I refer the Deputy to my replies to her previous Questions (Reference No. 4108/17 answered on 31 January 2017 and Reference No. 11706/17 answered on 07 March 2017) on this matter.
As I advised the Deputy in those replies, responsibility for the implementation of action No. 250 of the Action Plan for Rural Development is matter for the Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, in conjunction with local authorities.
The review of public transport policy, including the rural transport dimension to ensure it meets the needs of rural communities, is listed under action No. 251 of the Action Plan. To advance this commitment, the Deputy might be aware that I recently announced my intention to establish a Stakeholder Dialogue on the issue of Public Transport. My Department is currently scoping out the proposed approach to the work and the full Review will then take place as soon as possible.
As I also advised the Deputy previously, action Nos. 252 to 254 of the Action Plan fall to the National Transport Authority (NTA) to implement, given its responsibility to manage the Rural Transport Programme and I have referred this aspect of your question to the NTA for direct reply.
Please advise my private office if you do not receive a response within 10 working days.
The referred reply under Standing Order 42A was forwarded to the Deputy.
