Published on Friday15thJanuary2016
Minister Donohoe Launches New Bus Eireann Fleet
Pictured at the announcement are (L-R): Tim Gaston, National Transport Authority, Minister Paschal Donohoe and Martin Nolan, Bus Éireann – with Legend the dog
Transport Minister Paschal Donohoe today launched Bus Éireann’s new €50 million ‘fleet of the future’, which contains 116 new vehicles.
Four of these new models were on show, including 82 seater double deck commuter coaches, and 78 seater double deck buses. The state-of-the-art vehicles feature extra legroom, power sockets [on commuter coaches], free WiFi, monitors with Real Time Passenger Information, are wheelchair accessible and have lower fuel emissions.
The announcement of €50 million investment in 116 new vehicles comes on the back of newly released passenger journey numbers, which show that Bus Éireann services continued to grow in 2015. Passenger figures in the regional cities were up almost 4% in 2015 – which are operated in Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford.
Minister Donohoe said :
As the economy continues to grow, there is a greater transport demand generally. Ensuring that public transport is an attractive option is central to encouraging people to leave the car at home. The upgrading of the Bus Éireann fleet in this way adds to this.
I am glad to see passenger numbers for the company are on the rise and I look forward to seeing continued improvements and enhancements to our PSO bus services through the funding that the Government is making available for fleet and network improvements. This investment will be used to address increased demand and to respond to the increase in congestion, as the economy continues to grow in the years ahead.
For more information read the press release here.