Councillor Corina Johnston has welcomed the addition of an extra 33D bus service in Donabate following a prolonged campaign first being raised in the Dáil nearly seven years ago. However, Cllr Johnston also called on the NTA to also add an extra return service in the evenings.

Speaking on the issue, Cllr Johnston said, “Duncan Smith TD first raised the need for additional 33D bus services with the NTA at a meeting in Leinster House in August 2019 and have been pursuing the need for 33D additional bus services and public transport ever since. In April 2025 the NTA confirmed to us that additional 33D bus service would commence before the end of 2025. We were pleased to receive confirmation early last week from the NTA and Dublin Bus that the additional bus service will finally commence on 9th February at 7am. While welcoming this additional service in the mornings given the current bus is full to capacity, we were disappointed that no additional return service will be provided in the evening. This is unacceptable as trains as completely full at peak times with the population along the line increasing and Donabate population growing at a very fast rate.

“I was very disappointed to be informed that the Bus Connects implementation, which includes direct bus services from Portrane to Dublin airport and UCD via Dublin City centre, has been delayed to 2027. These services were to be implemented in 2023. I am calling on Minister for Transport and Local TD, Darragh O’Brien to intervene, ringfence the funding for these services and to ensure they are prioritised and delivered without further delay.””Donabate is one of the fastest growing areas in the country. Many planning permissions have been granted on the provision of improved public transport services. This is not the case in Donabate. Duncan and I intend to pursue this matter further and will keep you informed of developments, she added.