Special evening and night-time door-to-door transport services set up to serve rural parts of Cork last summer are attracting an average of six passengers per journey.

The Transport Minister has announced a three-month extension of the Local Link evening service in rural areas.

The Local Link Rural Transport Programme is a nationwide rural bus service which operates between rural areas and local towns and villages.

The first of what it is hoped to be a widespread regular evening public transport bus service to tackle rural isolation in Kerry, which will be able to pick up and deliver passengers door to door, has been launched.

A new state-funded 'drink link' bus will service 50 rural communities across Ireland.