Belfast buses stop during today's evening rush hour: Trains and Goldliner services across NI end before sunset, Translink citing safety concerns

No Metro, Glider or Ulsterbus departures will happen in the capital city after 5.30pm, the public transport firm has said. Trains and Goldliner services across Northern Ireland will continue for another couple of hours, but all of them will be halted well before sunset.

Although Translink doesn’t plan to bring in a third provincewide full shutdown, the Dublin Enterprise train will also be affected, and there will be “some adjustments” to timetables on Ulsterbus routes across Northern Ireland, including Metro services in the Londonderry area.

The last trains across Northern Ireland today will depart shortly after 8pm, the firm said, and, no Goldliner services will leave after 7.30pm.

A reduced timetable will operate on Enterprise services; the last trains both to and from Dublin will be around 7pm, while the last from Belfast to Portadown is around 8pm.

Outside Belfast, local Ulsterbus services are “expected to operate largely as normal”, including Foyle Metro, with “some adjustments”.

Buses from Belfast International Airport to Grand Central Station are to operate as normal, as will coaches that connect Belfast and Londonderry with Dublin Airport.

In a statement issued around two and a half hours before buses in Belfast were to cease, a spokeswoman for the public transport firm said at the time bus and train services “are currently operating as normal” but would city services would soon be stopped “in light of recent events”.

“The safety of our staff and customers remains our top priority, and we thank everyone for their continued patience and understanding during this period,” she stated,

“Customers are advised to check the latest travel updates via Translink social media channels, the Journey Planner app, and our website.”

The firm axed all public transport in Northern Ireland on Tuesday night after one of its Gliders was burned out as violence flared in east Belfast.

Yesterday, bus and Glider routes in Belfast were suspended at around 12.30pm in an unannounced move. A handful started running again at 1.30pm before a provincewide bus halt at 5pm, followed by all trains being cancelled at 6pm.