The Government must come clean on the cost of storing 48 double decker electric buses in Galway that are not operational as there is no planning permission for the charging points needed, Aontu’s candidate in the upcoming by-election, Orla Nugent, has stated.
The candidate has revealed that the National Transport Authority (NTA ) spent millions of euros of taxpayer’s money to buy the buses which will now be idle until at least next year. The NTA had hoped planning permission would be achieved by mid-2025.
She said the news comes at a time when very many city and county bus routes were crying out for additional services with, in some cases, people being left on the footpath as there was no room on crowded buses.
The Authority said the buses were bought “in the expectation that planning permission would be obtained by mid-2025” for the recharging points.
“A contract for a further 70 charging guns in Bus Eireann Galway bus depot was awarded in early 2025, with a planning application in respect of the required charging infrastructure being lodged with Galway City Council in May 2025,” the NTA said.
“Assuming planning permission is granted within the next few weeks, it’s hoped that the charging infrastructure can be completed before the end of 2026,” they added. This would “facilitate the development of 48 new double decker electric buses on Galway city bus services from early 2027, a year late.
A further 12 such buses are now on order to complete the transition of the Galway city bus fleet operated by Bus Eireann, the NTA added.
Ms. Nugent commented that “the mis-management of the state’s transition to a green bus fleet has moved beyond incompetence and into the realm of the farcical. It’s a ‘cart before the horse’ approach that perfectly encapsulates the Government’s inability to deliver basic infrastructure.
“The Minister has to come clean on the cost of storing the 48 buses for two years and explain why his department is consistently incapable of joined-up thinking,” she added.
Aontu leader Peadar Toibin added that this was a reckless gamble with public funds.
“The application was only lodged in May 2025, and now they admit these buses won’t likely hit the road until 2027. For two years, these state assets will have sat in a depot, depreciating in value and doing absolutely nothing to help commuters or the environment. This is a scandalous waste of money during a cost-of-living crisis. Aontu is demanding accountability for this mess.”
