Plans for Dublin Bus route changes spark protests across city

THE ELDERLY and schoolchildren would be among the worst affected by Dublin Bus plans to change and eliminate some routes, protests across the city were told over the weekend.

Small numbers gathered at locations simultaneously on Saturday in areas where bus services have either been changed or cut already, or where such changes are proposed. Organised by the Save Our Bus Services group, they took place at Inchicore, Ringsend, Dundrum, Donnycarney, Crumlin, Ballymun, Whitehall, Finglas, Dún Laoghaire and Clondalkin.

The area campaigns will come together in a larger demonstration at noon this Saturday outside Dublin Bus headquarters in O’Connell Street.

A campaign spokeswoman said “about 30,000 signatures have already been collected against what Dublin Bus is doing, and more are being gathered all the time”.

Dublin Bus has been changing, and in some cases eliminating, routes in the city since September last year as part of its Network Direct project.

Further changes are planned that campaigners say will cause more hardship for the elderly, the sick, school-going children and less well-off who are dependent on a quality service.

At Donnycarney, where changes to the service provided on the 20B, 27B, 27x and 42A are planned or have been implemented, about 20 people protested. “This is our first protest in this campaign so we’re happy” said local activist John Lyons. “People are very upset at cuts to services that people depend on to get to Beaumont Hospital. They’ll affect older people in particular.”

In Dundrum, local activist Nicola Curry said planned cuts to the 48A and 116 services “will most badly impact schoolchildren and older people”. Organisers were happy with the “10 to 20 people” who attended the protest, adding a lot of passers-by were hearing of planned changes to bus services “for the first time”.

“It was our first protest. Word is getting out there now. The public consultations about the cuts and changes by Dublin Bus were low key. People don’t seem to know this is all happening.”

In Ringsend, Patsey Doolin of the Save the Number 3 Bus campaign, said: “There are a lot of elderly people here who need a good service to get to hospital appointments on the northside.”

A spokeswoman for Dublin Bus said the Network Direct project was under way to “improve” services, and the changes were being implemented following widespread public consultation.

It was proposed the number 3 would no longer travel between the southside from UCD to the northside at Larkhill, but instead the route will be split into two with buses servicing only the city-centre from each direction.

She confirmed plans to eliminate the 48A.