Mr. Gerry Murphy:

Forgetting the minibus and the train, there is a question of the use of large and small buses. Let us take that point. Because we have taken over the rural transport function which operates on a small bus model in a local area, we want to look at how much that could be extended for serving isolated areas and connecting them to the bigger bus services that we are providing through the Bus Éireann contract. There is no doubt that there are many rail services that could be provided alternatively by bus, but the fact is that there is a rail asset, there is an infrastructure and there is a journey associated with rail that is different from the bus.

On the issue of cutting services and closing lines, we did that on the Rosslare-Waterford route because it was just unsustainable, and we were able to establish replacement bus services, but we are cautious about the issue of lightly used rail lines. They are lightly used and heavily subsidised, but there is also a need for people to travel there. If we can get the companies to trim costs generally and increase their markets in that way, then the more heavily used lines can subsidise the lightly used lines to a greater extent.