‘Government must act to stop the proposed hikes to public transport,’ demands Dundalk TD

Dundalk TD Ruairí Ó Murchú has spoken out regarding the government’s ‘unacceptable’ price increases which are five times the rate of inflation.

He also called for the Minister for Transport to act to stop the price hikes coming into effect and provide the National Transport Authority (NTA) with adequate funding to deliver and expand public transport services.

He said: “At a time when people are battling the cost-of-living crisis, these increases are unacceptable and cannot be allowed to go ahead.

“The Government is supposed to be incentivising the use of public transport. Making people pay more for services that are often overcrowded and unreliable does the opposite.”

Deputy Ó Murchú believes the rise in prices is ‘baffling’ and a ‘blow’ to those who rely on services.

“What is the government thinking here? We had stark climate change warnings only last week, the roads in our towns in Louth are chronically congested, and households are pushed to breaking point with the cost-of-living crisis.

“The Government says it wants to expand public transport services, yet it is starving the NTA of the funding it needs to deliver new services. The Government has no vision and ambition.

“If the Government genuinely wants to get people off the roads and onto public transport in order to meet our climate targets and improve congestion, it has to make public transport more reliable and more affordable.

“We cannot ask people to change how they travel while simultaneously making public transport more expensive and failing to deliver adequate services.

“The Minister must act to stop these price hikes and ensure that there is enough funding for the NTA to deliver a fit-for-purpose public transport system and expand new services.”