Debate contribution: All-island Rail Fares

Debate contribution by Mr David Honeyford on 3 December 2024.

MLA

Mr David Honeyford

Party at the time

Alliance Party

Date

3 December 2024

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

All-island Rail Fares

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4691293

Read the official Assembly record

Text

My daughter is studying in Dublin and quickly learned to get a single ticket down at the start of term and purchase return tickets from there in order to avail herself of the price difference. The differences are much wider than just the cost of the Belfast-Dublin train, however. Linking to the Luas is cheaper, with a daily cap to encourage more use of public transport. The bus route between Belfast and Dublin has a similar cost whether you travel from the North or the South. The motion focuses simply on the cost of train tickets, and I get the particular issue of it costing less to travel to Belfast from Dundalk than from Newry. I understand that, and I agree that a rate should be applied across the island so that we pay the same price. I want to bring up a couple of other issues, because the motion is so narrow and lacks any ideas to bring change. First, it has to be acknowledged that there has been major investment in our transport network. We have seen that with the new Grand Central station in Belfast, which has allowed the service between Belfast and Dublin to become an hourly one. The other side of that has brought a few problems to our constituencies, whether it is overcrowding on trains that do not have enough carriages or the station's lack of drop-off points or connections to taxis or even to the Glider. There is an issue of reliability and of needing greater investment in our train rolling stock to provide greater capacity on the network so that people can avail themselves of the station. It is strange to use a train service between Dublin and Belfast that is booming as the example of a restriction of usage. I agree about the pricing, but the question of who pays for the subsidy to reduce the ticket price is not answered or addressed in the motion. We need greater investment to increase the number of trains and to improve interconnection with and integration between all forms of public transport.

Yes, sure.

No, I said that you are talking about a train line that is really busy at the minute, so I do not get that argument. The motion refers to a unified fare structure: I agree with that, but maybe the SDLP is talking about free transport for pensioners. The age for ours is 60; in the South it is 66. Are you calling for that to be realigned? Is there a saving to be made there that you will use to reduce the ticket price? Is that what we are discussing? I will give way again, if you want to clarify that.

I get that. I totally understand about the price, and I agree about it. However, if you are asking for that on the one hand, are you saying that, on the other hand, you do not want 60-year-olds with free bus passes here to get free travel on the same route and we should have the age at 66, as in the South? That is what the motion says.

For the third time, yes.

I absolutely agree with the point about the unified approach, and I will go further.

I have given way three times. Given the disparity in economic growth between the North and the South, surely the price of a ticket on a route only scratches the surface of the economic disparity and the disparity in investment across our island. Surely the debate and action should be focused on our economy and the massive growth in the South, yet we are arguing over the price of a train ticket. We should look at public transport as a whole. We should look at connecting all our services. Whether it is me getting the train to Dublin and jumping on the Luas or somebody from Dublin coming to Belfast and jumping on the Glider or a bus, there has to be a serious wider discussion about the integration of our transport. Ticketing integration needs to happen across the island. None of that is in the motion. I get it that you are from Newry, and that there is a local issue there — I totally understand that — but the wider piece about integration is not coming through. Around the world, we see ticketing options whereby you jump on one mode of public transport, tapping on and off with a bank card, and that automatically integrates with every other form of public transport. We do not see that here. There may well be discussions about that and plans for that to happen, and the Minister can address that. If we were to address that North and South, it would boost the tourism industry. It would help us here, whenever anybody comes to the North. There are lots of solutions that we could drive forward. I have a got a cold and feel grumpy

I have been good all year, and it is Christmas, so I ask, please, that motions from the Opposition include ideas and solutions — constructive stuff — rather than there being two and a half more years —

Can I get a word in? Can I finish? Another two and a half years. I have been good all year. It is all I ask for for Christmas.

Thank you.

894 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:43 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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