Review of Kells-B’boro route planned

Bus Éireann has admitted “punctuality problems” on route 109x, which has led to missed connections for passengers travelling from Kells to Bailieborough. However, the national transport provider hopes to address the issues when a review is carried out early next year.
It follows reports of customers travelling to east Cavan being left stranded when the connecting bus out of the capital is held up. Last month, as reported by the Celt, a number of passengers were left stranded when the 109x arrived late to the north Meath town, and after the 108 to Bailieborough, via Moynalty, Mullagh and Relabeg, had already departed.
Missed connections on the route have resulted in some travellers forking out an extra €40 for a taxi to complete their journey, though it’s understood that the additional outlay is recoupable via the National Transport Authority (NTA).
A spokesperson for Bus Éireann informed The Anglo-Celt it is “aware of punctuality problems” on the Route 109x (Dublin – Kells - Cavan) in recent weeks, but blamed “increased traffic congestion” that has affected all services departing Dublin in the evening peak.
“These delays have on occasion impacted on our customers trying to connect with our Route 108 (Kells - Mullagh - Moynalty - Bailieboro) service in Kells for onward travel to Bailieboro. All routes in County Meath are operated by Bus Éireann under contract to the National Transport Authority. These routes are currently being reviewed to better reflect current traffic conditions throughout the day.”
However, the spokesperson stated that it is planned to revise timetables on these routes “in early 2020”, with the aim of delivering “significant improvement regarding on-time performance, service reliability and accuracy of real time passenger information".
It added: "Bus Éireann would like to apologise to any customer who has been affected by these delays on our Route 109x service. If customers have any suggestions about changes to the routes in County Meath, they can forward them to our customer care team at customercare@buseireann.ie or by calling 1850-836-611.”
Bailieborough County Councillor, Aontú’s Sarah O’Reilly is among those to have advocated strongly for improved public transport services locally.
Aside from the 108 to Kells, Bailieborough is currently served just twice weekly by Bus Éireann on the 166 Cavan to Dundalk, via Carrickmacross, route. The bus picks up passengers in Bailieborough at 11am, arriving in Cavan Town 35 minutes later, with the return journey scheduled for less than two hours later at 1.30pm.
She’s calling for a daily service to Cavan from Bailieborough with earlier departures for the county town and later returns.
Cllr O’Reilly also sent a pre-budget submission demanding a new Local Link route in East Cavan. Those new transport options, including a connection between Bailieborough and Ballyjamesduff, are currently under investigation by the NTA, with an outcome expected sometime in early 2020, subject to the availability of resources.