Coach Tourism and Transport Council of Ireland (CTTC) says the closure will cause chaos on city streets, and calls NTA decision dangerously short-sighted
The Coach Tourism and Transport Council of Ireland (CTTC) has strongly condemned the NTA for wasting taxpayers’ money on a bus and coach park facility in Dublin, which the agency has now abruptly decided to close less than eight years after it opened. The National Transport Authority (NTA) will close the Dublin City Bus and Coach Park permanently at 7pm on 24 December 2025, giving operators just two weeks’ notice to find alternative arrangements for vehicles that transport thousands of people into the city every day.
Opened in January 2018, the Bus and Coach Park is a critical piece of transport infrastructure in Dublin City, which has been funded by the NTA with millions of taxpayers’ euros spent on it. It allows buses to park in a safe and organised manner, removing many vehicles from the street, and facilitates the health and safety of drivers by providing a space to facilitate their rest-breaks. A key component of Dublin’s transport infrastructure the Park serves scheduled service operators bringing millions of people to work, private bus hire ferrying concert-goers to Croke Park, attendees at the Convention Centre Dublin, coach tour operators who are responsible for 2 million passengers annually visiting the country. Each bus and coach taking up space in the park removes approximately 40 cars from the city’s roads, highlighting the facility’s importance in reducing congestion.
The sudden closure is linked to the DART+ West project and the planned Spencer Dock station – a development that is still in the future. The CTTC warns that shutting the park without a viable short-term alternative threatens the smooth operation of Dublin’s transport network and risks severe disruption to city traffic and the millions of passengers dependent on bus and coach services.
The CTTC has called for an urgent meeting with the NTA, the Minister for Transport, and Dublin City Council to clarify what contingency plans, if any, are in place.
David Conway, Chair of CTTC, said: “This decision is dangerously short-sighted, particularly as no alternative facility is in place. The Dublin Coach Park is a major piece of transport infrastructure that over €1.7 million of taxpayers’ money has been spent on, which the NTA is now happy to fritter this away less than eight years later.”
“We need answers immediately. What is the alternative plan for bus and coach arrivals and departures? How will Dublin cope with the sudden loss of this critical infrastructure? These questions must be answered now, especially with traffic at a seasonal high. Losing it without a clear short-term solution will cause total chaos for the city, commuters, tourists, and operators alike.”
“Operators, passengers, and the people of Dublin cannot be left in the lurch. We expect the NTA to act immediately to provide a workable solution immediately and avoid what is otherwise guaranteed to be major disruption.”
ENDS
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