Vol. 539 No. 2
74 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for Public Enterprise the plans to provide funding or departmental approval for the development of county routes to ensure transport to towns not serviced by Iarnród Éireann or Bus Éireann to permit persons so isolated to gain access to their places of employment within Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19265/01]
My Department is for the administration of the Road Transport Act, 1932, which provides the legislative basis for the licensing of scheduled bus and coach passenger services here. CIÉ and its subsidiary companies, for example, Bus Éireann, are exempt from the requirement to hold a licence for passenger services. It is open to private bus operators to apply to my Department for a licence to operate scheduled road passenger services in any part of the country. Such applications are considered in accordance with the legislative requirements and the policy guidelines adopted by my Department. Successful applicants will be granted an annual licence for continuous passenger road services or an occasional licence for services that are of a seasonal nature.
In addition, my Department has been developing a rural transport initiative, RTI, which aims to promote and support the development of innovative, community-based public transport projects in rural areas. A sum of £3.5 million has been earmarked for this purpose in the national development plan. My Department carried out a public consultation on the initiative earlier this year and I plan to launch the initiative in Athlone on 2 July. It will be open to applicants from all rural parts of the country and all proposals will be assessed in line with the eligibility and other criteria.
