Is your Local Authority advancing Active Travel?

ICC Submissions Coordinator Colm gives us the low-down.

Above: Lifford/ Strabane planning image

You might not be aware that we in the Irish Cycling Campaign keep an eagle eye on public consultations exhibited on Active Travel issues, particularly from Local Authorities/Councils.  This past year 2024 we have made over 100 submissions across the country in all 4 provinces on schemes ranging from major Pathfinder projects, to smaller active travel improvements, to school streets, greenways, and also Speed Limit proposals.  We have also submitted on different policy matters to the Department of Transport, Department of Education and the NTA and TII!  Our local groups around the country have also made their own submissions on a variety of schemes.  You can check out all our nationally listed proposed schemes and our submissions to them on this LINK.

So, which counties appear to be active and which are not?
It’s certainly easier to name those 8 counties which did not appear to have any active travel consultations that we were made aware of!  These were counties, Waterford, Clare, Offaly, Laois, Wicklow, Leitrim, Monaghan & Cavan!  This is not to say that no works were carried out in these counties to advance active travel in 2024, but on the surface it does appear that they were relatively inactive, despite being funded substantially through the NTA, as can be seen in this LINK.  The level of funding granted from the NTA to these 8 counties in 2024 varied from a whopping €25 million for Waterford, down to the lowest €1.9 million for Leitrim! Though, it is also necessary to state that many projects can be advancing behind the scenes in terms of design development, and others are actually at construction stage.  The NTA project development process is a rigorous and often elongated process – see image below.

Above: NTA Project Development Process

How did Your County do?
It is worth checking out this LINK to see what your county was allocated?  Did they do what they said they would do?  How would you rate your county’s performance?

Range and Quality of Schemes
The range of schemes going out through public consultation has varied, ranging from multi million Euro Pathfinder schemes, to minor school and village improvements.  The quality of the proposed designs can also vary widely, and in some cases we in ICC were very critical of proposed designs, even going as far as to propose that some schemes be revisited entirely!  Thankfully these poorly designed schemes were in the minority, and the vast majority of proposed schemes have improved in terms of design quality, which is mainly down to the development of the 2023 Cycle Design Manual, and the subsequent widespread training, and trips abroad to view quality designs, provided to local authority personnel.

Above: Cycle Design Manual Cover Image

I would encourage any reader interested in the subject, to dip into our 2024 list of consultation projects, and get a feel for the variety, quality, and size of projects and ICC’s responses to them.  Overall we have tried to commend what we consider as good design, and be succinct in any criticisms, in line with the recommendations of the Cycle Design Manual.

Why Not Help Us Out?
We are always looking for members who would like to help out in this area of tracking and reviewing public consultations on Active Travel.  If you are interested to help out, even from time to time, or in a particular area, why not email us at [email protected].  We would be more than happy to hear from you!