Imagine if Ireland was able to implement a single policy that could reduce traffic, combat climate change, let people take up jobs they couldn’t before, make life in rural Ireland easier and reduce the cost of living all at once. And it only took a year or two to get it up and running. It may sound too good to be true but free public transport could do all this and we want to pilot it in Galway during 2020.

Dear Minister Ross, Minister Bruton, and Minister Donohue,

We, the people of Galway, ask you to trial free-fare public transport in Galway during 2020.

This a policy that has been piloted across Europe and is working. In Aubagne, a French city of 100,000 people, public transport ridership increased by 142% and car trips decreased by 10% once free public transport was introduced. Overall, there was a reduction in public expenditure per journey of 48% from €3.93 to €2.04.

This policy of fare-free public transport could allow the following outcomes across Ireland:

* Reduction in traffic and commute time in cities and counties

* Reducing our climate emissions and contributing towards our stated ambition to make Ireland a leader in tackling climate change

* Increased economic activity and lower social welfare costs through improved social mobility and access to jobs and lower cost housing

* Improved rural mobility with better public transport options in rural Ireland

* Reduced cost of living through lower fares and giving families the option of giving up second cars

With Galway welcoming the world to the European Capital of Culture in 2020, and our well-documented traffic problems, Galway 2020 is the perfect place and time to pilot this policy.

We respectfully request that the Department of Transport and Department of Climate Action would immediately begin design and costing a pilot for free-fare public transport in Galway during 2020 and that the Department of Finance would allocate for this pilot in the 2020 Finance Bill or as part of the Climate Action Fund. We would ask that this pilot allows for:

* An increase in bus capacity in Galway city and county so that buses are more frequent and reliable

* A redesign of the route network including multiple crossings of the bridges and avoiding all bus traffic going through the city centre

* The addition of new buses designs with modern interiors (similar to BRT designs like Glider

in Belfast) that make the bus experience more pleasant

* A proper study of the economic, environmental and social outcomes of the pilot.

We are available to meet with you at your earliest convenience to outline our request and work with you to make it happen.

Yours sincerely,

Galway Free Public Transport Campaign