More bus shelters needed in county

Cork County Council has called on the Minister for Transport to install bus shelters wherever possible in Cork.

The issue of people being exposed to the elements as they wait for buses around the county has been a major concern for councillors for years.

At a recent Cork County Council meeting, a number of elected members described recurring incidents in their respective municipal districts of school children and elderly people standing in the wind and rain as they wait for their bus.

“There should be no bus stop without a bus shelter,” said Fine Gael Cllr Liam Madden who brought to motion before the council. Cllr Madden said in order to encourage people to use buses it is crucial that shelters are provided everywhere there is a bus stop. He also said many councils around the country are asking for the same.

Fine Gael’s Marie O’Sullivan strongly supported her colleague’s motion, pointing out that there is no bus shelter at the bus stop for Kinsale on Clontarf Street in Cork city centre.

Cllr O’Sullivan said: “You have an awful lot of elderly people using the bus stop as well as a lot of tourists because that is the bus that takes people to Cork Airport.

“It's not a great slán abhaile if you're standing at a bus stop in Cork city and you've got to get on a plane in Cork Airport and you arrive there soaking wet.”

While Cllr Madden’s motion was well received in the chamber, 1 or 2 councillors did make suggestions for amendment.

Fianna Fáil Cllr Seamus McGrath suggested a blanket requirement for existing bus stops to have shelters might mean losing bus stops where the provision of a shelter is not possible.

“There are rural bus stops on the side of a road where it might not always be possible to provide a shelter,” he said.

Fianna Fáil’s Frank O’Flynn added that shelters should only be put in place after consultation with local residents, businesses and councillors.