In message , Walter Briscoe
writes

I believe pensioner train travel has been free in the Irish Republic
for some time. I do not know what the limitations of the scheme are.

Age 66+ in the republic (compared with 60+ for the bus pass scheme in
England). As I recall, life expectancy in the republic is almost 2 years
less than that in England, and the average age is almost 3 years less.

All of which combines to make such a scheme much more viable in the
republic than in England.
--
Paul Terry