Laois bus firm stops free travel after 7.20pm
Slieve Bloom coaches
A privateLaois bus company will not accept free travel passes after 7.20pm on a local route, with effect from next Monday.
Slieve Bloom Coaches/Townlink has announced that it will charge all late evening passengers on the Portlaoise to Tullamore service from 12 January.
The free travel pass will be accepted only between 6.35am and 7.20pm on the Portlaoise to Tullamore 830 route. After 7.20pm, all passengers must pay for a ticket. The new rule also affects the Tullamore to Mullingar route after 7.10pm.
The Mountmellick-based firm said the decision was made because the bus company is not reimbursed by the government for free travel after 7.20pm.
The decision has provoked an angry response from the public, with many irate comments on the Slieve Bloom Coaches/Townlink Facebook page since the announcement yesterday.
Some described the decision as ‘disgraceful’ and ‘discriminatory’ and questioned whether the company was legally entitled to refuse a free travel pass.
However, Slieve Bloom Coaches pointed out that it is privately owned and independently operated, so it is not among the State services automatically included in the free travel scheme.
Government regulations state that the free travel scheme allows everyone aged 66 or over to travel, free of charge, ‘on all public transport owned by the State’. This includes bus, rail, Local Link and the Luas, with some exceptions.
Free travel is also available on some but not all services operated by private bus and ferry companies, who are reimbursed for accepting the pass in place of paid-for tickets.
Slieve Bloom Coaches Ltd, which operates Townlink, is the only private bus company in Laois on the Department of Social Protection’s list of free travel scheme operators.
Slieve Bloom Coaches said that it recently carried out a survey, on behalf of the Department of Social Protection, regarding free travel usage.
The company said: ‘As a private operator, we are only reimbursed for free travel up to 19.20 each day. Unfortunately, we do not receive payment for free travel journeys made after this time, which has made it necessary to introduce the new rule regarding evening travel.
‘We understand this may be inconvenient for some passengers. Our goal is to continue providing a reliable and sustainable service for all customers.’
