‘Extraordinary’ lack of bus services from Louth to Meath slammed in the Dáil

The “extraordinary” lack of bus services from Louth to Meath has been slammed in the Dáil.

Louth Fine Gael TD Paula Butterly raised the issue during a recent debate on bus services.

Deputy Butterly said: “When I want to take a bus or train from Belfast to Dublin, Dundalk or Drogheda, the routes have improved.

“By rail or bus, they are absolutely excellent and even on the hour.

“However, if I want to go from east to west, from Clogherhead to Dunleer or Ardee and on to Trim or Kells, there are no buses and no public services to enable people to get to work or to get to medical appointments.”

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She continued by saying that she has written to the National Transport Authority (NTA) but received no reply.

Deputy Butterly added: “If there is any reply, it is saying they have no plans to develop any services east to west within County Louth, or even connecting County Louth to County Meath.

“I find this extraordinary when we are trying to encourage people to use more public transport.

“There is the cost to car owners and to people who have to take time off work to bring loved ones to medical appointments. Surely this is something that can be considered.”

Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien provided a general response to all members who made contributions, but did not answer Deputy Butterly’s specific queries.

Minister O’Brien said: “We will make a further improvement this year in 2026. Am I going to be able to keep everybody happy with all the services they want in 2026? No, I am not.

“However, we are going to see a further step change in that regard, an increase and improvement.

“We are talking about the bus network. The first two BusConnects corridors have started and there has been major investment in rail, road and our bus network as well.”

“We have lots of good things. This period of time could be transformational,” he added.

Minister O’Brien concluded by noting that 43 million public transport journeys were made in 2024. He added that the Government will continue to work to increase this figure year on year.