Increased number of journeys using public transport in Northern Ireland
Date published:
New accredited official statistics published 10/09/2025, by NISRA statisticians in the Department for Infrastructure reveal that, in 2024-25, there were 81.1 million journeys on public transport.
This represents an increase of 2.9 million or 3.6% since 2023-24 (78.2 million), but a decrease of 2.7% from 2019-20 (83.4 million).
Key findings
Public transport journeys
- During 2024-25, there were 67.8 million bus passenger journeys, an increase of 3.4 million or 5.2% when compared with 2023-24 (64.4 million) but 0.5 million (0.7%) lower than in 2019-20 (68.3 million).
- There were 13.3 million rail passenger journeys in 2024-25, a decrease of 0.5 million or 3.8% when compared with 2023-24 (13.8 million) and a decrease of 12% from 2019-20 (15.1 million).
Public transport vehicles
At the end of March 2025:
- there were 1,420 buses in operation comprising, 1,083 Ulsterbuses, 303 Metro buses and 34 Gliders which were, on average, 9.9 years, 7.3 years, and 6.5 years old respectively
- 15.0% of buses were zero emission vehicles, 2.4% were diesel hybrid and the remaining 82.6% were diesel vehicles
- there were 164 rail carriages in operation, with an average age of 19 years
Public transport staff
- The full-time equivalent (FTE) number of staff employed by Translink in 2024-25 was 4,331, an increase of 4.2% on the number of staff in 2023-24 (4,156); 3,062 of those staff were in connection with buses (70.7%) and 1,269 with rail (29.3%).
About this publication
This report presents statistics on public transport operated by Translink in Northern Ireland and it brings together information on public transport journeys, vehicles and staff.
This is an annual accredited official statistics report produced by the Analysis, Statistics and Research Branch of the Department for Infrastructure.
Further information
For the full HTML report please visit: Public Transport Statistics Northern Ireland 2024-25
For the publication page and associated documents and tables please visit: Public Transport Statistics Northern Ireland 2024-25 | Department for Infrastructure