Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I take the Deputy's point about imagination and ambition. The problem is that we do not have money. Light rail was found to be too ambitious in terms of a lack of market demand for it. If there is a business case for it, we will look at the issue again. The decision was made that there was not a good business case for light rail at the time. There is definitely an attempt to address the issues of Galway and to do so in the context of the national planning framework. The framework sets out the key future growth enablers for Galway in the area of public transport as follows: progressing the sustainable development of new greenfield areas for housing; development of supports for public transport and infrastructure; improving access and sustainable transport links through integration with existing employment areas to the east of Galway city and provision of citywide public transport network with enhanced accessibility between the existing and proposed residential areas and the city centre.

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