I am of course aware of the Environmental Protection Agency’s report as referred to by the Deputy and its evidence which suggests that some areas of Dublin have high levels of nitrogen dioxide pollution.
And I have no doubt the Deputy fully supports the ambition of Government to transform the availability of sustainable mobility options and facilitate greater numbers of people choosing to make the switch from the private car.
I welcome the fact that around 23% of commuters in the Lucan area already choose sustainable mobility options as their primary means of accessing work and the fact that approximately 35% of all workers, schoolchildren and college-goers do the same, but I know we need to increase that further.
To achieve the transformation the Deputy and I both agree is necessary to tackle the issues he has highlighted requires implementation of BusConnects, which will significantly expand bus services and active travel infrastructure in the area, the electrification of the area’s commuter rail line as proposed under DART Expansion with the increased levels of service that will bring, and the continued planning and design of a future Luas extension to the area.
Project Ireland 2040 and the Transport Strategy for the Greater Dublin Area provides for the implementation of all of these projects and programmes and I look forward to his support as we move forward with implementation.
