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Programme for Government

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 11 February 2021

Thursday, 11 February 2021

Questions (21, 38)

Patrick Costello

Question:

21. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Transport the actions that have been taken to carry through on the commitment in the programme for Government that each local authority will be mandated to carry out an assessment of its road network to examine the reallocation of space for pedestrians and cyclists; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7465/21]

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Cathal Crowe

Question:

38. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Transport if he will consider making funding available to local authorities in order that they can recruit active and sustainable travel officers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7703/21]

View answer

Written answers

I propose to take Questions Nos. 21 and 38 together.

As the Deputies are aware, the Programme for Government – Our Shared Future sets out an ambitious range of commitments in relation to active travel as part of our shared desire to fundamentally change the nature of transport in Ireland.

I am pleased to say that good progress has been made against most of these commitments since the formation of the Government last summer and I am keen to ensure that this progress is maintained in the coming years.

In relation to the specific commitments referred to by the Deputies there are a number of positive steps undertaken or underway in relation to it. Last summer guidance issued to all local authorities in relation to improving the allocation of road-space in urban centres – be they villages, towns or cities – as part of the response to the COVID-19 but also seeking to ensure a multi-disciplinary approach to street design and the promotion of the principles of universal design.

That guidance was in turn supported by financial supports made available by my Department to local authorities under Government’s July Stimulus and the benefits of schemes rolled out under that Stimulus can already be seen in many areas across the country.

As part of Budget 2021 significant additional financial supports have been made available to support active travel and as part of those supports a new Active Travel Fund was announced toward the end of last year. This funding is being used to develop a new stream of funding support for those local authorities outside of the main cities and the announcement stipulated the type of projects envisaged under the Fund, and included the development of active travel strategies in areas where none exist, as well as other potential projects for actual construction.

Finally, another important strand of this overall commitment was the announcement a few weeks ago in relation to establishing and resourcing active travel teams in local authorities across the country. The Deputies will, I am sure, acknowledge that the lack of sufficient resources within local authorities to oversee and deliver the design and roll-out of new infrastructure has been a real constraint in recent years, so I was particularly pleased to see progress made on this front.

As the Deputies can see from the above, there are a range of complementary measures underway which collectively will ensure that Government’s ambition in this area of active travel is realised in the years ahead.

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