Application for an hourly bus service

AN Application has been made to the NTA seeking an hourly bus service linking Wicklow town, Glendalough and Roundwood.

Wicklow has an opportunity to apply to have its level of services expanded through the Local Link service, which replaced Wicklow Rural Transport.

Cllr Shay Cullen Cathaoirleach of Wicklow Municipal District, has said gaining such a bus service could have huge implications for the local tourism industry.

‘This would be a massive deal if we were to receive funding,’ he said.

‘Linking Wicklow town to Glendalough would be very important for both areas. At the moment there is no bus service linking Wicklow and Glendalough.

‘You have over one million people visiting Glendalough a year but often they arrive from Dublin and head straight back there afterwards.

‘This proposed bus service would mean tourists could hop on a bus at Glendalough and visit Wicklow town and take in the Black Castle, Wicklow Gaol or the Murrough walk,’ he said.

‘It could also help encourage tourists to stay overnight in Wicklow, enjoy some of the restaurants and hospitality, and then get a bus to Glendalough or Roundwood the next day. Anything that helps encourage visitors to stay longer has to be welcomed.’

The application submitted to the NTA was devised with local community groups following a stakeholder consultation in October.

Proposals to the NTA must demonstrate access to a variety of key services, such as education and health, and show linkages and connectivity with other modes of transport and onward journeys.

The application process involved Local Link, Wicklow County Tourism, Cllr Jennifer Whitmore and the Town Team in Wicklow, which was established last year to maximise the business, tourism and social potential of the town.

Applications have also been made for other routes in the county.