The National Transport Authority has said there are "no plans" to extend the new TFI 90 minute rail fares to Skerries and Balbriggan.
The new fare allows commuters across Dublin to travel and to change between public transport services for a €2 Leap Card fare within a 90-minute window.
The boundary for this fare on rail and DART services covers Zones 1-4 and extends as far as Rush and Lusk on the northside and Bray on the southside, being of "comparable distance from the city centre, approximately 23 track km’s".
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The National Transport Authority has said that Balbriggan and Skerries will remain in Zones 5 and 6 under the new fare structure "due to their distance from the city centre and that passengers may travel distances of up to 60 kilometres within the greater Dublin area on these services".
However, commuters from these stations will still avail of free onward transfer within 90 minutes of initial tag on.
The NTA said: "The Authority has, however, ensured that passengers paying by Leap and boarding services at stations beyond the 90 minute boundary but within the Short Hop Zone (namely Skerries, Balbriggan, Kilcock, Sallins, Greystones and Kilcoole) will continue to enjoy the benefits of free onward transfer to any mode within 90 minutes of initial tag on."
Seanad leader Regina Doherty said that the decision to exclude the Skerries and Balbriggan stations from the TFI 90 minute €2 Leap fare "just doesn't make sense".
She said: "The new TFI fare allows commuters across Dublin to travel on all forms of public transport, and to change between services, for a €2 Leap Card fare within a 90-minute window.
"This scheme is, obviously, extremely welcome, but in terms of Irish Rail services, it only covers certain ‘zones’, and it seems as though Skerries and Balbriggan fall outside those zones.
"Skerries and Balbriggan are commuter towns and many people in this part of North County Dublin rely on the train to get in and out of Dublin City.
"If you live in Malahide or Portmarnock or Clongriffin – or anywhere else along the existing DART line – you will be charged a €2 fare for 90-minutes of journey time, as you would on any bus or tram, and that’s great. However, if you live in Skerries or Balbriggan, your fare will increase to €3 or even €3.90.
"In other words, a journey from Skerries to Howth by train would cost me more than a trip from Clontarf all the way down to Bray. Skerries and Balbriggan are in Dublin. It just doesn’t make sense."
The Senator said she has written to Transport Minister Eamon Ryan to "seek a resolution to this loophole".
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