Transport Infrastructure Ireland
Dail Éireann — 2026-07-02
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James Lawless (FF), Kildare North

For some students, commuting to college may be a practical choice if they live close to campus. For many others, however, it is not a choice; it is a necessity. This is not about preferences; it arises as a result of accommodation shortages. Two of my daughters recently commuted to college, so I understand it gives rise to an additional burden and can be an impediment in terms of full participation in campus life. One of the things I have said is that it is an absolute goal of mine to allow students to have the full college experience, which means experiencing broader education, taking courses outside of their core disciplines, taking part in the whole networking experience, participating in student societies and doing all of the things that are part of college life. The provision of high-quality student accommodation at scale on campus is a lever to unlock that. It is critical that we deliver this.
In the context of those students who are commuting for their own reasons, including with regard to the distance they live from campus or for family reasons, it is important to recognise that we want to support them in terms of their need to commute and what we can do in each case. We provide student accommodation for those who want to live on campus or adjacent to it, but we also want to support the commuter student experience in other ways.
The national student accommodation strategy published in March found that in 2024, the most recent year for which data are available, 18% of students living at home experienced commutes that are considered to be excessive. That highlights the ongoing need for suitable accommodation, and that is central to the planning in the student accommodation strategy. One of the reasons I increased the level of grants in the most recent budget was to recognise the additional costs for students who are commuting and travelling long distances. People also have access to the student assistance fund, student accommodation systems and 1916 bursary. An additional €10.5 million has been made available this year to support those students, and 30,000 or more undergraduate and postgraduate students have benefited as a result. Collectively, those measures recognise the additional burden faced by students who are commuting to college and should go some way towards assisting them.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-07-02/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-27T06:52:14+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-07-02