Taking the car out of Carlow – Fighting climate change with one simple idea: the town bus
Digital Journalist, East / South East
From firefighters who collect rainwater to wash their fire engines to rain gardens that absorb runoff to avoid flooding, Carlow is thinking outside the box when it comes to protecting the environment and countering climate change.
But Carlow County Council still faces significant challenges in reaching the goal – set out in its 2024 Climate Action Plan – of halving carbon emissions and energy consumption by 2030.
In that action plan, the council identified Carlow town as a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions and designated the town as a decarbonising zone (DZ) – a priority area for targeted climate action.
A 2018 review ahead of the action plan’s release found that the transport sector accounted for the greatest percentage of total emissions (41.5pc). Other significant emission sectors were residential (30.3pc) and commercial (22.8pc).
There is a high dependency on private cars in Carlow town. As of 2018, there were an estimated 13,939 mechanically propelled vehicles within the DZ, 10,272 of which were private cars
Emissions from private cars are a massive factor in climate change. Photo: Getty
In July 2023, the council and transport authorities introduced a simple idea to combat this car dependency and cut emissions: a town bus service. Then climate minister Eamon Ryan attending the launch.
Previously, Carlow had no formal town-wide bus network. While intercity and regional buses served the area, no town-specific service existed to connect local destinations within the town.
The service runs 18 hours a day, seven days a week. It consists of two routes (CW1 and CW2), with buses running every half hour in both directions.
How your county is weighing in on fighting climate change
Route CW1 spans about 8.5km, running from MSD Carlow on the Dublin Road to Tyndall College on the Kilkenny Road. It links major residential areas, employment hubs, education centres and the town centre.
The CW2 stretches about 8km, running from Wexford Road Business Park to the Barrow Valley Retail Park in Graiguecullen on the border with Laois.
This means 94pc of Carlow town’s population is now within 800 metres of a bus stop on the network.
The people of Carlow have really embraced the idea of using the bus instead of their car
In its first year of operation, the Carlow town bus service delivered over 365,000 passenger journeys – an average of over 1,000 journeys per day by the people of Carlow.
“Bus Éireann and the National Transport Authority [NTA] can’t get over how successful the Carlow town bus has been,” said the council’s climate action co-ordinator Jannette O’Brien.
“The people of Carlow have really embraced the idea of using the bus instead of their car. We also have e-bikes on offer and the Local Link offering bus services into Carlow town for those living in the surrounding areas.”
However, the Carlow town bus service has not been without its hiccups.
Local councillor Andrea Dalton told the Irish Independent that, while the bus service has proved extremely successful in the town, the NTA had promised to review the bus service a year on from its launch. Two years have now passed and that is still yet to happen, despite Ms Dalton saying she is “blue in the face” asking for the review.
Ms Dalton also said Carlow received old “cast-off” diesel buses from Athlone, adding that the NTA had promised to provide environmentally friendly electric buses.
Carlow town centre. Photo: Google Maps
As Carlow town works towards reducing its emissions, introducing electric buses could play a significant role in helping meet climate targets.
Another part of the proposed review would consider the feasibility of introducing a third bus route, which would extend the service’s reach and offer more residents a viable alternative to car travel.
Ms Dalton would like to see the Carlow town bus service reach areas like Castle Oaks – where there is a big population – and Monacurragh and more of Graiguecullen. Puzzlingly, there is also no stop at Carlow train station.
However, Ms Dalton said, she’s “very much a glass half full type of person”.
“It is important to highlight what a resounding success the Carlow town bus service has been,” she added. “Apparently the bus service has been one of the most successful bus service implementations in Ireland, with the strongest uptake from the public.
“Yes it may need one or two tweaks. But we’re only calling for these tweaks because we want the service to be the best it can be.”
In May of 2025, it was confirmed that Carlow town had been chosen as a location for a new mobility hub network.
A mobility hub is a prominent location that brings together different shared mobility modes, such as e-bikes, e-scooters, e-cargo bikes and electric vehicles for members of the public to hire.
The town bus service, e-bike scheme and promised mobility hub network all play a pivotal role in reducing car dependency
Early plans indicate that Carlow town will have major mobility hubs positioned at seven or eight key locations around the town, each offering multiple transport options. These will be supported by approximately 40 smaller mobility points, each providing access to at least one shared transport mode.
The network is projected to be operational by the middle of 2026.
Additionally, Carlow town’s electric bike scheme was launched in September of 2023. The current fleet of consists of 50 e-bikes, conveniently available for hire across 40 geo-tagged locations throughout Carlow town and its surrounding areas.
These locations include the SETU campus, Carlow bus park, Carlow train station, Seven Oaks Hotel, Talbot Hotel, Woodford Dolmen Hotel and Fairgreen Shopping Centre.
The Carlow town bus service, e-bike scheme and promised mobility hub network all play a pivotal role in advancing Carlow’s Climate Action Plan and reducing car dependency in the DZ .
By providing an eco-friendly alternative to traditional car usage, the initiatives directly contribute to the county’s goal of achieving a 51pc reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.