An aerial view of the new Shannon Cycle & Pedestrian Bridge
Cyclist.ie vice chair Dave Tobin, and Colm Ryder, infrastructure coordinator, were invited by Westmeath County Council to attend the formal opening of the €15 million Euro Cycling/Pedestrian Bridge across the River Shannon on Tuesday 8th August last. Cyclist.ie has supported this project enthusiastically and we have made a number of submissions on the general planning of the overall EuroVelo route from Dublin to Galway of which this bridge is a vital cog. The bridge was formally inaugurated by Minister Jack Chambers, with a variety of officials and local politicians in attendance.
Minister Jack Chambers formally inaugurates the Shannon EuroVelo link bridge
This vital link bridge placed roughly halfway between the main railway and road bridges spanning the Shannon in Athlone, is a major statement in relation to the development of cycling and walking links across the country, and a further impetus to the development of the full EuroVelo cycle route from Dublin to Galway. It was a complex and challenging project in a confined urban and water space, and the construction problems were exacerbated by the at times exceptionally high water levels of the River Shannon. We commend the elegant modern architectural and engineering design that this project embodies, as a major statement of our government’s commitment to active travel. Check out these short videos
The bridge directly links the east side of Athlone in Co Westmeath, with the west side in Co Roscommon, and also links the modern Radisson Hotel and the historic Athlone Cathedral and Castle. Of course, it also links the EuroVelo route from Dublin to Athlone, with the proposed route from Athlone to Galway, and is strategically placed in an area that is often regarded as the centre of Ireland! A small plaque in the centre of the new bridge celebrates this location. See photo below.
Plaque at centre of the Shannon Link Bridge
The project has been managed overall by the Westmeath Council Projects Office, under the Project Coordinator for the Galway to Athlone Cycleway, Michael Kelly. Michael has been involved in the development of the Old Rail Trail from Mullingar to Athlone, and also in the work on the EuroVelo route finalisation between Athlone & Galway, which continues. Cyclist.ie looks forward to the continuing development of this important cross Ireland, and cross Europe Route, as part of the EuroVelo cycle route complex
Michael Kelly, overall EuroVelo 2 project manager/coordinator
We would urge Cyclist.ie members and all cycling advocates to visit this flagship project, which makes a big statement about Ireland’s commitment to active travel. Tell your friends about it, but most of all go check it out for yourself. And no need to even bring your own bike, as you can now avail of Moby Electric Bike Hire around Athlone, and of course Athlone also has very good public transport connections.
There is a lot happening in County Meath on the cycling development front! Cyclist.ie was delighted to receive the update below from Navan Cycling Initiative who are doing sterling local campaigning work for the last few years.
New Greenway opens in Navan Work on the Navan section of the Boyne Valley to Lakelands County Greenway was completed last month. The new greenway, which runs for 30km from Navan to Kingscourt, has already been a great success in locations such as Castletown and Nobber, and the Navan end has already proven to be just as popular with a huge amount of people out enjoying it.
At Navan Cycling Initiative, we have raised concerns about the lack of connectivity from the greenway trailhead to Navan town centre, and recently met with our local Active Travel team in Meath County Council to discuss the issue. Navan is in a fortunate position in that it will soon have not one but two top-class greenways (the other being the Boyne Greenway, which is still in the early planning stages), which will be fantastic for the town, but it is vital these greenways are properly connected with safe active travel infrastructure.
Navan schemes Elsewhere in Navan, there are several cycle schemes ongoing in various planning stages (from concept to detailed design), with dedicated cycle lanes planned on the Dublin Road, the Kells Road, and the Trim Road, to name a few. See the table further below listing the schemes. These have been in planning for a number of years, having gone through the laborious Part 8 planning process, but Navan as a town is primed and ready to embrace active travel and become a cycle-friendly town. We are expecting the roll out of a new bike renting scheme (including e-bikes and cargo bikes!) over the summer, which will only get more and more people out cycling.
County Meath There are also a number of schemes underway across County Meath. In Ashbourne, construction on the R135 Cycle Network, linking Ashbourne town centre to the Pillo Hotel roundabout, is expected to be complete by late summer. Other schemes being progressed include the Ratoath Pedestrian & Cycling Scheme, which is hoped to begin construction this year, and the Dunboyne to Clonee Pedestrian and Cycle Network, which is in the early planning stages. Meath was also successful in securing six new Safe Routes to School programmes, in various locations across the county, which will hopefully all be completed this year.
Cyclist.ie welcomes updates from any of our approx. 35 member groups on what is happening in their own district or county. If you would like to post an update on the website, just drop a line to our National Cycling Coordinator here.
Cyclist.ie and its member groups were well represented at the “Accelerating Active Travel for 2030” Transport Forum held on Wed 22 March 2023 in the elegant Regent House in Trinity College Dublin. Our attendees included Mairéad Forsythe, Dr. Mike McKillen, Colm Ryder, Dr. Damien Ó Tuama (National Cycling Coordinator with An Taisce & Cyclist.ie), Conor Cahill, Una Morrison, Eric Conroy and David Timoney.
The overarching message from the event was that we are now, finally, beginning to make good progress in the development of our active travel infrastructure in Dublin City and other built-up areas, but we also need to ‘up our game’ over the coming years if we are to humanise our cities and decarbonise our transport systems.
A view of TCD’s Parliament Square from Regent House (Photo credit – Dr. Mike McKillen)
Joe Seymour from the National Transport Authority (NTA) argued that the 2022 Active Travel budget of €290M is being spent on increasingly better quality schemes. We are seeing the results with, for example, BusConnects schemes, which include significant cycling provision, the Fairview Public Realm / Bus Priority / Active Travel scheme, the Dodder Greenway Route, the 11km long D24 cycle route in Dublin, the Salmon Weir Bridge in Galway and the Bilberry to Rice Bridge link in Waterford. Challenges do remain however in dealing effectively with the many protests against change, and with the re-allocation of public road space.
One of Joe Seymour’s slides showing the steep increase in the NTA’s Active Travel budget over the last seven years.
Claire French, Senior Executive Engineer in Dublin City Council, provided an historical perspective on the subject. She emphasised how, initially, some of the public were apprehensive about schemes such as the pedestrianisation of Grafton Street (1970s – 80s), the banning of left-turn motor vehicles at the northern end of Dawson Street (early 2000s), the creation of the College Green Bus Gate (around 2010) and, most recently, the removal of motor vehicles from most of Capel Street. In all cases, these traffic management interventions / public realm schemes have improved public life and business activity in the city.
Further positive examples, which Dublin Cycling Campaign has strongly advocated for over the years, include the creation of the (still temporary and unfinished) Liffey Cycle Route measures, the contra-flow cycle facilities on Nassau Street, Parnell Square (East) and on Werburgh Street, and the filtered permeability schemes in Grangegorman and on Pigeon House Road. Claire acknowledged the need for the City Council to continue to improve in its processes of public consultation.
Dr. Robert Egan, Research Fellow at Trinity College Dublin, drew on the work of the late Prof. John Urry in his presentation – and, in particular, on his thinking around the creation of the ‘system of automobility’ and the discourses which have naturalised car-centric planning over the decades. As we seek to rapidly decarbonise our transport systems and revitalise and rehumanise our built up areas, we now need to marginalise automobility and centralise ‘velo-mobility’. Shaping the discourses through the media and in other ways is central to this mission. Robert’s comment that we are “currently cycling within a driving system” but need to change to “driving within a cycling (and public transport) system” struck a chord with the audience.
Martina Mullin, Operational Lead in Healthy Trinity, gave a terrific overview of the work that Trinity College has focused on so as to make bicycle journeys safe on and off-campus. Much of the latter efforts have focused on engagements with Dublin City Council and the NTA, so that there are safe routes for Trinity students and staff coming in from the suburbs and into the city centre. Much credit is due to Martina and her group on this work. TCD is concentrating on the routes to and from the main campus to its developing estate towards Ringsend, the Health Sciences at St. James’ Hospital and residences at Trinity Hall (Dartry). Both Dublin City Council and the NTA are aware of this requirement for safe segregated routes.
Finally, Willem Frederik Metzelaar from the European Institute of Innovation & Technology (EIT) Urban Mobility, provided the European context, reminding us that 23% of the EU’s transport emissions come from the transport sector. Clearly, we need a new mobility paradigm in which active travel is front and centre. EIT are funding EU start-up businesses and promoting active travel through a variety of programs.
A lively Q&A session followed. One of the main points stressed by audience members was that there needs to much greater engagement from An Garda Síochána on the matter of traffic law enforcement – in particular in relation to illegal car parking on the cycle tracks which have been created specifically to make cycling safe and easier for those new to cycling (and those considering cycling) in the city.
Cyclist.ie and Dublin Cycling Campaign send its congratulations to Trinity College Dublin on running the event and we look forward to further engagements on the topics in the near future.
Formal info on event: https://www.tcd.ie/news_events/events/event/transport-forum–accelerating-active-travel-for-2030.php
The Greater Dublin Area Transport Strategy 2022-2042 was published late last month (January 2023) by the National Transport Authority. The Strategy aims to expand and integrate public transport modes, as well as cycling and walking, in all four Dublin local authority areas and in the surrounding built-up areas of Kildare, Meath and Wicklow.
From the point of view of Cyclist.ie this is a critical document. Cycling’s role in transport depends on integration with other modes, and protection for us on our roads and streets. Safe cycling depends on policies like those contained in this Strategy, and in legislation like the Planning Acts, Roads Acts and traffic law.
Very broadly, the Strategy supports the expansion of DART, Luas and BusConnects, together with continued reductions in reliance on private car traffic (from 57.7% to 48.6%). The authors claim it will lead to a reduction in carbon emissions from transport in the GDA from 3.2 Megatonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2018 down to about one tonne by 2042. Cycling’s share of trips is planned to increase from 3.2% to 11.5%.
Those ambitions are critical in reclaiming our road space for cycling, walking and wheeling, turning back the tide of car dependency and danger that has benighted Dublin’s roads for decades. A joined-up, frequent, easy-to-use public transport system is really important for people using bikes because it allows for safer roads, as well as ‘inter-modal’ travel like taking your bike on DART, or getting Luas and then hopping on a Bleeper bike for the last km of your journey.
Covering the period up to 2042, the Strategy has a reported budget of €25bn. It seeks to build out the MetroLink rail line including a north-south tunnel for heavy rail across the city. However it shelves the DART Underground tunnel plan. While we would claim no expertise in rail planning, we note with concern the call by Dublin Commuter Coalition to review projections for usage of DART Underground and its delivery timescales. Cyclist.ie did make a response to the recent Consultation Paper on the On Island Strategic Rail Review, particularly with regard to inter-modal travel, and is calling for a meeting with the NTA to further discuss cycling and train use.
Back to issues more closely related to cycling, the GDA Strategy supports the National Transport Authority’s Cycle Network Plan for Dublin, which has been on paper in various forms for over three decades now and is being built out much more rapidly since the Covid pandemic. Cyclist.ie generally supports the Network Plan. Both interim and permanent schemes in the Plan are being built, and much of the permanent network is integrated with BusConnects Core Bus Corridors (we’re studying those designs and making submissions covering each Corridor). Of interim schemes, the patchy Liffey Cycle Route and the highly-acclaimed Coastal Mobility Route in Dun Laoghaire are telling examples of their variable quality.
The Strategy was initially released for public consultation in November 2021, and we made a submission on that in Jan 2022 (which we posted here). We felt the target to increase cycling’s share of trips to 12% was unambitious: Cycling can do much more of the heavy lifting for transport in Dublin than 12%. On a larger scale, we called then for the Strategy to address this country’s dire record on planning delays, but the final version fails to really tackle this issue. Another national issue we highlighted is upgrading the Common Appraisal Framework. This Framework is used to assess the benefits versus costs of transport projects prior to funding by Government, and needs to be revised to take proper account of the benefits of promoting active travel; it’s too heavily weighted towards saving motorists’ time currently. The final GDA Strategy misses an opportunity to make a strong case for improvements here. We were also a bit disappointed to see little change since the Draft Strategy around the gathering and sharing of travel data, and RSA road safety data. We were saddened that there’s no aim in the Strategy to work towards a default 30 km/h speed limit for all urban areas in the GDA, or meaningfully addressing the needs of children who are disproportionately affected by our current, highly car-dependent, environment.
However, overall, it can’t be denied that the Strategy offers a vast improvement in joined-up, long-term thinking and does seek to assist Dublin’s development into a more liveable, sustainable region.
That’s a very brief, broad outline. Do have a look for yourself and let us know your thoughts; the Strategy: is viewable here.
Cyclist.ie welcomes the continuing high level investment in Active Travel projects and personnel from the present government. These investments are critical in helping Ireland to match its Climate Action Plan ambitions. The most recent announcement on 1st February 2023 allocated funding of €290 million nationwide for 2023 and sees a wide array of projects being funded. These range from small footpath schemes to full blown urban greenways and bus corridors. The allocation of this National Transport Authority (NTA) funding recognises the breadth of work that needs to be done to begin to increase cycling and walking, and reduce the use of the private car in our society.
Funding allocations range from a high of nearly €60 million for Dublin City down to several million Euro for some of the less populous local authorities. The four Dublin local authorities together account for nearly 43% of the allocated funding.
A sketch of a section of the Fairview to Amiens Street scheme in the Dublin City Council area
In this article, we provide feedback from some of our own member groups in the Cyclist.ie network on allocations for particular counties / local authority areas. Our contributors have highlighted where spend seems appropriate and is to be lauded, but they also have concerns on the spend on some more questionable schemes (particularly road resurfacing projects).
Limerick Limerick Cycling Campaign warmly welcomes the allocation of €21m in funding for Limerick as part of the NTA funding allocation of €290m for walking and cycling projects in 2023.
It will see delivery of large primary routes such as the TUS (Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest) to City Centre and Hyde Road schemes in this calendar year as well as a number of key secondary routes in all three metropolitan wards. Progress on Active Travel measures on the Dublin Road are particularly welcome. It’s currently a very hostile road for those who walk or cycle and is a significant barrier to modal shift for those residents and UL students living in the area.
There has been a significant increase in rural funding including a fund of nearly €5m for active travel improvements in rural towns and villages as well as an expansion of the Safe Routes to School Schemes for many primary and secondary schools in the city.
One slight concern is the low funding amount attached to the Pathfinder project from Park Canal to Clare St. We would hope that we would see a significant increase to this essential project in 2024 as plans progress.
While it’s encouraging to see the Ballycummin area of Limerick City West included, we would hope to see progress to deliver the full orbital route around the Ballycummin / Church Hill Meadows area and the inclusion of the main Church Hill Meadows Road and the remaining small stretch of Dooradoyle Rd as soon as possible. With excellent projects on Fr. Russell Road and the Quinns Cross route being delivered in 2023, these will be the natural next steps to connect the largest estates in Limerick City West to the rest of the network.
Overall the funding shows the work that Limerick’s Active Travel Team, supported by the larger council and our elected reps, is advancing is gathering significant steam. We would call on all Limerick stakeholders to see the huge opportunities that this funding presents for Limerick as we move to a transport system that supports our climate responsibilities, our health and well-being and a more sustainable way of moving around our city.
Meath Meath’s allocation of €14,135,000 is very welcome and, outside of the four Dublin local authorities, Cork and Limerick, is the highest allocation to a county from this year’s funding. The allocation is spread across 38 different projects, and in total almost half of the total funding (€7m) is for schemes in Navan.
The majority of the funding for cycling infrastructure in Navan is for ongoing schemes which are already in various states of planning, such as the Trim Road Cycle Scheme, the R147 Kells Road Scheme and the R147 Martha’s Bridge to Circular Road Scheme. One notable addition is the inclusion of the Pathfinder Project, on the R161 Navan to Trim road.
Of the €7m funding for Navan, €3m is for the ongoing Navan 2030 works at Kennedy Plaza, which unfortunately do not contain any plans for cycling. €1m is allocated for the new LDR4 bridge from the Kells Road to Ratholdren Road. While this new bridge and road will incorporate active travel infrastructure, it is well documented that new roads only serve to further embed car dependency, a phenomenon known as induced-demand. It is unclear how this project can be awarded funding under active travel.
We feel that active travel funding should have been secured for this area of the town to facilitate the installation of cycle lanes along the Ratholdren Road. We have been advocating for safe cycling infrastructure along this road since last May. There are two schools at either end of the road, a leisure centre, the town’s only park and the trailhead for the soon to be opened Boyne Valley to Lakelands County Greenway. We are very disappointed about the lack of progress as Navan’s residents are denied safe cycling access to the host of amenities mentioned above. The new greenway is highly anticipated and we are very concerned for the safety of children and other vulnerable road users, either trying to access Navan town centre if coming from Kilberry/Wilkinstown/Nobber or Navan residents trying to access the greenway from the town. This existing problem will only get worse as demand for greenways around the country has proven to be exceptionally high. We cannot wait years for the completion of the LDR4.
Sligo Spokesperson for Sligo Cycling Campaign Joan Swift said the Campaign very much welcomed the €3m Active Travel allocation for Sligo and is particularly pleased with the Safe Routes to School funding for Scoil Ursula, St John’s, Strandhill and Enniscrone. Giving children and parents the freedom to get to school on their own fuel is key to unlocking the health and well- being benefits of active travel.
Sligo Cycling Campaign is also pleased that funding has been secured to commence the Pathfinder schemes, Carraroe to town centre and town centre to the ATU (Atlantic Technological University). The Campaign will be looking for clarification on some schemes which merely say “Active Travel” as it’s unclear what this means in practice. We very much welcome the proposed footpath scheme from the station in Collooney, but we are concerned for example that in a social media post Councillor Thomas Walsh included road resurfacing as well as footpath enhancement and junction tightening in his description of the Collooney schemes. Road resurfacing, while necessary in our view, should come from the roads maintenance budget and not the Active Travel allocation. The footpath from Collooney to Ballisodare also appears to be already well advanced, so again we will be asking for clarification in regard to the purpose of the €550,000 allocation for this scheme. A further concern we have is why a parklet costing €70,000 is included under Active Travel.
Clare We note the allocation of €4.5m for County Clare and more than 50% of this is allocated to Ennis town and surrounds. €400,000 is allocated to Active Travel Team staff costs. €1.2m is allocated to footpaths in towns and villages.
Almost €6m was allocated to Active Travel in Clare in 2021. Many of the proposed schemes in 2023 seem to be very similar to those that were proposed in 2021. There is not enough evidence that the schemes proposed in 2021 have actually been completed. We would like some clarification on what was spent from the 2021 allocation and on what exactly, and how these schemes differ from what is being proposed in 2023.
There has been virtually no funding allocated to cycling infrastructure in this round. Some such infrastructure was implemented in Ennis from the 2021 funding.
No funding at all seems to be allocated to active travel in rural areas, or visitor attractions and sites. There is very little in North and West Clare, except for small amounts in Lisdoonvarna and Miltown Malbay / Spanish Point for footpaths and pedestrian crossings.
For example, there is a section of cycling / walking path between Lahinch and Liscannor which was started a number of years ago, and it remains unfinished and dangerous to walk or cycle on. This is not included in the current allocations, but needs to be remediated at the very least.
Many of the Active Travel Schemes have very limited funding allocation, apart from one on the Tulla Road in Ennis which has been allocated almost €1.8m (40% of the total budget). There is also no detail on what any of the Active Travel schemes will actually include, so we would like clarification on this and exactly what these schemes include and hope to achieve.
South Dublin County The South Dublin Sub-group (of Dublin Cycling Campaign) welcomes the allocations in the Active Travel Investment Programme 2023 which advance the Cycle South Dublin Programme. We are especially pleased to see all the unfinished sections of the Dodder Greenway included in the Programme as well as major investment in the Wellington Lane Cycling and Walking Scheme, the Castletymon District Enhancement Programme, D24 Neighbourhood Cycle Network, Killinarden Park and Greenway Scheme, Active Travel for Clonburris and the Grand Canal to Lucan Urban Greenway. We are pleased also that some funding has been allocated under the 2023 Greenway Programme for the Grand Canal 12th Lock (Lucan) to Hazelhatch scheme but disappointed that the allocation is not adequate for completion of the scheme in 2023.
Conclusion Cyclist.ie welcomes the investments in Active Travel projects countrywide. However, we stress here the need for spending to go on those schemes which form important elements of local cycle networks and which connect to important destinations such as schools, colleges, town centres and greenways. We do not support AT funding being spent on motor traffic / road capacity expanding schemes with minor ‘tag-ons’ of cycling infrastructure or on road resurfacing projects. We will be following up with the NTA and with the local authorities in due course in regard to these.
For more information on the Active Travel Grants Programme delivered by the Active Travel Investment Section of the NTA, see here.
Listen back to a special online public meeting jointly hosted by Cyclist.ie and Dublin Cycling Campaign on Tue 15 November 2022 on the topic of EuroVelo Route 1 (EV#1) in Ireland, also known as the Atlantic Coast Cycling Route.
Our speakers were Doug Corrie from Sport Ireland, who explained the context around the development of EV#1 and the main considerations in identifying, signing and improving the route, and Florence Lessard, who tuned in from the North Coast of Quebec to share her experiences of cycling EV#1 and camping along the way.
You can see the original notice for the meeting and more information about the speakers here.
The development of “cycle superhighways” in major cities where there is greatly-curtailed private car use, transport-led housing plans and increasing road charges are recommended in a new report by the OireachtasClimate Action Committee.
Ireland should fundamentally redirect transport policy and apply the internationally recognised “avoid-shift-improve” approach to cutting emissions in the sector, according to its report issued on Thursday.
A 750m long cycle path has been opened along the Royal Canal in Dublin’s North Strand at a cost of nearly €9 million.
The stretch is part of Dublin City Council’s Royal Canal “premium” cycle route, a 7km path running from the north quays to the city’s border with Fingal at Ashtown.
The first section of the route, a 500m stretch from Guild Street at the north quays to Sheriff Street, was completed more than a decade ago, but despite several announcements, work on the second phase to bring the path to Newcomen bridge at the North Strand only began in February of last year.
The newly opened section costing €8.9 million, consists of a segregated three-metre wide cycle track and two-metre wide footpath on a viaduct bridge alongside a linear park. The project also involved the realignment of the junction of Seville Place, Guild Street and Sheriff Street Upper and the provision of a pedestrian and cyclist crossing at its entrance with North Strand Road.
The route for a 5km cycle path along the river Liffey in Dublin has finally been selected by the National Transport Authority (NTA) seven years since planning for the project began.
The segregated cycle route from the Phoenix Park in the west to the Tom Clarke Bridge in the east is expected to cost more than €20 million and will run on both sides of the river.
More than 100 car parking spaces and 33 trees will be removed to facilitate the track, but unlike previous plans, cars or buses will not be diverted from the quays.
£500m is being spent to fund cycling networks in Greater Manchester
A thousand miles of safe cycling and walking routes are to be created in Greater Manchester after an Olympic gold medallist persuaded town hall bosses to spend as much on cyclists and pedestrians as Amsterdam and other cycling nirvanas.
