The proposal, which has "no definitive timeline",[1] has been compared to the Luas light rail system in Dublin.
[4] When the Green Party entered into a coalition with Fianna Fáil, following the 2007 general election, these proposals were briefly discussed in the Dáil.
[19] In May 2019, the Cork Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy was published by the National Transport Authority (NTA), and contained proposals for a one-line system running from Ballincollig to Mahon, with stops at points in the city centre.
The design was unveiled alongside a number of other suggested transport investments, including an expansion of the Cork Suburban Rail network.
The 2019 proposal was costed at €1 billion, projected to include 25 possible stops along 17 km of track.
Determination of a possible light rail transit (LRT) route was due to start in early 2020, with construction not expected to commence "until 2031 at earliest".
[22][23] While, in August 2020, it was reported that a preferred route for the proposed LRT system could be "identified within two years",[24] as of October 2023, its publication had been "delayed".