Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for his comprehensive contribution. I do not think I will have time to answer all of his questions. The schemes he mentioned seem on the surface to have merit, particularly the ones about working from home. I ask him to send me a request in writing and I will have them examined. The more detail he has on them, the better. One of the refreshing outcomes of what has happened in a tragic few weeks is that there have been one or two areas from which we have got to learn lessons. The fact that people are working very successfully from home - it is working out far better than people expected - may have dramatic implications for our lifestyles and even for public transport if people are not going to use it as much.

I believe the environmental benefit is probably one of mitigation rather than anything dramatic. An Irish study by O'Keeffe in 2016 estimated carbon reductions of almost 60 kilotonnes of carbon dioxide if 20% of the population of the greater Dublin area telecommuted one day a week for a year.

This represents approximately 0.5% of transport emissions for 2018. While it is not a massive saving of emissions it is, as I have said, a mitigation measure that requires further consideration, especially in light of how well people and businesses have adapted to remote working throughout the Covid crisis. Any future policy decisions in this regard will need to consider that the potential benefits with regard to emissions saved may be offset by rebound effects such as telecommunications generating dispersed patterns of land use, which could lead to longer non-commute trips. It should also be borne in mind that only 30% of journeys are work-related, as per the national travel survey.

At the investment strategy level, the review of the transport strategy for the greater Dublin area is due to commence later this year while public consultations for the Limerick, Shannon and Waterford strategies are scheduled to commence this year. Evolving circumstances post Covid will undoubtedly inform their development.

I was interested in what the Deputy said about cycling and about cycling lanes in Dundalk in particular. We are making a modal shift. One figure which would indicate this and act as evidence of it is that we have increased funding for active travel from €39 million in 2018 to €107 million this year. It is expected that €160 million will be invested in active travel next year. That is a fourfold increase in only three years. It is a fairly large commitment.

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