Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

West Cork Connect is a commercial bus company. It operates in and out of west Cork 16 times daily, carrying approximately 800 customers daily on its buses. It receives no Government subsidy as it takes people every hour on the hour from Skibbereen and Bantry to Cork and back daily. The recent 20% to 50% reductions in travel prices, mainly for youths in Dublin, has been of no benefit to any of the 800 people who travel with this company daily. Fuel prices have gone through the roof, as the Tánaiste can imagine, for this company. Instead of lying down to these Government hits time and again, the company intends to put on new services from Kinsale and Ballinhassig to Cork several times daily.

The company made a proposal to the National Transport Authority, NTA, eight months ago to do a run from Goleen on Mizen Head every hour on the hour, thus opening up places like Goleen, Lowertown, Schull, Ballydehob and Kilcoe to possible day visitors. The NTA has refused to sanction the route, indicating it could not see a demand. As far as I am aware, the Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan, his Department and the NTA are suppose to put a plan together called Connecting Ireland so how could they disconnect part of Ireland by refusing a private bus operator this run, which is of no cost to the Department. The proposal, run by West Cork Connect, must be allowed to go ahead. Will the Tánaiste immediately seek a change of mindset on the part of the NTA in respect of this matter?

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