Ms Anne Graham:

In the transport strategy developed for Galway by the city and county councils, an assessment was done to determine whether there was sufficient demand for a light rail service. It was found that there would not be sufficient demand within Galway city along the alignment that the Senator mentioned. We believe that an enhanced bus system is the approach for Galway, although this means that a significant level of priority must be placed on the approach roads and the routes through Galway city in order to support an effective and more efficient bus system. That is our approach to Galway, in association with Galway city and county councils. In that regard, Galway City Council is beginning to bring forward projects and has started consultation on many of them. Associated with that is a significant cycling network and a walking network throughout the city. These are three aspects of the matter, as is ensuring that regional bus services can access Galway city, including by supporting park-and-ride services at, for example, rail stations. That is what is set out in the Galway strategy and is what we would like to fund. If funding is made available, we would like to progress these projects as quickly as possible for Galway city.