The Oireachtas committee has been informed that the planned implementation of reduced public transport fares in and around Dublin’s commuter district is delayed till January at the earliest. The initiative of ‘Dublin Commuter Zone’ aimed to reduce fares for areas within a 23km radius of Dublin city centre, including parts of north Co Dublin, Meath, Kildare, and Co Wicklow. Once active, annual season tickets could see a drop in price by up to €500.
It was originally expected that by the end of this September, the new fare scheme would be in place, and 80 % of fares would either remain unchanged or reduced. For instance, the fare for a single train journey from Drogheda, Co Louth, to Dublin Connolly station is expected to drop from €11.95 to €6, while a single journey from Newbridge, Co Kildare, to Dublin Heuston will fall from €10.85 to €6.
Anne Graham, the CEO of the National Transport Authority (NTA), referred to the delay as “unfortunate” during the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport. She disclosed that the unnamed contractor managing the changes for Irish Rail’s ticketing system wasn’t able to meet the timeline to initiate the changes until the first quadrant of the following year.
Meath East TD Darren O’Rourke expressed his disappointment on behalf of thousands of commuters. He said the delay would penalise them, driving them to choose cars or drive to stations within the current commuter belt to access cheaper fares.
Labour TD Dundan Smith relayed that there has been a relentless six-year long push to incorporate towns such as Newbridge into the Dublin Commuter Zone. An impressive 8,000 signatures were gathered and presented to the NTA as part of the appeal to make this happen. Smith asserted to the committee that such changes were of utmost necessity as several people had opted to move away from Dublin banking on the lower commuting expenses.
Ms Graham expressed her disapproval of the ongoing delay and asserted that the NTA was not responsible for this. She explained that the NTA depended on public transport bodies like Irish Rail to put the requisite infrastructure in place.
NTA’s head of public transport services, Jeremy Ryan, attributed the delay to the need for a software programme and the availability of the gating equipment essential for introducing the new fare structure. He mentioned, “The original timeline we asked for was the third quarter. However, further discussion with their contractor led Irish Rail to realize that they would not be able to meet the expected timeline.”
Expressing his views, Hugh Creegan, the NTA’s deputy CEO, informed that a significant amount of work has been progressing to ensure the tender documents for the contract are prepared and the recommended preworks are arranged. He stated,”The moment the Railway Order is released, we will have a definitive action plan to execute on the ground.”