Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 20: To ask the Minister for Transport if discussions have taken place with regard to the future of the rural transport programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34097/09]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Question 39: To ask the Minister for Transport his plans for the rural transport initiative; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39520/09]

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 20 and 39 together.

There are commitments to the Rural Transport Programme (RTP) in the National Development Plan, Towards 2016 and the Department of Transport's Sectoral Plan under the Disability Act 2005. The development of rural transport is also a key objective in the Government's sustainable travel and transport plan Smarter Travel - A Sustainable Transport Future. The renewed Government Programme contains a commitment to explore the provision of a full-scale transport system in rural areas using the network expertise of Bus Éireann and the resources of the school and health transport systems.

The Government is considering all the recommendations in the Special Group's report and decisions will be made by the Government in the context of the Budget for 2010 and later years. To assist with that task, the Government has referred the Report to the Oireachtas Committee on Finance and General Affairs for its views prior to the Budget.

A number of initiatives are currently underway to examine the potential for synergies between existing transport providers. These include pilot co-operative transport projects in the North East and North West, an exercise to map all transport services in County Louth and a cross-border pilot rural community transport project under the auspices of the British/Irish Council. The outcome of these initiatives will feed into the process for further developing rural transport policy.