Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 78, 90, 92, 111, 124 and 128 together.

As the Deputies are aware, generally in rural areas there are no public transport services at night. While in the more developed rural areas there are either hackney or taxi services, these are totally at the discretion of the providers of these services and do not provide a guaranteed service to rural people. There is a need, therefore, in rural areas for an evening transport service to allow rural people to fully participate in the various activities, community, sporting and social, that take place in their areas and to address the market failure that currently exists.

The Department is currently developing proposals to establish a pilot night-time transport scheme and, in this context, I met the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Deputy Gallagher, in late January to discuss the parameters of the new scheme. I have in mind a scheme additional to the existing rural transport programme run by the Department of Transport and a small number of areas will be selected to run it over a 12 month pilot period. Where the pilot schemes will be located is still under consideration, as is the question of funding for the scheme in 2007.

All services will focus on maximising the general community good and I am, of course, conscious of the need to ensure that no displacement takes place of commercially viable existing services as a result of the introduction of the new scheme. Discussions are continuing between the two Departments and with Pobal, which administers the RTP on behalf of the Department of Transport, and I hope to make an announcement in the coming weeks regarding the pilot scheme.

See this speech in context