State-owned CIÉ has appointed Stephen Kent as its new chief executive.
Mr Kent, who is the former chief executive of Bus Éireann, has succeeded Lorcan O’Connor after his appointment as chief executive of Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII).
Ireland’s largest public transport provider, semi-state CIÉ operates Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann, Irish Rail, the Rosslare Europort, and tour operator CIÉ Tours.
CIÉ’s new chief executive said its new strategy will “very citizen focused” and that the group is entering an “exciting period of growth for public transport”.
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Mr Kent was most recently the chief executive of Bus Éireann, and held the position from 2018 to 2025, following five years as chief commercial officer. With Bus Éireann, he was involved in the roll-out of electric buses nationally, and CIÉ credited him with “overseeing significant passenger growth and service expansion” during his tenure at the bus operator.
He previous held roles at Waterford Crystal and C&C Group.
Mr Kent said, “I am delighted to join and lead CIÉ at such an exciting period of growth for public transport in Ireland”.
He said that “enhancing the integration and delivery of services through collaboration will be critical as demand for sustainable mobility increases”.
The semi-state will work on progressing “positive initiatives on climate action and sustainability”, among other focuses. He said the group will ensure it “generate[s] the necessary financial resilience to accelerate investment and innovation to help grow public transport across the country.”
“I look forward to working with the CIÉ Group Board and team to contribute to growing public transport usage through CIÉ, and to collaborating closely with our operating companies, the National Transport Authority and Department of Transport.”
Aidan Murphy, the chair of the CIÉ Group board said Mr Kent had already “contributed significantly” to the group while leading Bus Éireann: “I know he will use that experience and his undoubted skill set to advance the ambitious plans in the CIÉ Group and the public transport sector more broadly.”
Mr Murphy thanked the outgoing chief executive for “his strong leadership” as well as group chief financial office, Fiona O’Shea for her four month tenure as interim chief executive.
