A Dublin councillor has launched a campaign against what he describes as a “ghost bus” service in south Dublin, claiming commuters are being left stranded when buses repeatedly fail to appear.
Green Party councillor Oisín O’Connor said residents in Belarmine and along Kilgobbin Road have lost confidence in the 47 bus route due to ongoing reliability issues.
The route operates between Belarmine in Stepaside and Poolbeg Street in the city centre, with buses scheduled to run every hour.
However, Cllr O’Connor said passengers are regularly left waiting without warning when services are cancelled or skip stops entirely.
“The 47 starts in the area that I represent, Belarmine in Stepaside – it is supposed to come every hour, but the issue is that it’s so unreliable, it often just doesn’t show up,” he told the Irish Independent.
“People who use the first stop don’t get advance notice when it doesn’t show up. It’s so frustrating for them – parents have to go pick up their kids and drive them to school or leave work to come back and drive their kids.”
He added that some residents have even had to cancel appointments because of repeated delays and cancellations.
“It’s a ghost bus in a way, but people know it’s there,” he said.
According to the councillor, residents have reported seeing buses sitting at the first stop marked “Out of service” before driving past waiting passengers.
@oisinoconnordublin~You can't have a better bus until more people use the unreliable bus you have~ Here's what's happening with the 47 and why decisions made by people who don't rely on bus routes like the 47, don't help any of us.♬ Fallen D. - Undoing
Cllr O’Connor said he investigated the issue and believes so-called “partial cancellations” are being used to help buses recover lost time and improve punctuality statistics.
“The bus is running late but in order to get back on schedule, it skips a bunch of stops and starts the route in the middle,” he said.
“So it gets marked down as only having missed a few stops, and they only get penalised for that.”
The issue has become a growing source of frustration in the rapidly expanding residential area, where many residents rely on public transport to commute to work, school and childcare.
According to a letter circulated by Fine Gael TD Neale Richmond, a report carried out by the Dublin Bus Data Analysis Unit found the existing timetable on the route was “sufficient” based on passenger numbers recorded between November 2025 and February 2026.
However, Cllr O’Connor strongly disputed that conclusion, arguing the low passenger figures are themselves a result of the service’s unreliability.
“What this misses is that people have lost confidence in the 47 because the bus service is so unreliable,” he said.
“A bus that is supposed to come every hour but always cancels last minute means you can’t rely on Dublin Bus to get you where you need to go on time.”
He said residents have told him they have been forced to buy second cars or learn to drive because they no longer trust the service.
“It’s saying you can only have a better bus if you start using the bus that doesn’t show up,” he added.
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In response, Dublin Bus said traffic congestion was having a major impact on the punctuality of Route 47.
A spokesperson said a revised timetable introduced in November 2025 included additional buses and drivers in an effort to improve reliability. “The latest data on the first four periods of 2026 show that Dublin Bus have operated in excess of 98pc of contracted kilometres for this route,” the spokesperson said.
The company said worsening congestion across Dublin remains the biggest obstacle to maintaining reliable services. “Despite introducing a new schedule in November 2025, the ongoing impact of traffic congestion has severely impacted punctuality on this route,” the spokesperson added.
Dublin Bus also called for more bus lanes and stronger enforcement of existing bus corridors.
The company pointed to recent congestion data showing Dublin ranked among the most traffic-congested cities globally, with average morning bus speeds dropping to 13.5km/h during peak times.
Earlier this year, Cllr O’Connor brought a motion before Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, calling for letters to be sent to both the National Transport Authority and Dublin Bus demanding action. The motion urged the organisations to commit to ending the practice of buses skipping early stops to make up time later in the route.
Cllr O’Connor said the area also urgently needs improved infrastructure, including a shelter at the Belarmine stop.
“It’s an area with a lot of housing, apartments and duplexes – it’s quite a lot of people living in a small space,” he said. “The bus stop doesn’t even have a shelter so it’s very exposed for the people who wait.”
He added that performance targets should focus on reducing disruption for passengers rather than simply improving punctuality statistics.
“Making up for time is great for people who get on halfway through the route, but it’s a disaster for those earlier on in the route,” he said.
