Delay in buses in causing problems for residents
13 bus was cancelled 21 times in a single day
The National Transport Authority has been asked to help solve transport issues in Clondalkin after complaints were made at a recent community forum.
The request was made to have an NTA representative present for meetings on the topic after residents continued to suffer from problems caused by undependable public transport.
Councillor Darragh Adelaide said that the issues with public transport are affecting a lot of residents in the area.
Cllr Adelaide stated: “The 13 coming through Clondalkin was listed as one of the most cancelled buses in Dublin.
“These are issues that are affecting a lot of people, particularly older people who, if a bus is cancelled, they’re left there waiting in the cold.
“Same with people with disabilities, people with young kids, but also people trying to get to work.”
The 13 was cancelled 21 times in a single day on Wednesday, October 15 – a cancellation rate of 13%
The majority of these cancellations came near the origin stop of the Grange Castle-Mountjoy Square route.
Councillor Eoin Ó Broin added that there have been instances of the bus skipping Bawnogue, an area currently undergoing works.
Cllr Ó Broin said: “What can happen is that the bus skips Bawnogue in order to get back on track because when they’re late, they get fined by the NTA.
“So, this is a problematic situation when it occurs so often.”
The NTA’s rules intend for buses not to get bunched up and instead enjoy an even flow of service for both high and low-frequency routes.
This means that sometimes buses will stay at stops for several minutes if they are running ahead of schedule.
However, the Clondalkin councillor noted that it has also led to buses skipping stops to catch up to their scheduled times.
Cllr Adelaide agreed with this and stated that the NTA rules do not work: “It’s to back up privatisation. You’re privatising things, you need certain criteria and KPI’s that you pass on to whichever company tenders for the routes.
“And one of those is you need a certain amount of buses reaching those stops on time so it’s forcing drivers to, not through any way of their own, they just want to serve people around the routes, but to skip [stops].”
A letter from Clondalkin councillors has been sent to the NTA to work on the issues that locals of the area have been facing.
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.
