Waterford city set for more bus lanes as NTA explores possible locations

More bus lanes are set to be rolled out in Waterford city over the coming years, with the National Transport Authority (NTA) exploring possible locations.

Independent councillor David Daniels enquired about their provision at the February plenary meeting of Waterford City and County Council.

Cllr Daniels said: “At the moment, a lot of the Active Travel [schemes] centre around bikes.

“Can we include buses in that as well so that buses and bikes are looked at together rather than being treated in isolation?

“Sometimes the solution with Active Travel - a good bus route would be better than actually [cycle lanes].”

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He added that he had nothing against cyclists but believed bus lanes are often a more suitable Active Travel measure.

In response to Cllr Daniels, Director of Services Gabriel Hynes said: “I agree with you in relation to your comments on bus corridors.

“What I will say in relation to it is that under BusConnects, the NTA have looked at where they think bus corridors would be sustainable and cost effective and we will take their advice on board in relation to the provision of bus corridors.

“Where they want them, if we can provide them at a reasonable cost, we will.”

Meanwhile, independent councillor Declan Barry criticised the delay to the rollout of the BusConnects programme.

Cllr Barry said: “We were told here early last year that BusConnects was kicking in in 2026 and then as the year rolled on, we got to about November or so and I then find out that it’s now 2027.

“I’m really hoping that we’re not sitting here at the end of this year and we’re told it’s further down the line again.

“That’s my big fear because otherwise we’re going to be waiting on our more frequent buses, we’re going to be waiting on our bus shelters and so on, so let’s not kick that can down the road any further.”

He concluded by saying that whilst the NTA is prioritising the bigger cities, the council needs to be “more vocal” in calling for the rollout of the programme in Waterford.

In response to Cllr Barry, Mr Hynes said: “In relation to BusConnects, 100 per cent, I’ve always said that we need our alternatives and one of our big alternatives is public transport.

“The rollout of BusConnects is a priority for us as an executive, as it is for you.

“With that in mind, the CEO and myself are meeting the NTA in the next couple of weeks, and on that agenda is the timeframe for BusConnects, how we ensure it’s delivered in the shortest timeframe possible and how we prioritise Waterford city ahead of other cities.”

BusConnects is an NTA programme which aims to greatly improve bus services in Irish cities.

The programme will see the rollout of a new bus network in Waterford city, along with new bus lanes, bus stops and bus shelters.