Plan for new Kilrickle rural bus link

An innovative plan is being drawn up to provide a rural transport service in East Galway following the recent withdrawal of a Bus Eireann route that had been in place for many years.

And if it gets approval from the National Transport Authority, it could go out to tender next month and be operational around mid-September.

This follows the cessation of the Bus Eireann service that was lost to Kilrickle and other villages between Loughrea and Ballinasloe because of the extremely poor take-up.

It was decided to suspend the Kilrickle stop-off because there were only four passengers utilising the service and Bus Eireann say that they could not justify its continuation.

The Route 20 Galway to Dublin return service will not be stopping in the likes of Kilrickle again but there are plans to establish a LocalLink bus service that would bring rural passengers to the bigger centres of population.

Galway East TD Anne Rabbitte believes that providing a rural bus service to the likes of Ballinasloe and Loughrea would keep students and workers residing in the county rather than moving into rented accommodation in the city.

Along with local councillors Shane Donnellan and Ivan Canning, she met with National Transport Authority officials to discuss the impasse.

“The local link bus would collect passengers, whether they be students or workers and deliver them to either Loughrea or Ballinasloe where they can access bus or rail transport to Galway city.

“It was a major disappointment that the Bus Eireann service decided not to stop along the old N6 between Loughrea and Ballinasloe, but we have to move on and find alternatives,” Deputy Rabbitte said.

The Fianna Fail TD said that this service, which could also take in stops in Kilconnell each morning as well as Kilrickle, could have the effect of students opting to live at home rather than incurring the expense of renting in Galway city.

She said that there was a solid case for a local rural bus service from which access could be provided to either Galway city or Athlone.

The Galway East Deputy met with LocalLink Galway Manager Joe Greally to discuss the viability of a service between the two towns – which would then connect with existing services in Athlone and Galway.

The National Transport Authority Chief Executive Officer Anne Graham went through the bus stops along Route 20 with statistics on usage and said that Kilrickle had just four users per day.

A rural link bus service currently operates from Gort taking in Castledaly, Peterswell and Kilchreest before arriving in Loughrea. “It is a very popular route,” Deputy Rabbitte added.

It is expected that the plan for the Loughrea to Ballinasloe stretch will come before the NTA for approval within the next couple of weeks.