Mr. Jim Meade:

It is quite correct that when the flooding occurs, it is not just for a few days. As we all know, without going into the history of what and why, the shortest flooding was seven weeks and it has been for up to 15 or 16 weeks in some cases. The numbers trend on the line is up, which is positive. People are migrating towards public transport and we see this. When the line is closed, we put on bus services and alternative options are sought by the travelling public. When the line reopens in April or May it could take until autumn before the numbers come back fully because people do not change overnight. It could be having an impact on the overall numbers because people must keep changing. This was the point being made. If we trend it over several years, the numbers are rising. Were there no disruption to the line, it is a fair assessment that the numbers might rise even further because it would be people's normal mode of travel. The substitutions are not as slick or clean as the train because people are chopping and changing between buses and trains.

When the report is finished it will be with the agreement of everybody. There will be nobody outside the tent stating it does not agree with it. That is our plan and it is being led by Clare County Council to ensure we all sign off on it, subject to any planning process the solution may require. When we come back with a solution to get the funding we may have to go into a planning process.

I fully welcome the support of the committee to help us get funding. We do not mind who gives it to us. We are not fussy. Once we get funding and if the committee can help us achieve it, we will take it with open arms.