Wicklow Sinn Féin TD John Brady has expressed his frustration following written confirmation to Brady by the National Transport Authority (NTA) that the L1, L2, L3, L14 and L15 bus routes in Wicklow will not commence until later this year at the earliest.
The new routes, which were due to come into service this summer are: Route L1 would run every 30 minutes between Bray and Newtownmountkennedy via Greystones, Delgany and Kilpedder. Route L2 will run every 30 minutes between Bray and Kilcoole and every 60 minutes between Kilcoole and Newcastle via Greystones, Charlesland and Kilcoole. Routes L1 and L2 will offer a combined service every 15 minutes between Greystones and Bray. Route L3 will run every 30 minutes between Delgany and Charlesland via Greystones. The L15 is to run between Bray and Enniskerry.
Unfortunately, this latest confirmation represents the latest in a series of updates from the NTA which have announced repeated delays to the introduction of the service. This despite the fact that the NTA had issued previous assurances in January of this year that it was planned to introduce at least one new route this summer, the L14.
The new L14 bus route which was designed to service Southern Cross Road – Bray – Palermo. The National Transport Authority (NTA) had previously given a timeline which would have seen the introduction of the L14 service in the middle of last year. The NTA have now informed Brady that the route will not be introduced until the end of this year at the earliest. In 2022 the NTA announced that the L14 would be one of a number of new bus routes in Wicklow.
The fact that the NTA had confirmed at a previous meeting with Brady that the contract for the provision of the L1, L2 and L3 routes was to be given to GoAhead was heavily criticised by Brady. The company has previously been mired in controversy over the poor quality of its service provision on bus routes, for which it has been previously issued with fines by the National Transport Authority (NTA) of over €3 million for shortcomings relating to reliability, punctuality, and service quality.
Brady said:
“Since 2017, when myself and my party colleagues in Sinn Féin here in Wicklow launched a petition calling for the creation of a new bus loop service to link Newtownmountkennedy to Kilcoole and Greystones, we have been working to nail down a commitment from the NTA to deliver on this and other transport proposals.
The announcement by the NTA that the new bus routes are to be delayed yet again is unacceptable. This is the latest in a number of updates from the NTA which have witnessed the deadline for the introduction of the new services being continually pushed back. The last update before this suggested an Autumn roll out, the one before that specified a summer roll out! I have continuously expressed concern that the routes which were among a number of new routes announced in 2022 would not be delivered on time.
I have lobbied the NTA repeatedly over the last number of years in relation to the need for an increase in the number of bus service routes throughout Wicklow. And have previously made submissions as part of the BusConnects Consultation process for a new loop bus service around Bray.
The new L14 loop service once it was up and running would operate between the Southern Cross Road, Putland Road, Meath Road and Palermo. Another loop service was to be established between Greystones, Newcastle, Kilcoole and Newtownmountkennedy. This route was something Sinn Féin had campaigned for since 2017.
Of all the routes announced in 2022, none have been delivered.
I had previously been informed that these routes would be up and running in the middle of last year. Since then, I have been in contact with the NTA on a regular basis seeking regular briefings and updates. The most recent update from the NTA states that the routes will not be up and running until the end of the year at the earliest.
And this all comes with the caveat that funding will be provided on time and a public consultation process will be complete along with the erection of necessary bus stops.
Further delays will lead to even more anger and frustration, particularly in Bray where there is chronic traffic congestion, and the need for the new route must be met immediately.
At a time when the government should be taking concrete action to address the crippling issue of congestion in Bray, this is inexcusable. The people of Wicklow demand better. We have been promised a modern and efficient public transport service. We need to see it. These delays are not acceptable, and I think we are well within our rights to demand action from the Minister.”
Brady concluded:
“I want to repeat my call for Minister Eamon Ryan to rescind the decision to award the contracts for the L1, L2 and L3 routes to GoAhead which has already been fined over €3 million for its shoddy delivery on existing routes.
We also need assurances that these routes can be put in place in time. The traffic congestion and transport needs in Bray and across North Wicklow represents a serious problem. We have heard a lot of talk from the Green Party in relation to the importance of the delivery of public transport. But, yet again we are witnessing more delays. I am calling on the Green Party Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan to intervene directly to ensure the deadline for the new routes is met.