The Nitelink is an essential service for everyone who works late at night and needs to return as soon as possible, according to a Dublin Councillor.

Despite the ending of almost all restrictions over the weekend, there is still no confirmed date for the Nitelink’s return.

On Newstalk Breakfast this morning, Colm O’Rourke, Fine Gael Councillor for the Cabra-Glasnevin ward said the return of the service is a matter of “safety and welfare”.

“The Nitelink is not just for clubbers; it’s for workers and anyone else who needs a low-cost service to get home safely – including people on low wages or perhaps students who work the weekend,” he said.

“So, I would like to see the service come back as soon as possible.”

He said Dublin Bus “took the wrong route” when it decided to curtail the service in December due to the strict restrictions introduced at the time.

“To be fair the easing of the restrictions on Friday came as a bit of a shock to everyone so I appreciate that in terms of the logistics it is difficult to turn around as soon as possible so hopefully, they will be back for next weekend,” he said.

“but we did see before Christmas the service wasn’t running and there hasn’t been any confirmation of that.”

He said the return of the service should now be a priority for Dublin Bus and the National Transport Authority (NTA).

“During the pandemic, there has been a lot of demand from different organisations and groups but because this is to do with safety and it is a service for the community, I do think it should be a priority and we should at least get confirmation that it is on the way,” he said.