Transport | Bus services from Naas to Blanchardstown

To ask the Minister for Transport the extent to which all bus services from Naas to Blanchardstown are in need of improvement with particular reference to reliability, availability and punctuality; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

REPLY

I am writing to you concerning the matter you raised in Parliamentary Question No 192 on 10 November last which has been referred to the National Transport Authority (NTA) for reply.

JJ Kavanagh & Sons Limited operate Public Service Obligation (PSO) route 139 public bus services between Naas and Blanchardstown on behalf of the NTA. The NTA monitors reliability and punctuality on the route on a continuous basis. This route has not suffered from reliability issues related to driver availability but has come under increased demand in the Naas, Sallins and Clane areas in particular as other transport services in the areas reduced during the pandemic and since pandemic restrictions have eased. As a result, the increased passenger demand had a knock-on effect on peak services and subsequent services. In order to improve punctuality, reliability and capacity the NTA re-introduced 2 supplementary services at the beginning of the college terms in 2021 and 2022; a 07:00 service from Naas to Blanchardstown and a 17:00 service from Blanchardstown to Naas. The NTA then added 3 additional supplementary services on October 19th 2022 as demand required; a 07:00 service from Blanchardstown to Naas, a 09:00 service from Naas to Maynooth and a 15:45 service from Maynooth to Naas. The Authority will keep this under review and any extension of the supplementary services beyond this term will be subject to funding availability.

A review of service levels and timetable alterations will be undertaken as part of the retendering of the route 139 services, due to take place in 2023.