STORM GROWS OVER AN BORD SNIP PROPOSAL ON RURAL BUS SERVICE

Fears expressed over the Bord Snip recommendation that the Rural Transport Service be axed have been reflected in a letter sent by a group of concerned users of the service in the North Cork area to local public representatives.

The letter says, ‘We write to you with great concern regarding the bus services in the Castletownroche and Ballyhooly area which are funded by the Rural Transport Programme. You are probably aware that the recent report from An Bord Snip is recommending to the Government that the Rural Transport Programme be terminated completely. This has come as a huge shock to us as isolated people who are regular bus passengers’.

"There are several successful rural bus services in our area. We travel on the regular Friday morning public bus service to Fermoy and returning in the afternoon. The service is co-ordinated by Avondhu Blackwater Partnership Ltd. The bus, which is accessible for people with mobility difficulties, collects and drops us at our door.

"In Fermoy, we do our shopping, go to the credit union and bank, visit GP’s and other health services, use the library etc. Along with using the bus to access these essential services, the bus service provides a huge social outlet for us as we get to meet neighbours and friends.

"For most, this is the only day we can travel independently. Those of us with the free travel pass can use it on the service and for those without a free travel pass, the fares are very affordable. The staff in Avondhu Blackwater Partnership Ltd. and the bus drivers are excellent and always very helpful.

‘We are very dependent on the bus service. Most of us live alone and don’t own a car. We are certain that without the rural bus services, several regular passengers may have to leave their rural dwelling and move to a nursing home, probably at greater cost to the Government than the bus services which An Bord Snip recommend terminating completely’, the correspondence concludes.

Damien Tobin of The Avondhu Blackwater Partnership recently confirmed that there had been a significant growth in the numbers using the facility over the years.

“From Jan 2003 to the end of 2008 we co-ordinated 156,920 trips by local people. In 2008 alone we co-ordinated 46,811 local trips, made by over 1,000 different people. Nationally there have been 4.3 million trips from January 2003 to the end of 2008. 1.2 million of these trips were made in 2008 alone so both nationally and locally, the programme has been growing successfully each year, “ Mr Tobin told The Avondhu.

Rural Bus was set up in 2002 in a response to the lack of public transport in rural areas. In the North Cork area, the service provides transport once a week, on a Thursday, to and from Mitchelstown with 6 routes. The North Cork and Co Limerick co-coordinator, Maire O’Connor, also recently expressed her concern the effect of axing the rural bus service would have on the elderly.

“It’s not only transport that we provide for our customers, there is the very important social aspect of it all some of our customers might not have much contact with their neighbour and the bus allows them to have some contact with other people in their communities. As of now we are secure with funding up until the end of 2009. No one knows at this stage what 2010 will bring, ” Marie told The Avondhu.

107 GEAR UP FOR MINI MADNESS AT MORRISONS

Former Miss Ireland and leading glamour model, Andrea Roche, was on hand to bring down the chequered flag on the 107 drivers who turned out for last Sunday’s Mini Mystery Tour organised by Morrison Motors in Cahir in association with the Mini Club of Ireland.

The event, which was hosted as a fundraiser for cystic fibrosis, took the participants on a 152km trip that took in areas like Ballylooby, the Vee, Mount Melleray, Newcastle, Mahon Falls, Rathcormac, Clonmel and other points in between before returning to the Morrison dealership on Sunday afternoon where there was a BBQ, music, a magician and, of course, some great food laid on for the tired but elated drivers and their passengers.

Tommy O’Mahony, a Mini car sales executive at Morrison in Cahir, the main man behind the venture, this week expressed his delight with the turn- out.

“Things seemed a bit slow in the morning and the weather wasn’t great but then all hell broke loose and the Minis just started to arrive one by one.

“We were delighted that Beat 102 – 103FM participated in the tour and even did a ‘live feed’ on air when we were going over the Vee.

“There was also great support from local sponsors and the atmosphere during the run was just mighty,” Tommy concluded.

He confirmed that over €9,000 had already been raised from the Mini Mystery Tour and it’s expected that the eventual figure will exceed €11,000 when everything is totted up.

The tour certainly enhanced the profile of not only the Cystic Fibrosis Association of Ireland but also the image of the Mini, in all its stylish formats. One could reasonably expect that Tommy and the team at Morrison in Cahir will also benefit with increased sales of the model.

And, only rightly so! Well done to all concerned.

KILWORTH RESIDENT UNHAPPY WITH DOG SITUATION

A Kilworth resident has contacted The Avondhu regarding his concerns with dogs in the village. Having returned to Ireland following a stint abroad, the caller, who did not wish to give his name, felt compelled to call the dog warden to express his disgust at the amount of dog litter on the streets, and, in one case, on a public bench in the village.

The caller’s complaint was referred from the dog warden to the litter warden in Fermoy, who in turn, the caller claimed, said it was the remit of the litter warden in Mallow. The incredulous caller then went on to say that the Mallow based litter warden passed the complaint back to the dog warden – to whom the Kilworth resident had already gone to with his concerns.

“Where I lived before, if people went out with their dog and failed to bring a bag to collect the litter they were fined,” the caller said. Aside from the dog fouling issue, the Kilworth resident aired his concerns over un-muzzled Rottweilers in the area, particularly animals that are, it is claimed, walked near the village’s playground and school, with classes due to recommence next week.

“Imagine if one of these un-muzzled dogs met another animal when around children, it is an accident waiting to happen,” the resident claimed.

VINTNERS CALL FOR DRASTIC ACTION TO SAVE PUBS

The Vintners Federation of Ireland (VFI) has called a reduction in VAT rates, the appointment of an ombudsman to ensure financial institutions are offering credit facilities, a reduction in local authority water rates and that the blood alcohol levels remain the same after the results of a survey on the pub trade in Ireland were released.

The Vintners’ Federation of Ireland commissioned independent research of its membership to ascertain the current situation in the Irish pub trade.

As a result of the findings and the precarious state the pub trade is now in, the VFI has made five clear recommendations to protect against further closures and job losses Key Findings
1 Employment: 52% of those surveyed employ 4 or more staff in their premises. 33% employ five or more staff.

2 Revenue: 81% of those surveyed reported that their revenue was down for the summer period May-July 2009 compared with the same period last year

3 Revenue: Of those who reported their revenue was down, 79% reported their revenue was down 10% or over on the period May-July 2009 compared with the same period last year. 40% say revenue was down 20% or more

4 Staff Reductions: 50% of those surveyed indicated that they have made reductions in the number of staff they employ over the last 12 months. 60% of those who have made staff reductions have let two or more people go. – this equates to a total loss of at least 4,800 jobs amongst VFI members in the last 12 months, and 54% of those surveyed anticipate that they will have to make reductions in employees in the next 12 months

5 Cutbacks: 43% of those surveyed have had to reduce their opening hours to reflect a slowdown in business

6 Cost Savings: 88% of those surveyed have taken other cost saving measures to reduce their overheads over the last 12 months

7 Future Drink Driving Legislation: 97% of those surveyed believe that the proposed reduction in the blood alcohol level permissible for drivers from 80mg to 50mg would have a detrimental effect on business and will accelerate the rate of job losses

8 Commercial Rates: 90% of those surveyed believe that the increase in commercial and water rates by local authorities has had a detrimental affect on overheads

9 Future Outlook: 99% believe that more pubs are likely to close in the next 12 months in rural areas and are concerned about the future of pubs.

Commenting on the findings of the independent research, Val Hanley, president of the VFI said; “We knew the pub industry was under pressure and the research has verified this. In fact, it is worse than we thought as over 4,800 jobs have gone in the last twelve months which has a huge financial cost to the State as well as a human cost. Rural pubs seem to be suffering the most and those pubs which relied on tourism trade are also well down.”

PHOTOJOURNALISM EXHIBITION ON IN MITCHELSTOWN

The stunning AIB Photojournalism Exhibition 2008, a collection of the year’s most inspiring press photographs, will be on display in AIB Bank, New Square, Mitchelstown, until this Friday, August 28.

A reception, hosted by Des McCarthy, branch manager, was held on Wednesday of last week, August 20.

Cork photographers who feature in this year’s exhibition include: Dan Linehan, Richard Mills, Denis Minihane, Michael MacSweeney and Daragh MacSweeney - all of who were highly commended for their images. Out of 1,900 entries, 120 were carefully chosen to travel around 40 AIB branches nationwide.

The overall AIB Photojournalist of the Year 2008 title was awarded to Steve Humphreys, Irish Independent. The judging panel commented that his entry “Conveyed the sense of a very complete portfolio - that of a really good and dependable press photographer at work. Photographs ranging from hard news to sports and features were all well-framed and executed assuring the judging panel that whatever the assignment he would be sent on, a print worthy of publication would be secured.”

Speaking about the exhibition visit, Des McCarthy, branch manager, AIB Bank, Mitchelstown, commented; “We are delighted to host the exhibition, here in New Square, Mitchelstown, which allows our customers and staff to see the amazing level of skill and creativity among press photographers in Ireland.”

Masterclasses for photography students will be held in locations throughout the country over the coming months. The images from this year’s AIB Photojournalism Exhibition can be viewed by logging on to www.ppai.ie.

A FIRST STEP TOWARDS PAID EMPLOYMENT

280 opportunities to gain 6 months work experience will be available in the South West region as part of the recently announced Government initiative – the Work Placement Programme.

The programme, which is being delivered by FAS, is designed to offer unemployed people, including unemployed graduates, an opportunity to enhance their work experience. Participants will have the opportunity to gain valuable experience needed to benefit fully from an economic upturn.

There are two streams of placement. The first stream is for graduates who, before 2009, have attained a full award at level 7 or above on the National Framework of Qualifications (e.g. Ordinary Bachelors Degree), who have been unemployed for 6 months and are also currently in receipt of Job Seeker’s Allowance.

The second stream is open to all other individuals who have been unemployed for 6 months and are also currently in receipt of Job Seeker’s Allowance.

Under this stream, 35 places in the South West Region are being ring fenced for those under 25 years of age Participants on both streams of the Work Placement Programme will continue to receive their existing social welfare entitlements from the Department of Social and Family Affairs during their 6-month work placement.