in relation to train stations.

“Dubliners need all public transport route timetables to complement each other – so there’s always an option available to them at all times of the day. Joined up thinking is needed by the NTA and it has more work to do to make public transport more accessible.