50% reduction in bus fares should be extended to Donegal students travelling into Derry
There have been renewed calls for half price bus fares to be made available to students from Donegal travelling to Derry to attend college and university.
Since last May students travelling on Public Service Obligation (PSO) routes within the 26 counties have been enjoying a 50 per cent reduction in fares as a result of the introduction of the young adult travel card.
The half price fares were extended to participating commercial operators in September of last year. The scheme was introduced to make public transport more accessible and affordable for students.
However, the 50 per cent off offer ends once students cross into the six counties.
Donegal-born Fianna Fáil senator called for the scheme to be extended into the north, arguing that thousands of students – mainly, but not exclusively, in Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan – are not benefiting from the scheme to the same extent as their peers elsewhere in the 26 counties.
"Unfortunately, for a certain cohort of students, it does not work so well. The students I am referring to are students from the South of Ireland who are attending colleges or universities in Northern Ireland, he said.
He complained that the 50 per cent reduction abruptly ends at the border.
“Approximately 2,000 students and their families are affected by this. I wrote to the Department and the National Transport Authority (NTA), from which I received a response stating that if a student was travelling from any of the Border counties, primarily but not exclusively, the part of the journey that is in the South would be eligible for the 50 per cent reduction but the part in the North would not be,” said the Monaghan-based senator.
Senator Gallagher urged the government to extend the scheme in the spirit of the Good Friday Agreement.
“At a time we are promoting a shared island and celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, this is discrimination against people, largely from Border counties such as Monaghan, Cavan and Donegal.
"It is unfair that this issue has not been addressed despite the fact that a commitment was given to me some time ago,” he said.