The first phase of the new BusConnects network launched on the 27th of June, taking its first journey around the North-east area of Dublin.
The €2bn project between the National Transport Authority and Dublin Bus, which began on Sunday, brought in the H-Spine covering Malahide, Baldoyle and Donaghmede.
The main goal of the improved network will be a considerable rise in capacity and frequency for customers, as well as more evening and weekend services for all spines; this first phase of the BusConnect network’s improvement has been put into action after three rounds of public consultation.
This phase is part of eight new ‘spines’ (frequent bus routes) which run from letters A to H. The next part of the new network, which includes 12 orbital routes that provide connections between suburbs and town centres, without having to travel into the City Centre. They will be rolled out over a gradual basis with the C Spine towards Lucan to start later this year in the Autumn.
The NTA is predicting a 23 percent increase in services with buses expected to run every four to eight minutes on specific routes.
The redesign will see benefits such as an overall increase in bus services of 23%, more evening and weekend services, 24-hour operations on some routes, new connections to essential services such as schools and hospitals and increased access to jobs and education.