Actions speak louder than words, they say, and never more so that when it comes to working towards difficult targets such as climate goals.
Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien was out bright and early on Monday with some good news.
The 2026 electric small public sector vehicles (eSPSV) grant scheme is opening for applications on Wednesday. The scheme is designed to encourage taxi and hackney drivers and limousine operators to switch to zero-emission vehicles – improving the outlook for our environment and the passenger experience, given some of the cars on the roads these days – in a way that makes it more affordable for them.
The scheme offers grant support of between €7,500 and €25,000 for public hire drivers buying new battery electric vehicles, with the top end available to those buying wheelchair accessible cars and scrapping gas guzzlers.
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O’Brien said it reaffirmed “the Government’s commitment to supporting SPSV operators to transition to electric vehicles”.
“The eSPSV scheme continues to deliver real support for those who keep our public transport network moving every day,” the minister said. “With €7 million committed for 2026, we are continuing one of the most impactful EV transition programmes in the country.”
Wait. €7 million?
That might look impressive until you realise that €12.5 million was set aside for the same programme last year and €11.5 million in 2024. And the minimum grant in both those years was €10,000.
That was certainly the view of Danny O’Gorman, general manager of the State’s largest taxi fleet – Freenow by Lyft Ireland. He said the decision to cut the funding available by 44 per cent was “deeply disappointing and risks slowing the progress Ireland has made in electrifying its taxi fleet”.
“Cost remains one of the biggest barriers preventing drivers from switching to electric vehicles, and Government support is essential to ensuring this transition remains viable for all drivers,” he said.
So why the dramatic cut in funding. Could it be that, with the scheme having run since 2018, very few public service drivers now need the support. But in that case, surely the Minister would have made great play of such news.
Instead, his department said the continued availability of grants “reflects sustained demand within the sector”. He also said it reflected “the Government’s determination to accelerate the shift towards zero emission public service vehicles nationwide”.
Given the swingeing reduction in funding for the scheme, that professed commitment sounds somewhat hollow. A bit like so much of successive governments’ commitments on this subject.
