A surge in socialisation is anticipated this week as the majority of people plan to celebrate St Patrick’s Day amid a double bank holiday and Ireland’s meeting with Scotland in rugby.
According to research from transport app Free Now, March 16th to 20th will be the busiest time of the year to date, with a 173 per cent year-on-year increase in trips expected over the four-day period.
Sunday at 1am will be the busiest time, according to the app, which is advising passengers to plan their journeys in advance to avoid delays.
“This will be the first time that people will have had a chance to celebrate St Patrick’s Day outside of the home for two years and with a double bank holiday and the Ireland v Scotland match at the weekend, we’re expecting it to be a busy one,” said Niall Carson, general manager at Free Now Ireland.
With Covid-19 restrictions lifted, many will celebrate St Patrick’s Day for the first time since 2019 with more than half (56 per cent) of the 1,344 adults surveyed by Free Now this month reporting that they plan to mark the day in some way.
Of these, 59 per cent are planning a trip to the pub, 31 per cent are planning to go to a parade and 27 per cent are planning to celebrate at home.
The Free Now research also found that almost two thirds (64 per cent) of respondents were excited about “getting back to normal” in some way, but many still plan to be cautious in high-risk places.
70 per cent said they will continue to wear masks on public transport such as buses and trains, 54 per cent will wear a mask in a taxi and 41 per cent in shops.
Many are also already making summer plans, with 87 per cent saying they intend to go on a summer holiday abroad, 46 per cent planning to attend at least one wedding and 45 per cent planning on going to a festival.
