County Clare’s capital gained a full urban bus network today with the launch of Transport for Ireland’s new Ennis Town Services. Two circular routes, branded NS1 and NS2, began operating at 07:00 on Sunday 18 October, linking Clarecastle, the main industrial estates, Ennis Hospital, the town centre and the rail station every 30 minutes. Services run seven days a week from early morning until 23:30. The National Transport Authority says the €3.5 million project will put 30,000 people within a five-minute walk of a high-frequency service for the first time. Employers such as Element Six, Vitalograph and Clare County Council have long lobbied for a town link to reduce car dependency and help them recruit staff who do not drive. Fares are integrated with the national TFI Leap Card, capping daily adult spend at €5. Launch-week promotions include a ‘Kids Go Free’ Sunday offer and half-price weekly tickets for students of the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) Ennis campus. The routes replace Local Link service C6C and are operated by Bus Éireann using low-emission ADL Enviro200EV electric buses charged overnight at a new depot in Gort Road Industrial Estate. Each vehicle offers USB charging and realtime occupancy data via the TFI Live App. Urban planning experts say the network is a test-bed for rolling out similar small-city bus grids in Letterkenny, Mullingar and Portlaoise. The NTA will review passenger numbers after six months before considering an express spine to Shannon Airport.
Source: Transport for Ireland
