The remote Co Mayo island of Inishbiggle is to get a contracted ferry service for the first time in the island's history.
The service is expected to start this month and will operate between Gob na Dubh on Inishbiggle and Doran's Point in Ballycroy, Co Mayo.
The ferry will operate Monday to Friday, but it is hoped it will be extended to a seven-day service in time. A bus link from Doran's Point to Castlebar, Achill and Belmullet is also part of the plan. The ferry service will be an interim one, operating until a cable car service is set up.
A cable car for the island has been in the pipeline for some time.
The Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Mr Eamon Ó Cuív, who announced the ferry service, has instructed Mayo County Council to proceed with the preparation of contract documents for the cable car which will operate between Bullsmouth on Achill Island, which is connected by bridge to the mainland, and the west side of Inishbiggle.
Inishbiggle has suffered from serious depopulation recently.
Three years ago its inhabitants numbered 67. Now there are 27 residents. Children no longer live there.
Currently people coming from the Achill side arrive chiefly by currach. A boat licensed to carry eight passengers operates between the island and Ballycroy on the island's east side.