Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

——for people who did not have free travel passes. Those with free travel passes travel free. My thinking was the more I could encourage rural communities to charge a reasonable fare, the more likely that it would be possible to offer a wider range of services. My experience of rural Ireland was that ordinary people with jobs who wish to go out for the night would not complain about paying a reasonable fare, any more than would someone paying for a taxi in Dublin. Consequently, I believe a fare of €5 each way was set, which is not unreasonable. If one hired a taxi in this city, €5 would not get one very far. The only measure I have been pushing is that the schemes should try to be as commercial as possible and that the gaps I must fill should be as narrow as possible. The purpose is to extend the service more widely, rather than to save money. Aside from that, I agree with the Deputy's point. Creativity and flexibility are the names of the game. For a service that is designed to each local community's need, to give the best value for money and the best services to the community, the light touch is by far the best and I agree with the Deputy in this regard.

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