Cork to get temporary depot for 150 buses
53% In The Increase Overall Out Bus Services In Of Sets Deliver Cork An City To Busconnects
A temporary bus depot with capacity for 150 buses and facilities for almost 400 drivers will be built in Cork’s docklands next year to help start the rollout of the multi-million BusConnects project.
The facility on the former Tata Steel site and adjacent lands in the Tivoli Industrial Estate, could cost up to €8m to develop.
It will involve the demolition of a three-bay steel frame and ancillary shed building, the refurbishment of an existing warehouse for use as a workshop, and the development of parking for 150 buses and for 69 staff cars.
BusConnects Cork sets out to deliver an overall increase of 53% in bus services in the city, with two 24-hour bus services, seven all-day frequency bus routes running every 15 minutes or more, and the expansion of bus services to previously unserved areas such as Upper Glanmire, Waterfall, and Kerry Pike.
But the city’s over-capacity Capwell depot, which was designed for 100 buses, is now struggling to cope with about 130, and cannot cater for the additional buses proposed under BusConnects.
Capwell will continue to operate once the temporary depot at Tivoli becomes operational in 2025 for the overnight parking and maintenance of buses in the city’s expanded bus fleet.
Bus Éireann plans to install electric chargers at Capwell, and then move its current diesel fleet from Capwell to the Tivoli depot, to make space for the new electric fleet.
The company is continuing a parallel project to identify a site for a permanent second depot. But it said site selection, planning consent and construction will take several more years and it could be 2030 before the permanent depot is operational.
In the meantime, the temporary facility will help ensure the rollout of BusConnects, and it may be retained as a satellite depot in the long-term.
Confirmation of the timelines comes following a city council decision to grant planning for the temporary depot for a period of seven years.
A spokesperson for Bus Éireann welcomed the decision.
“The new depot is required to facilitate the significant growth in public transport services in Cork and will operate alongside the current Capwell depot, which is at capacity."
Bus Éireann said it had carried 15 million passengers in Cork so far this year — a 25% increase on last year.
“But we know there is more to do to improve the reliability of our services by supporting on-street bus prioritisation in the city and county," the spokesperson said.