Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The business case for Connecting Ireland is still under scrutiny within the Department. It will then have to be sent to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform for its review. After that process, the business case then has to go to Government for approval due to the scale of the investment envisaged, which is very ambitious. It would be premature to discuss the possible cost of delivering Connecting Ireland until the business case is fully examined.

Connecting Ireland proposes to expand the public transport network in rural areas. There will be a 25% overall increase in rural bus services and 70% of people in rural Ireland will have access to public transport services that provide at least three return trips daily to a nearby town. More than 100 rural villages will benefit from frequent public transport services for the first time. There will be more than 60 new connections to regional cities from surrounding areas and improved mobility options for those in remote areas with the provision of demand responsive and other innovative transport services.

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