Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context

136. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if additional funding will be put toward rural public transport to continue expanding access to public transport in rural areas, particularly given the pressure on bus routes such as the 424; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51423/25]

Jerry Buttimer (Cork South-Central, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

As Minister of State at the Department of Transport with special responsibility for Rural Transport, I recognise the importance of boosting connectivity in rural Ireland, including in Galway. In the new Programme for Government, Securing Ireland's Future, this Government has committed to continuing the roll-out of the Connecting Ireland Rural Mobility Plan.

Under Budget 2025, the Department has secured a funding package of €658.442 million for Public Service Obligation (PSO) and TFI Local Link services (an increase from €613.813 million in 2024). This package includes funding for the continuation of the various fare initiatives, such as the Young Adult Card, and the 90-minute fare until the end of 2025. Funding has also been provided to extend free child fares on PSO Services to include those aged 5 to 8-years old, and to support the roll-out of new and enhanced bus services under programmes such as BusConnects, Connecting Ireland and new town services.

I think the Deputy will agree with me when I say that the Connecting Ireland Rural Mobility Plan has been a huge success, with over 175 new or enhanced services introduced since 2022. This means that over 240 towns and villages have been connected to the public transport network, and approximately 600,000 people have access to these bus services. 61 new connections have been provided to healthcare facilities, 41 new connections to higher education facilities and 71 of the new and enhanced services provide connections with existing rail services. Almost 8 million passenger journeys were recorded across Connecting Ireland services in 2024.

There has been considerable investment in services throughout the country under Connecting Ireland, including in County Galway, with bus service levels on the Galway to Clifden corridor increasing by over 30% thanks to an integrated schedule for route 923 and route 419. Route 424, mentioned by the Deputy, was significantly enhanced under this plan to improve frequency and expand hours of operation, offering passengers greater connectivity with Galway Ceannt Station.

My Department supports the expansion of rural transport in line with the recent commitment in the Programme for Government to continue the roll-out of Connecting Ireland. As with all such measures, an increase on funding for all public transport services, including Rural Transport, will be considered in the ongoing budgetary discussions.