Public subsidy of air routes 'outrageous', says Cuffe

PUBLIC SUBSIDIES for regional air travel need to end as soon as possible, the Minister of State with responsibility for Sustainable Transport said last night.

Ciarán Cuffe described as “outrageous” the public service obligation (PSO) subsidy which is given to airlines for regional routes which are not considered commercially viable. “It is my strong view and my party’s view that the days of PSO need to come to an end,” he told a forum on future transport fuel, organised by the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, at Trinity College Dublin. It was “outrageous” that the highest subvention per passenger in Ireland was given not to rail but to aviation, he said. The abolition of the PSO air routes was one of the recommendations in the “Bord Snip Nua” report.

The subsidy is given for flights operating from Kerry, Galway and other regional airports. Aer Arann is the main recipient while Ryanair also received the PSO for its Kerry route.