Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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The regulation of the small public service vehicle (SPSV) industry is a matter for the independent transport regulator, the National Transport Authority (NTA), under the provisions of the Consolidated Taxi Regulation Acts 2013 and 2016. I am not involved in the day-to-day operations of the SPSV industry.

The NTA issues local area hackney (LAH) licences where applicants can show that there is a need for this part-time service and that it will not displace or replace current SPSV providers in a given area.

The 2023 LAH Pilot scheme, launched by the NTA in January 2023, was a €6,000 grant-aided initiative to support rural transport needs, where existing transport services were found to be lacking. A local area hackney may only pick up passengers within a designated area of about 10km and may not pick up a new fare at a drop off point or any other point outside its designated area. The scheme was not successful, as despite significant work undertaken by the NTA to support applicants, only two operators were licensed. The NTA is reviewing the outcome of the scheme and considering next steps.

As you may already be aware, the NTA is currently procuring a digital platform for access to rural open public transport – the Smart DRT pilot, as part of Connecting Ireland. This platform is expected to both improve people’s access to open public transport and provide automated and optimised bus service routing/scheduling in rural areas. The Smart DRT pilot project is due to start in 2025 in three areas (rural, suburban and urban) and, if proven successful, could expand further from 2026 onwards.

Given the NTA's responsibility in this area, I have referred your question to the NTA for direct reply to you. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a response within 10 working days.