Fuel & Gas Crisis? Make Public Transport Free
- Ralph Quinlan Forde BSc Hons MA
- 5 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
With the ongoing fuel & gas crisis, the cost of living crisis, housing crisis and also the recent blockades, it must be time for the Irish government to make public transport free.
The Germans and Spanish have done so at different times. At least reduce a train pass cost to 9 Euros a month like Germany did for three months. If they are as committed to the environment as they say, well then they should have no issue with immediately implementing this scheme.
Fuel & Gas Crisis Cost - 400,000 in Fuel Poverty
Fuel tax in Ireland is 60% and house fuel has doubled in recent months.
The cost of home heating oil has doubled in recent weeks. As of writing it has risen by risen by 67.5% . People now write on social media they are not eating two times a week to cope.
Some media interviews let us hear from people who cannot even put the heating on. They sit in coats in their living room.
Nearly 320,000 homes are living in fuel poverty and nearly the same number are in arrears with their local property tax. Is anyone doing the math? Joining the dots?
These people are now living in poverty and face more with a 3,000 Euros fine and humiliation when their employers are going to be contacted to pay the bill from the wages.
For the year 2025 the government made over 1 billion Euros in inheritance tax alone.
In a few weeks time a new carbon tax increase is going to be implemented from €63.50 per tonne, increasing to €71 per tonne from 1 May 2026 for fuels other than petrol and diesel.
Nurses who are hardworking people looking after our sick are reporting they are not financially coping. These people do real work not hop in a government car down any old boreen for a photo opportunity. Photos are not leadership. Photos are not work.
First responders and teachers should immediately be given free public travel at least let's start with that.
We will have more in common with Cuba as the weeks move on and no food.
Ireland Paid Over 46% of Eurozone Crisis Solution
Irish people paid 46% of the solution to the Eurozone crisis for which it only created 6% of the problem. Over 60 billion Euros in bank debt.
Has everyone forgotten this? This has to always be a major debating and negotiating point when dealing with the government who signed off on this for the Irish people.
The reality of this needs to be taught in schools as it was an 'economic mugging' by the ECB negotiated by the Irish government at the time. To say 'negotiate' is being very kind.
Whilst our European cousins were paying 192 Euros a head to solve the Eurozone banking crisis the Irish person was paying 9,000 Euros a head. Over 46 times more.
So the least the Irish citizen can expect is a reduction to fuel tax and free travel passes.
All pensioners should qualify for a fuel allowance not 4 out of 10 as it currently stands.
'As Long As I Don't React - You Don't Exist'
All of the people, lorry drivers and farmers, protesting are decent hardworking people that have been interviewed by RTE and other media outlets over the last few days.
Everyone can see they are people who would rather be working than protesting.
These are all committed tax payers. If one pharmaceutical company pulled out of the country in the morning who are one of three multinationals paying 46% of all annual tax the farmers efforts would be far more valued the day after than they are now.
Their backs are to the wall with the fuel price increases and anyone with a business head will know, in current fuel pricing, that they have a cash flow crisis and within weeks, their livelihoods will finish unless there is an immediate intervention.
In this situation they have nothing to lose protesting and should do so. Protest is good for a democracy. Issues get resolved.
Over the years governments have attempted to bring in legislation in order to control protest. Even though we need to improve our water works the protests around water metres worked. In the UK the poll tax protests worked. Protests worked to stop racism and so much more. The Irish state was born from protest and revolution.
People shout when they feel they are not being heard. Simple.
Citizens have a right to protest in Ireland click on the link to know yours.
These hard working lorry drivers and farmers through their protests are signalling to the government that the 'Doubleplusgood' propaganda that everything is ok and we will pull through, is irrelevant and the media management of this protest is not going to make the realty of this crisis go away. Some are weeks away from going out of business.
The lorry drivers will be out of business and the farmers will not be able to produce food.
The reality affects every citizen not just lorry drivers and farmers.
Only in December 2025 Fastway Couriers were no more. Small businesses like ours need couriers to deliver our produce all over the country. At affordable rates too.
Hence a reduction in fuel tax helps everyone and the economy. You know it could be argued it protects it.
The Whistleblower Effect
The blockade is in effect a collective 'whistleblower' with protestors having a public relations narrative and feed of their own. Patriotically informing their fellow citizens.
A counter narrative of crisis, loss of livelihoods and financial pain. For pain is what it is.
People are thriving less and less in our society. Unlike Bhutan we do not have an economic index for happiness.
These citizens are collectively bringing to the attention of the state as a whole the seriousness of this crisis.
Without transport so many things will effectively collapse and they know better than anyone else, better than any government Minister of the FF/FG group who promote the interests of so few to the detriment of so many.
If you agree that public transport should be immediately made free for an initial period of three months email your local TD to say so.
You can find them here to send them an email or letter
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