Local councillors are seeking a meeting with the Minister of Transport to discuss the success of the Anseo bus service in Killarney and how to expand it outside of the town.

The councillors feel that it should be extended into “urban” areas like Kilcummin and Fossa, highlighting the potential benefit it could bring to residents trying to travel into town.

Kerry County Council wrote to the National Transport Association requesting an extension of the service.

In response, the NTA said that while the organisation has considered the request, it can not implement an expansion at this time due to it being a pilot programme.

The NTA said: “The Killarney town pilot area was specifically selected to assess the performance of the TFI Anseo system in a town and an expansion outside of the town now would fundamentally change the nature of the operations before the pilot is complete, comprising the objectives and validity of the pilot study.”

The councillors agreed that action needs to be taken now, warning that once the pilot programme ends in August, the opportunity to keep it in Killarney could be lost.

Meanwhile, Cllr John O’Donoghue called for the possibility of creating a designated pull-in area for the Anseo bus on High Street, noting that it is one of the town’s busiest bus stops and is currently disrupting the flow of traffic.

Cllr O’Donoghue said delays occur when collecting customers as it is forced to stop for a couple of minutes.

Ultimately, this puts a halt to all traffic on the street, which builds up quickly.

He said: “Killarney is under such pressure from traffic congestion, every blockage can cause huge tailbacks, and I feel that were we to provide a set down area for the bus, it would greatly help matters.”

In its reply to Cllr O’Donoghue, Kerry County Council said the location is within the scope of the URDF Public Realm enhancements and changes to the development  would be premature in advance.

Council officials added that changes can be considered as part of the overall streetscape design.

Park Road works described as “unacceptable”

Cllr Brendan Cronin has called for the long-delayed works on Park Road to be brought to an end, describing the situation as “unacceptable” at a recent meeting of the Killarney Municipal District. He said that there has been adequate time allocated for the construction to finish and claimed it is now “dragging on”. He urged the roads department to “turn the screws and get this sorted and finished”. Mayor Killarney Mayor Grady seconded the motion, saying the whole project has been “a disaster from start to finish”. Cllr Cronin called for a final date for when the works will finish, noting that the works were originally scheduled to conclude in December but are still ongoing into May.