24-hour number 80 bus temporarily rerouted to serve the city quays

The 24-hour 80 bus from Liffey Valley Shopping Centre to Palmerstown Park will be temporarily rerouted to serve the city quays in February.

The new route will come into effect on Sunday, February 8 and will see the bus cross the Liffey River at O’Connell Bridge, and through College Green to South Great George’s Street.

Stops on High Street and Dame Street will be removed in favour of this change before the route is permanently altered later this year.

The change was announced in November, only a month after the new route replaced the 26 which served Chapelizod and Palmerstown residents among others.

A permanent change is expected to merge the service with the 130 bus in Q2 2026 and see it continue through the quays until Clontarf.

The new permanent service will stop at several more city locations along the way and provide connectivity to Luas Green Line and DART services.

Speaking at the time of the announcement, National Transport Authority Director of Public Transport Services Jeremy Ryan said: “The customer feedback we got was that rather than turning right off the quays to cross the Liffey at Bridge Street, Route 80 would be more useful if it went further along the quays so that people could benefit from the bus priority measures in place along the quays, and the greater connectivity to the O’Connell St area and onward transport services in that area.”

The termination and replacement of the 26 with the 80 were implemented in October 2025 as part of BusConnects Phase 7.

The move was met with criticism instantly as residents along the route complained of a weaker ability to connect them to the city centre.

Residents of Chapelizod and Palmerstown noted that it made the trip from these areas to several spots in Dublin City Centre, such as O’Connell Street, longer than a single bus journey.

A high cancellation rate, especially at peak times, has also frustrated dependent commuters – 21 buses were cancelled on one day alone in November, just under 12 per cent of all buses.

A councillor for Palmerstown/Fonthill, Councillor Madeleine Johansson, made clear commuters’ issues with the route and spoke at several community protests against the change.

Cllr Johansson stated: “The new 80 service is simply not meeting people’s needs. Workers, students, older residents, and families have been left stranded or facing major disruptions to their daily lives.

“Public transport should make life easier—not harder.”