Cork metropolitan transport strategy to be reviewed

A review of the Cork Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy (CMATS) is set to begin next year, the Minister for Transport has said, as he provided an update on several bus, train and light rail projects currently ongoing in Cork.

Minister Darragh O’Brien provided an update on travel projects across Ireland to Louth Sinn Féin TD Ruairí Ó Murchú last week in response to a parliamentary question, including several Cork projects.

In Cork and Ireland’s other four cities, transport planning is led through metropolitan area transport strategies which set out programmes of proposed transport investment in active travel, bus and rail for each city over a 20-year period.

Mr O’Brien said: “The Cork Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy was published in 2020 and is a non-statutory strategy prepared by the National Transport Authority (NTA) in collaboration with Cork City Council, Cork County Council and Transport Infrastructure Ireland. It is currently anticipated that the NTA will commence the review process of CMATS in 2026.”

The minister said that bus network redesign plans have been published for cities including Cork, and that the Preliminary Business Case for BusConnects Cork is “currently being considered” by the Department of Transport.

The Luas Cork project had a public consultation on the Emerging Preferred Route which closed on June 9, “and the issues highlighted in those submissions are now being considered” also, he said.

“In addition, April this year saw the launch of a new Platform at Kent station in Cork. The platform is just the first element of the Cork Area Commuter Rail Programme to go live.

“Works are also well underway on two other work packages, which make up Phase 1 of the Programme, the twin tracking of the Glounthaune to Midleton line and a significant signalling upgrade, which are both on course to be delivered next year.”

Mr O’Brien said that another key public transport priority was the continued roll-out of the Connecting Ireland Rural Mobility Plan, with over 160 new and enhanced bus services introduced since 2022, for 240 towns and villages nationally.

Nationally, work is also ongoing to implement non ‘fixed route’ (non-conventional) public transport services in highly remote, sparsely populated areas, and on the rollout of the NTA’s new National Fares Strategy.