The night-bus service from Translink over the Christmas period saw a 70% increase compared to the previous year.
The transport provider is now being urged to continue with the service during a 12-month pilot scheme, to test the viability of a year-round night-bus.
"On the four weekends in the run up to Christmas, 30,000 people used the late night bus and rail services," Ian Campbell from Translink told UTV.
"That represented an increase of around 70% on the previous year, which is a success whatever way you look at it.
"In the weekends in 2025 in the run up to Christmas, we did operate some additional bus services across 12 corridors between 12 and 2 o'clock in the morning on Belfast Metro.
"We also ran some additional late night services on Ulsterbus to places like Newry, Dungannon, Ballyclare, Crumlin and other towns and cities across the province."
Usually after Christmas the night-buses come to an end but this year on a number of routes they'll continue as part of a 12-month pilot scheme.
Belfast Night Czar Michael Stewart said: "I talk about motivation and habit, the motivation was to get these on board and now that we have it we have to change people's habits to get back into the way of using them.
"So basically people can travel at midnight and 2am. now in the morning, whereas before it would have been closing, buses would have been finished at 11:00 and 11:30.
"This isn't just about coming out for a late night pint, this is about staff getting home later, people who are using the city center as workers to get home later and obviously also anybody who's a reveler or a traveler that they can go home later as well."
Getting the pilot scheme in place took over a year and required funding from a series of Stormont departments and Belfast City Council.
Translink got an early indication of how popular those services could be.
Ian Campbell said: "7,000 people actually use the additional bus services which will now continue for the next year.
"On Metro, that means for the next year, on Friday and Saturday nights, we will be operating additional late night bus services between 12 and 2 o'clock on 12 corridors in the greater Belfast area, and we'll also be operating additional late night Ulster bus services."
The hospitality sector believe this will be a popular service - the figures in 12 months will dictate if they were right.
Could they also be urged to have a bus service that is reliable while they're at it?
Translink:"One or the other, not both" :/
Translink could do with putting on some later busses from International Airport into Belfast… it’s a bit tight for some of those later domestic arrivals!
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Again costs, they run them hrly after a certain time. They had to cut runs to dublin which was a great revenue stream once the competition came on the scene that hit the international runs, templepatrick trade drops off dramatically after 6pm and so do flights after 9pm. Part off the contract is buses running during the night to the international which don't make money and effects the overall profit / viability of the run. Unfortunately unless people want to pay more rates which a certain amount goes to public transport there is a limited budget.
Probably the best thing I did was move to Manchester get out of NI. The bee network here is amazing, there's a lot stormont could learn from the reforms introduced here. Productivity has increased and the night time economy is doing well as people can get around.
It's crazy something as basic as a night service wasn't done 10+ years ago, especially with the collapse in taxis.
I envy their tram lines as they were so handy.
My first time here I remember going to check the tram times because I was so used to waiting an hour per bus in NI, only to find out the trams are every 15 minutes.
I love the idea of it, Manchesters mascot is the worker bee and the bee network is all about ensuring workers can get everywhere around the place without worrying about time or cost.
TIL. I thought the bee was introduced after the bombing. Great city all round.
I’m the same. The Bee network is so convenient. Also so good for cycling, really improving and there’s a real push to grow the infrastructure. Shows what can happen even with limited resources if the political will is there!
So, they figure they can make money so they provide a service.
Versus - a massively subsidised company that don’t provide service because “people don’t use it”.
People don’t use it because there is no infrastructure.
This is rage bait.
The issue is the cost, translink is insolvent, city bus / metro has continuous lost money the only part of the business making a profit consistent is ulster bus. Talk to any drivers or Middle management it's kids and pensioners that are the biggest form of revenue in city bus, they extended the reach customer base in 2010 by pulling ulsterbus out of ballybean and Newtownabbey estates to try make city bus more profitable and unfortunately it didn't happen. A 70% increase means nothing considering it started from nothing in a holiday season it's year on year returns. Most routes don't actually make money and it's cross subsidy that's making it semi work eg profitable route paying for an unprofitable route, adding more or extra services will only add to the drain or insolvency of translink
It’s a public service, not a fucking business.
It’s like the rail line to Derry, at one point in they considered closing it. It’s posted record passenger numbers in the past two years. It’s almost as if you invest properly in infrastructure and services that the public will actually make use of them.
It shouldn't be intended to make a profit. Its a service for all the people who live here fs and helps the wider society and economy function
So where does the money come from for new buses, pay rises training and equipment? It's a business all businesses need to make a profit for reinvestment and covering costs. City bus is running at millions of losses that has knock on effects. That's before you consider buses being damaged, burnt and broken windows or accidents. They are self insuring so have to cover that out of revenue, same with drivers inspectors being assaulted it's translink self insurance that pays for that. What actual business survives not making a small profit or in translinks case actually covering their costs. Oh maybe we shouldn't pay the drivers? Or pray the buses run on fresh air?
Should the nhs also be required to make a profit?
Translink isn't a purely public business or service like the nhs so yes it has to cover it's costs from revenue. Maybe you should go back to school to be educated in the concept of private / public and self funding before you start with your idiotic remarks. FYI translink vis own by northern transport company with its own board of directors they also own operate/ own ulster bus and Northern Ireland rail as well as numerous car parks in and around Belfast City centre and Greater Belfast area. Which is a contradiction in its operation model but hey anything goes in northern ireland
It isn't a business, it's 100 % not for profit/ any profit made gets ploughed back into the organisation. The transport holding company was appointed by the state. It is good to remember that none of the hundreds of thousands of miles of tarmac road locally make a profit, as car travel is subsidised just as much as public transport
What the fuck are you talking about, translink is self funding, the grant was cut several yrs ago towards fuel and wage increases and they were given the option to either be bought out by first bus and virgin or run at a profit or be totally public , thus they need to be profitable. First bus only wanted ulsterbus not metro and once virgin seen the costs involved running ni railways they backed off. Profitability means they wouldn't be reliant on ni government for day to day running or overheads in the running of the business "THEY NEEDED TO BE PROFITABLE!" not running at a £20 million loss Yr in Yr out, last Yr they lost £27 million and they are using their cash reserves and have been since 2010 to make up the shortfall. Only capital construction is subsidised by ni government through the rates we pay. Translink is a private company and needs to be profitable eg cover it's operating cost. WHAT ACTUAL PART OF SELF FUNDED FROM REVENUE AND NOT MAKING ENOUGH MONEY DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND? IT'S CALLED BEING PROFITABLE!!! They had several options fully public, bought out or run themselves the opted for run themselves through revenue!
They'd be making a fucking fortune off me if they were in any way reliable or ran rational routes. I don't want to drive in the city! I hate paying for parking!
But since Metro as an organization are allergic to actually doing their jobs i don't get the bus because I don't have time to stand about in the rain with small children/leaving nursery hanging past closing waiting for a bus that might or might not turn up depending on if the driver fancies doing his route today or not.
Metro when it was first changed was a fuck up, it was a temporary concept and then the cheif executive was removed the whole idea was to have a continuous circle off buses running on pre determined routes so the service was was only 10 minutes between each bus. Then another cheif executive came in with new ideas. And it's a mish mash of ideas but people don't understand they are broke ( financially) when I was employed by them I'm a spark I was doing Infrastructure and back then they were running at a 20 million loss. I still meet old work colleagues and last year the loss was £27 million thus the strike over drivers and platform staff wages.