Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 203: To ask the Minister for Transport the extent to which he will provide travel facilities for the elderly in rural communities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31012/05]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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The provision of transport services for older people in rural areas is a core feature of the rural transport initiative, RTI, which has been operated by my Department since 2002. All 34 RTI pilot projects throughout the country provide transport services for older people as part of their public transport remit. The RTI arose as a response to the needs of specific categories of people in rural Ireland, such as older people, who did not have access to transport.

Area Development Management Limited, ADM, administers the RTI on behalf of my Department and together with the individual RTI project groups are solely responsible for all the operational aspects of the initiative including the specific services to be provided. Neither I nor my Department has any role in these matters.

In line with the principal recommendation of the appraisal of the RTI in 2004, I announced the extension of the initiative to end 2006. I have also announced my intention to make the RTI permanent from 2007 onwards.