Minister for Transport Paschal Donohoe has described the move by Luas operator Transdev to bring in private buses for passengers during a strike by staff on St Patrick's Day as "an exceptional fall-back measure for the country's national holiday".
However, the Minister also said it was imperative that steps be taken to ensure that this back-up service was not needed and that people would be able to travel on the Luas system on Thursday.
Speaking on The Week in Politics on RTÉ One on Sunday, Mr Donohoe said that three of the four grades of staff at Luas were still engaged in talks with management at the Workplace Relations Commission.
Talks between management and Luas drivers at the Workplace Relations Commission earlier in the week.
The drivers have said that they have been excluded from the talks by management, despite reducing the scale of their pay demands.
The drivers are seeking pay rises of close to 30 per cent over five years. They have also offered to discuss productivity measures with management.
Luas operator Transdev has said that the reduced pay claim by drivers is still excessive and does not form the basis of negotiations.
It has previously maintained that it would look at pay increases of one to three per cent linked to productivity measures.
Luas drivers are scheduled to strike on St Patrick’s Day, as well as over the Easter weekend and on four days in April.
Bus service
Last Friday, Transdev announced that it would be bringing in a limited bus service to transport passengers between park-and-ride facilities on the outskirts of Dublin into the city centre on St Patrick’s Day.
Siptu, which represents the Luas drivers, said the move was “provocative”.
The National Bus and Rail Union, which represents staff in the CIÉ transport group, described the move as "strike breaking" and accused the company of using "scab labour".
The company denied that it was engaged in strike breaking.
Transdev's managing director Gerry Madden said the initiative represented a "logistical solution to give people a good day out".
