1001 Smart Cities
🇮🇪 Dublin

Dublin Real-Time Passenger Information & the NTA's Open GTFS-Realtime Feed

🤖 AI-generated summary · ◆ 17 sourced claims · 🔎 Last verified

This overview was generated with AI from the public sources listed below and checked against them before publication. It has not had a complete human fact-check — treat it as a starting point and follow the sources.

17 sourced claims on this page, none individually verified yet — turn on “Sources in the text” to see each one.

How this atlas is made · What “last verified” means · What “source-checked” means · The full record behind this page

Dublin's buses report their GPS position, yet a cancelled bus can still count down to zero on the signs. The fix, a €68.5 million tracking system, was still awaited in 2026.

Outcome🔄 Ongoing
Evidence🏛️ Official
what does this mean?The strongest source is the operator's or the city's own reporting — an official report, dataset or press release. It grades who did the looking — not how well the project went. All four grades →
Run byNational Transport Authority (Transport for Ireland), with bus position data from Dublin Bus, Go-Ahead Ireland and Bus Éireann; launched with technical assistance from Dublin City Council
Scale🌍 National
Cost€68.5 million for the national AVL replacement contract (awarded December 2023); the original system's cost is not stated in the sources
FundingNational Transport Authority

Part of 1001 Smart Cities — 1,176 documented projects · 🏙️ 10 more in Dublin · 🚌 Public transport guide · 🚲 Mobility projects

Dublin's real-time passenger information went public on 26 September 2011, when the National Transport Authority, with technical help from Dublin City Council, put live arrival times for all 5,000 Dublin Bus stops on a website, an iPhone app and a text service, while 500 electronic signs were being installed at stops. Each bus reports its GPS position to automatic vehicle location (AVL) software, which matches it against the day's schedule to predict arrivals. The NTA publishes its timetables as GTFS under a CC BY 4.0 licence, and since August 2020 the live predictions as a GTFS-Realtime feed that needs a registered key; the 2023 upgrade added Luas and Iarnród Éireann services and live bus positions. The same data drives the TFI Live app and, by the NTA's count, more than 800 on-street displays.

Live 📅 since 2011

📊 Impact

The feed has a well-documented weakness: when a bus is cancelled but the operator does not tell the system in time, the signs and apps keep counting down to a bus that never comes — the NTA's own explanation of Dublin's 'ghost buses'. Passenger complaints run from 2022 into September 2026, and the crowd-reporting site noshowbus.ie logged more than 2,600 reports between 1 January and 5 August 2025. Dublin Bus put its real-time accuracy, audited by the NTA, at around 96% in 2024 and at 'a record high of 98 per cent' in early 2025; both figures are the operator's statements to the press. The NTA's answer is a €68.5 million contract, awarded to Trapeze in December 2023, to merge five separate AVL systems into one. Promised for late 2025 to late 2026, it was still awaited in September 2026, when Dublin Bus said the app would improve 'when we get the new automatic vehicle location system in place'.

🎓 Lesson

A live-arrival feed is only as honest as its cancellation messages. GPS can locate a bus that is running, but a bus that never left the garage is invisible until the operator cancels it, and without that message TFI Live cannot show the service as cancelled and falls back on the timetable. Opening the data did not route around the gap: every app draws its real-time data from the NTA, so unofficial apps inherit the same ghosts.

🚲 MobilityPublic transportOpen dataSensors & IoT

Sources

↗ NTA press release on the real-time launch, 26 Sep 2011 (operator)The National Transport Authority's release for the launch on 26 September 2011: live arrival times for all 5,000 Dublin Bus stops by website, text and iPhone app, an initiative of the NTA 'delivered with the technical assistance of Dublin City Council', alongside 500 on-street electronic signs being installed across the Greater Dublin Area, over 270 of them in place. Dublin Bus's chief executive states the fleet is 'now equipped with a system which allows staff to identify the location of each bus'.
↗ Smart Dublin, on real-time passenger information, Aug 2017 (city)Published 4 August 2017Dublin City Council's smart-city programme explains how the system works — Automatic Vehicle Location data fed to a central RTPI server and on to the displays at stops — says the data was available to developers through an API on the Dublinked portal, and that RTPI 'started as a project for Dublin Bus in 2008 developed by Dublin City Council in collaboration with IBM'.
↗ NTA, new GTFS-Realtime data feed, Aug 2020 (operator)Published 5 August 2020NTA notice of 5 August 2020: a GTFS-Realtime API for Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann and Go-Ahead Ireland has been launched 'in line with the NTA's commitment to providing open data', replacing the older RTPI REST API, which was to shut permanently on 30 September 2020. Registration on the NTA developer portal is required.
↗ NTA, upgrade to GTFS-Realtime v2, Mar 2023 (operator)Published 8 March 2023NTA notice of 8 March 2023: the real-time API is replaced by an upgraded set integrated with a new Travel Information platform; the new GTFS-R feed extends real-time updates to Luas and Iarnród Éireann services and adds a Vehicle Location API with bus positions.
↗ Transport for Ireland, Public Transport Data page (operator)The NTA's download page for GTFS timetables, stop data and a list of real-time operators: 'This data is licensed under CC BY 4.0 and is attributed to the National Transport Authority.' Access to the GTFS-Realtime API is by registration on the NTA developer portal. A continuously updated page.
Show 8 more sourcesShow fewer
↗ NTA, AVL contract award to Trapeze, Dec 2023 (operator)Published 20 December 2023NTA announcement of 20 December 2023: a contract to Trapeze to implement a national Automatic Vehicle Location solution for all public service buses, consolidating 'several existing bus AVL systems into one central system', feeding the TFI Live app, 'our 800+ On-Street Displays' and real-time exports to third-party apps. The release does not state the contract value.
↗ Dublin Inquirer, on ghost buses, Jul 2022 (media)Published 27 July 2022Report of 27 July 2022 on passengers waiting for buses shown on signs and apps that never came. Explains, via app developer Stephen McBride, that GPS data is matched to the schedule by AVL software and that without a GPS fix the system shows the scheduled time, so cancelled services have to be removed by the operator. Dublin Bus said its app, website and on-street signs do not show cancellations; a Dublin Bus spokesperson said all bus apps get their real-time data from the NTA; NTA data showed Dublin Bus services not run rising from about 1 to about 2 per cent over 2021.
↗ Dublin Inquirer, on the new bus-tracking contract, Sep 2024 (media)Published 25 September 2024Report of 25 September 2024: the NTA awarded a €68.5 million contract to Trapeze Group UK in December 2023 for a new AVL system, with roll-out to start in late 2025 and finish in late 2026 'if all goes well'. Quotes a July 2024 parliamentary answer by the transport minister that apps like TFI Live 'cannot display a service as cancelled if it has not received the appropriate cancellation message from the operator'.
↗ Dublin Inquirer, on the no-show bus tracker, Aug 2025 (media)Published 6 August 2025Report of 6 August 2025: an analysis of more than 2,600 reports to noshowbus.ie, a site collecting reports of ghost and cancelled buses since October 2024, for 1 January to 5 August 2025. The NTA explains ghost buses as operators not cancelling a service in time for the RTPI system to pick it up, describes replacing antennae on about 200 buses, and says the new AVL system will replace 'the five disparate systems currently in use'.
↗ Newstalk, Dublin Bus CEO on replacing the real-time system, Aug 2024 (media)Published 16 August 2024Interview report of 16 August 2024: Dublin Bus chief executive Billy Hann says the technology is 'over 15 years old', the antennas on the buses 'aren't as sensitive as they need to be', and the real-time system is 'independently audited by the National Transport Authority' with an accuracy rate of around 96%.
↗ The Irish Times, on bus penalties and ghost buses, Feb 2025 (media)Published 6 February 2025Report of 6 February 2025 on complaints about 'ghost' or 'disappearing' buses on the on-street screens and the TFI app. A Dublin Bus spokeswoman says its real-time passenger information accuracy has been 'at a record high of 98 per cent' since the beginning of 2025.
↗ Newstalk, on ghost buses at the start of the school year, Sep 2026 (media)Published 11 September 2026Report of 11 September 2026: a Glasnevin parent describes buses that appear due within a minute or two on the signs and app and then vanish, several times in the first week of the school term.
↗ Radio Nova, on Dublin Bus and the new AVL system, Sep 2026 (media)Published 11 September 2026Report of 11 September 2026, relaying Newstalk: Dublin Bus director Gwen Morgan says TFI Live is not a Dublin Bus app and that it 'will be improved when we get the new automatic vehicle location system in place'; the NTA's new system is described as still to come into operation.

📅 How old is the evidence?

Two clocks, kept apart: when this entry’s sources were published, and what has happened to its record in the atlas. Documented span: since 2011. 12 of 13 sources carry a publication date, from 26 September 2011 to 11 September 2026.

When the sources were published

  1. National Transport Authority · operatorNTA press release on the real-time launch, 26 Sep 2011 (operator)
  2. Smart Dublin · city governmentSmart Dublin, on real-time passenger information, Aug 2017 (city)
  3. National Transport Authority · operatorNTA, new GTFS-Realtime data feed, Aug 2020 (operator)
  4. Dublin Inquirer · pressDublin Inquirer, on ghost buses, Jul 2022 (media)
  5. National Transport Authority · operatorNTA, upgrade to GTFS-Realtime v2, Mar 2023 (operator)
  6. National Transport Authority · operatorNTA, AVL contract award to Trapeze, Dec 2023 (operator)
  7. Newstalk · pressNewstalk, Dublin Bus CEO on replacing the real-time system, Aug 2024 (media)
  8. Dublin Inquirer · pressDublin Inquirer, on the new bus-tracking contract, Sep 2024 (media)
Show 4 more dated sourcesShow fewer
  1. The Irish Times · pressThe Irish Times, on bus penalties and ghost buses, Feb 2025 (media)
  2. Dublin Inquirer · pressDublin Inquirer, on the no-show bus tracker, Aug 2025 (media)
  3. Newstalk · pressNewstalk, on ghost buses at the start of the school year, Sep 2026 (media)
  4. Radio Nova · pressRadio Nova, on Dublin Bus and the new AVL system, Sep 2026 (media)

Every source, with links ↑

What happened to this record

  1. Entered the record
  2. Sources last read

Every revision, permanent →

Show your work What this page rests on and what it can’t tell you · all 17 claims with their sources · the forensic record

Evidence Passport · public beta 17 addressable claims, 13 source dossiers, one permanent baseline. The passport is unreviewed — an AI-assisted structural migration, not a human or expert endorsement. Every revision keeps a permanent copy under revision history.

Inspect the claims, one by one — verbatim text, sources and caveats for all 17

The text below is copied verbatim from the published record. Each claim names the source dossiers that carry it; caveats stay attached to the claim they qualify.

Claim 1 clm-0d16eea05f859b17 quantitative
went public on 26 September 2011, when the National Transport Authority, with technical help from Dublin City Council, put live arrival times for all 5,000 Dublin Bus stops on a website, an iPhone app and a text service
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The NTA release dated 26 September 2011 announces arrival times at all 5,000 Dublin Bus stops via a new website, text service and iPhone app, an NTA initiative delivered with Dublin City Council's technical assistance.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. NTA press release on the real-time launch, 26 Sep 2011 (operator)
Claim 2 clm-cdbf9ad54789009e quantitative
while 500 electronic signs were being installed at stops
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The release refers to 'the 500 real time on-street electronic bus signs currently being installed at stops across the Greater Dublin Area (with over 270 installed to date)'.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. NTA press release on the real-time launch, 26 Sep 2011 (operator)
Claim 3 clm-7e3faf1fe1b308f5 descriptive
Each bus reports its GPS position to automatic vehicle location (AVL) software, which matches it against the day's schedule to predict arrivals
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The Dublin Inquirer quotes the Dublin Bus website (buses carry an onboard computer, GPS and a radio reporting their position to a central computer) and app developer Stephen McBride (GPS data is matched with the daily schedule by AVL software to predict arrival); Smart Dublin describes AVL data feeding the central RTPI server and the displays.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Dublin Inquirer, on ghost buses, Jul 2022 (media)
  2. Smart Dublin, on real-time passenger information, Aug 2017 (city)
Claim 4 clm-9f09572ae821ba55 quantitative
The NTA publishes its timetables as GTFS under a CC BY 4.0 licence
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The NTA's public transport data page lists the GTFS feeds and states: 'This data is licensed under CC BY 4.0 and is attributed to the National Transport Authority.'
Caveat
The licence statement sits on the download page for timetables and stop data; the page does not separately name the terms of the key-protected real-time API.

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Transport for Ireland, Public Transport Data page (operator)
Claim 5 clm-6611d5ae4ec2c6dd quantitative
since August 2020 the live predictions as a GTFS-Realtime feed that needs a registered key
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The NTA notice of 5 August 2020 announces the GTFS-Realtime API for Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann and Go-Ahead Ireland, replacing the RTPI REST API (permanent shutdown 30 September 2020), with registration on the NTA developer portal.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. NTA, new GTFS-Realtime data feed, Aug 2020 (operator)
Claim 6 clm-f1af485d82750ef6 quantitative
the 2023 upgrade added Luas and Iarnród Éireann services and live bus positions
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The NTA notice of 8 March 2023 says the new GTFS-R API 'will extend this service to also provide real time Luas and Iarnród Éireann service updates' and adds a Vehicle Location API with bus locations.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. NTA, upgrade to GTFS-Realtime v2, Mar 2023 (operator)
Claim 7 clm-b7cf788b36d56205 quantitative
The same data drives the TFI Live app and, by the NTA's count, more than 800 on-street displays
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The NTA's December 2023 release names 'our real time application (TFI Live), our 800+ On-Street Displays and our real-time data exports to third party applications'.
Caveat
The display count is national, not for Dublin City alone.

Sources carrying this claim

  1. NTA, AVL contract award to Trapeze, Dec 2023 (operator)
Claim 8 clm-c63304433c4165a5 descriptive
when a bus is cancelled but the operator does not tell the system in time, the signs and apps keep counting down to a bus that never comes — the NTA's own explanation of Dublin's 'ghost buses'
Published field
impact · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
An NTA spokesperson told the Dublin Inquirer that ghost buses occur 'when the Operator does not cancel a planned service with enough time in advance for the Real Time Passenger Information (RTPI) system to pick it up', so the bus stays on the apps and signs and the minutes tick down to zero.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Dublin Inquirer, on the no-show bus tracker, Aug 2025 (media)
  2. Dublin Inquirer, on the new bus-tracking contract, Sep 2024 (media)
Claim 9 clm-c0a33a2e270e64c8 quantitative
Passenger complaints run from 2022 into September 2026
Published field
impact · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The Dublin Inquirer reported passengers waiting for 'ghost' buses in July 2022; Newstalk reported the same complaint from Glasnevin at the start of the school term in September 2026.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Dublin Inquirer, on ghost buses, Jul 2022 (media)
  2. Newstalk, on ghost buses at the start of the school year, Sep 2026 (media)
Claim 10 clm-08dcc23f509eca77 quantitative
the crowd-reporting site noshowbus.ie logged more than 2,600 reports between 1 January and 5 August 2025
Published field
impact · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The Dublin Inquirer's analysis of 'more than 2,600 reports received so far in 2025' to noshowbus.ie, covering 1 January to 5 August 2025.
Caveat
Crowd reports count complaints, not buses: one no-show can be reported several times and many are never reported.

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Dublin Inquirer, on the no-show bus tracker, Aug 2025 (media)
Claim 11 clm-ac2dabd92f81f0d9 quantitative
Dublin Bus put its real-time accuracy, audited by the NTA, at around 96% in 2024
Published field
impact · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
Dublin Bus chief executive Billy Hann said in August 2024 that the real-time system is 'independently audited by the National Transport Authority' with an accuracy rate of around 96%.
Caveat
Neither the audit method nor its results have been found published; the NTA is the authority that contracts Dublin Bus, not an outside auditor.

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Newstalk, Dublin Bus CEO on replacing the real-time system, Aug 2024 (media)
Claim 12 clm-fc426bb9a8baa4e2 quantitative
at 'a record high of 98 per cent' in early 2025
Published field
impact · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
A Dublin Bus spokeswoman told The Irish Times that since the beginning of 2025 its real-time passenger information accuracy was 'at a record high of 98 per cent'.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. The Irish Times, on bus penalties and ghost buses, Feb 2025 (media)
Claim 13 clm-bec73b8fa1398a10 quantitative
a €68.5 million contract, awarded to Trapeze in December 2023, to merge five separate AVL systems into one
Published field
impact · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The Dublin Inquirer reports the €68.5 million contract awarded to Trapeze Group UK in December 2023; the NTA told it the new AVL system 'will replace the five disparate systems currently in use'. The NTA's own release confirms the award and the consolidation but gives no value.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Dublin Inquirer, on the new bus-tracking contract, Sep 2024 (media)
  2. Dublin Inquirer, on the no-show bus tracker, Aug 2025 (media)
  3. NTA, AVL contract award to Trapeze, Dec 2023 (operator)
Claim 14 clm-14576e41ae4b97f4 quantitative
Promised for late 2025 to late 2026, it was still awaited in September 2026, when Dublin Bus said the app would improve 'when we get the new automatic vehicle location system in place'
Published field
impact · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
In September 2024 the NTA told the Dublin Inquirer roll-out would start in late 2025 and be complete by late 2026; in September 2026 Radio Nova, relaying Newstalk, quoted Dublin Bus director Gwen Morgan that the app 'will be improved when we get the new automatic vehicle location system in place'.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Dublin Inquirer, on the new bus-tracking contract, Sep 2024 (media)
  2. Radio Nova, on Dublin Bus and the new AVL system, Sep 2026 (media)
Claim 15 clm-0a4b4930989881df descriptive
without that message TFI Live cannot show the service as cancelled and falls back on the timetable
Published field
lesson · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The transport minister's July 2024 answer, quoted by the Dublin Inquirer: apps like TFI Live 'cannot display a service as cancelled if it has not received the appropriate cancellation message from the operator and as a result it reverts to showing the timetabled time'.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Dublin Inquirer, on the new bus-tracking contract, Sep 2024 (media)
Claim 16 clm-2a656a86c7fcfdb8 descriptive
a bus that never left the garage is invisible until the operator cancels it
Published field
lesson · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
App developer Stephen McBride, quoted by the Dublin Inquirer: without GPS coordinates, 'because it's broken, or because the bus never left the garage', the RTPI shows the scheduled time, and cancelled services have to be manually removed by the operator.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Dublin Inquirer, on ghost buses, Jul 2022 (media)
Claim 17 clm-267e6a4b03c28607 descriptive
every app draws its real-time data from the NTA, so unofficial apps inherit the same ghosts
Published field
lesson · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
A Dublin Bus spokesperson told the Dublin Inquirer that all bus apps get RTPI information from the NTA; the same report describes a passenger misled by the unofficial Next Dublin Bus app, which showed a cancelled service as running.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Dublin Inquirer, on ghost buses, Jul 2022 (media)
Forensic record — source dossiers, gaps, hashes and the exact revision this page renders

This layer records what is known about each source, what is still missing, and the exact snapshot this page is rendering. A missing date, archive or hash stays visible as missing.

unreviewed Revision 2026-09-25-baseline effective 2026-09-25 · created 2026-09-25

Awaiting operator and domain-expert review; publication of this revision implies neither.

sha256:aec806f8c72d148e909e5ee58bb711135700d0c388b2dd8351941ad2a86816db
Revision history → Permanent version link → Machine-readable record → Evidence Constitution →
17
of 17 claims mapped
13
source dossiers
12
publication dates recorded
0
archives linked
0
exact locators
0
content captures hashed

Governance facts carried by the record

Operator
National Transport Authority (Transport for Ireland), with bus position data from Dublin Bus, Go-Ahead Ireland and Bus Éireann; launched with technical assistance from Dublin City Council
Actor types
national-government, city-government, private
Funding model
public
Funding description
National Transport Authority
Cost
€68.5 million for the national AVL replacement contract (awarded December 2023); the original system's cost is not stated in the sources
Ownership
Not recorded
Decision rights
Not recorded
Exit conditions
Not recorded

13 source dossiers

NTA press release on the real-time launch, 26 Sep 2011 (operator) nationaltransport.ie · 2 linked claims

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-1dd823333bd28ecd
Publisher
Name not classified · nationaltransport.ie
Type / language
pdf · language not classified
Published
2011-09-26
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

The National Transport Authority's release for the launch on 26 September 2011: live arrival times for all 5,000 Dublin Bus stops by website, text and iPhone app, an initiative of the NTA 'delivered with the technical assistance of Dublin City Council', alongside 500 on-street electronic signs being installed across the Greater Dublin Area, over 270 of them in place. Dublin Bus's chief executive states the fleet is 'now equipped with a system which allows staff to identify the location of each bus'.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
Smart Dublin, on real-time passenger information, Aug 2017 (city) smartdublin.ie · 1 linked claim

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-ae4e228af16fba38
Publisher
Name not classified · smartdublin.ie
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2017-08-04
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Dublin City Council's smart-city programme explains how the system works — Automatic Vehicle Location data fed to a central RTPI server and on to the displays at stops — says the data was available to developers through an API on the Dublinked portal, and that RTPI 'started as a project for Dublin Bus in 2008 developed by Dublin City Council in collaboration with IBM'.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
NTA, new GTFS-Realtime data feed, Aug 2020 (operator) nationaltransport.ie · 1 linked claim

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-7b63691dd77ffd16
Publisher
Name not classified · nationaltransport.ie
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2020-08-05
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

NTA notice of 5 August 2020: a GTFS-Realtime API for Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann and Go-Ahead Ireland has been launched 'in line with the NTA's commitment to providing open data', replacing the older RTPI REST API, which was to shut permanently on 30 September 2020. Registration on the NTA developer portal is required.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
NTA, upgrade to GTFS-Realtime v2, Mar 2023 (operator) nationaltransport.ie · 1 linked claim

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-1b2e925e75652c72
Publisher
Name not classified · nationaltransport.ie
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2023-03-08
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

NTA notice of 8 March 2023: the real-time API is replaced by an upgraded set integrated with a new Travel Information platform; the new GTFS-R feed extends real-time updates to Luas and Iarnród Éireann services and adds a Vehicle Location API with bus positions.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
Transport for Ireland, Public Transport Data page (operator) transportforireland.ie · 1 linked claim

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-c9aa1696bbb7dee8
Publisher
Name not classified · transportforireland.ie
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
Not recorded
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

The NTA's download page for GTFS timetables, stop data and a list of real-time operators: 'This data is licensed under CC BY 4.0 and is attributed to the National Transport Authority.' Access to the GTFS-Realtime API is by registration on the NTA developer portal. A continuously updated page.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
NTA, AVL contract award to Trapeze, Dec 2023 (operator) nationaltransport.ie · 2 linked claims

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-d5f632daf2a9ae12
Publisher
Name not classified · nationaltransport.ie
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2023-12-20
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

NTA announcement of 20 December 2023: a contract to Trapeze to implement a national Automatic Vehicle Location solution for all public service buses, consolidating 'several existing bus AVL systems into one central system', feeding the TFI Live app, 'our 800+ On-Street Displays' and real-time exports to third-party apps. The release does not state the contract value.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
Dublin Inquirer, on ghost buses, Jul 2022 (media) dublininquirer.com · 4 linked claims

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-dfea3dd5663c8df9
Publisher
Name not classified · dublininquirer.com
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2022-07-27
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Report of 27 July 2022 on passengers waiting for buses shown on signs and apps that never came. Explains, via app developer Stephen McBride, that GPS data is matched to the schedule by AVL software and that without a GPS fix the system shows the scheduled time, so cancelled services have to be removed by the operator. Dublin Bus said its app, website and on-street signs do not show cancellations; a Dublin Bus spokesperson said all bus apps get their real-time data from the NTA; NTA data showed Dublin Bus services not run rising from about 1 to about 2 per cent over 2021.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
Dublin Inquirer, on the new bus-tracking contract, Sep 2024 (media) dublininquirer.com · 4 linked claims

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-8da8fc2620b70872
Publisher
Name not classified · dublininquirer.com
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2024-09-25
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Report of 25 September 2024: the NTA awarded a €68.5 million contract to Trapeze Group UK in December 2023 for a new AVL system, with roll-out to start in late 2025 and finish in late 2026 'if all goes well'. Quotes a July 2024 parliamentary answer by the transport minister that apps like TFI Live 'cannot display a service as cancelled if it has not received the appropriate cancellation message from the operator'.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
Dublin Inquirer, on the no-show bus tracker, Aug 2025 (media) dublininquirer.com · 3 linked claims

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-b5a0216ee87dd587
Publisher
Name not classified · dublininquirer.com
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2025-08-06
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Report of 6 August 2025: an analysis of more than 2,600 reports to noshowbus.ie, a site collecting reports of ghost and cancelled buses since October 2024, for 1 January to 5 August 2025. The NTA explains ghost buses as operators not cancelling a service in time for the RTPI system to pick it up, describes replacing antennae on about 200 buses, and says the new AVL system will replace 'the five disparate systems currently in use'.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
Newstalk, Dublin Bus CEO on replacing the real-time system, Aug 2024 (media) newstalk.com · 1 linked claim

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-6c79395c5fca3c24
Publisher
Name not classified · newstalk.com
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2024-08-16
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Interview report of 16 August 2024: Dublin Bus chief executive Billy Hann says the technology is 'over 15 years old', the antennas on the buses 'aren't as sensitive as they need to be', and the real-time system is 'independently audited by the National Transport Authority' with an accuracy rate of around 96%.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
The Irish Times, on bus penalties and ghost buses, Feb 2025 (media) irishtimes.com · 1 linked claim

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-b353db36115e7f12
Publisher
Name not classified · irishtimes.com
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2025-02-06
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Report of 6 February 2025 on complaints about 'ghost' or 'disappearing' buses on the on-street screens and the TFI app. A Dublin Bus spokeswoman says its real-time passenger information accuracy has been 'at a record high of 98 per cent' since the beginning of 2025.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
Newstalk, on ghost buses at the start of the school year, Sep 2026 (media) newstalk.com · 1 linked claim

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-dc396746d32e7b60
Publisher
Name not classified · newstalk.com
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2026-09-11
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Report of 11 September 2026: a Glasnevin parent describes buses that appear due within a minute or two on the signs and app and then vanish, several times in the first week of the school term.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
Radio Nova, on Dublin Bus and the new AVL system, Sep 2026 (media) nova.ie · 1 linked claim

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-d7e63745cb8471df
Publisher
Name not classified · nova.ie
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2026-09-11
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-09-25
Dossier created
2026-09-25
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Report of 11 September 2026, relaying Newstalk: Dublin Bus director Gwen Morgan says TFI Live is not a Dublin Bus app and that it 'will be improved when we get the new automatic vehicle location system in place'; the NTA's new system is described as still to come into operation.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
Known limits of this passport
  • Publisher names and source languages have not yet been classified; domains are recorded without guessing.
  • Existing source notes are descriptive locators, not page- or paragraph-exact citations.
  • A missing archive, publication date or content hash is shown as null rather than inferred.
  • The project-level evidence grade ranks the strongest source in the entry; it is not a truth score for every claim.

Continue exploring

Compare this project

🇵🇹 Carris Real-Time Bus & Tram Tracking · Lisbon Both feed stop displays and apps from bus GPS; Dublin shows what happens when cancellations never reach the feed. 🇫🇷 Naolib Real-Time Transit Feeds: SIRI Adopted, GTFS-RT Dark · Nantes Two real-time feeds, two access models: Dublin's GTFS-Realtime needs a key, Nantes publishes its own format. 🇦🇺 Transport for NSW Real-Time Open Data Hub · Sydney Both transport agencies run keyed real-time APIs for app developers, under different licences and access rules.

Explore the wider context

🔑 Your Smart City Is Owned by Someone Else📖 GTFS (General Transit Feed Specification)📖 Open data📖 Urban data platform (UDP)
📎 Cite this project

1001 Smart Cities (2026). “Dublin Real-Time Passenger Information & the NTA's Open GTFS-Realtime Feed” — Dublin, Ireland. The Smart City Atlas. https://1001smartcities.org/projects/dublin-rtpi-open-transit-data/ (last verified 2026-09-25). Data: CC BY 4.0.

The underlying data is free to reuse with attribution — see the open data page.

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