Late night transport on some routes 'not unthinkable'

Michael Stewart said late night transport would drive Belfast's late night economy

The lack of late night transport for Belfast's Culture Night was a "missed opportunity", the city's night tsar has said.

Michael Stewart said such events would benefit from people knowing there were later trains and buses at weekends.

He said Belfast was the only capital city on the island of Ireland and in the UK that did not have late night transport.

While an end time of 01:30 would be the priority for any late night service in the near future, the tsar said a 24-hour service was not unthinkable for certain routes.

Northern Ireland's night-time economy generates an estimated £3.7bn every year and supports almost 114,000 jobs, according to new research conducted by Ipsos.

Translink, Northern Ireland's public transport provider, does add late night services in the run up to Christmas.

But Mr Stewart said having a weekend late night service all year round was his primary objective as he begins his second term.

On Friday, a Belfast City Council committee agreed to co-fund, alongside Stormont, a late night public transport pilot.

No details of the proposal have yet been agreed.

What is a night tsar?

The concept originated with the adoption of similar roles in cities across the world including Amsterdam, London and New York.

The role seeks to drive the night-time economy by providing safer and more vibrant experiences.

Belfast's two-year honorary role is funded by the city's three business improvement districts with focus on safety, transport and business.

The part-time role has no statutory powers and focuses on advocating and lobbying for change.

In addition to the lack of late-night buses and trains, a well-documented shortage of taxis in Belfast has made getting home after a night out even more difficult.

Mr Stewart said more public transport would also help make women and girls feel safer.

"If we can allay the fears of people by getting late night transport, they'll start coming back in to Belfast," he said.

Welcoming the return of Culture Night on Friday, he also called on Stormont and Belfast City Council to financially support the event in 2026.

"It's an investment in your people, it's an investment in your venues, and it's an investment in Belfast," he said.

Is late night public transport needed?

Rebecca Logan, Zoe Simpson, and Alex Hutchinson would like to see more late night public transport

BBC News NI spoke to several people in Belfast about what changes they would like to see in terms of transport.

Alex Hutchinson, who lives in Portrush, said it would be "handy" to have more public transport at night.

"You'd be more likely to come out to Belfast," she said.

Her friend Zoe Simpson, who is also from Portrush, said if she wanted to go out in Belfast, she had to "sort out a place to stay".

Both Ms Hutchinson and Ms Simpson, as well as their friend Rebecca Logan, agree that they would be more likely to attend events like Culture Night if public transport was available later.

Donal McKay (right) said pubs in Belfast were "struggling" due to a lack of public transport at night

Donal McKay, who works in Belfast, said he would definitely like to see more late night public transport in the city.

"There's been a dwindling of people going into town," he said.

"Bars are struggling, and one of the big issues is a lack of transportation."

Fiona Barton lives in Bangor

Fiona Barton, who lives in Bangor, said she felt a "bit left out" due to the lack of later trains and buses.

"It's not encouraging people to come into Belfast to join in with everything that is going on," she said.

Chris McCracken, managing director of Linen Quarter business improvement district (BID), said: "The lack of late night transport has been consistently shown up to be the biggest barrier to the growth of Belfast's night-time economy.

"People aren't confident about getting in and getting out and that means they don't come."

BBC News has contacted Translink for a response.