Sir, – I write in response to the article about the reopened pub reviving a rural village, which highlights the benefits of Local Link bus services to sustain business. There is a further solution which could help drive rural economies and help keep pubs open: the nationwide provision of ride-hailing services (“The pub reviving a rural village: ‘It’s the best thing that’s happened here in years,’” May 23rd).
Many Irish urban centres are reasonably well served by taxis, but these are entirely absent throughout rural Ireland.
I believe a radical change in this policy could address both road safety and the quality of life in rural communities.
The provision of a regulated ride-hailing service could be anticipated to bring the following benefits: enable individuals who do not have their own private mode of transport to access commercial and healthcare services and safely socialise within their communities; enhance the economic viability of pubs and restaurants in rural Ireland through increased trade from both local inhabitants and visiting tourists; improve road safety through diminished risk-taking by drivers living in rural Ireland with corresponding reductions in road fatalities and devastating injuries.
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It could also provide viable full- or part-time employment to private car owners whose vehicles and driving skills meet defined safety and comfort standards; provide greater independence to older or disabled people who can no longer drive and avoid the need for individual car ownership.
Thankfully there is no requirement to reinvent the wheel here – the business model offered by a company such as Uber should be adopted throughout this country without hesitation.
I have observed how this has worked in rural England, to cite the example of an older lady with reduced mobility selling their car and becoming an Uber user, adopting this app for their appointments and social visits, maintaining their independence and wellbeing.
The interests of the citizens of this country are not being served by the taxi lobby and Government action to address the inequality of services available to urban and rural dwellers is required.
Car-hailing availability in rural Ireland could provide a practical solution to chronic, much-maligned problems such as the decline of the rural pub; rural isolation and personal wellbeing, and, most importantly, road safety. – Yours, etc,
JOHN FEENEY,
Portobello,
Dublin 8.
