Mr. Alan Downey:

I live in Fingal in north Dublin, which is not particularly rural but where there are very many narrow roads connecting short spaces between towns. There are things that can be done quickly without disrupting road traffic in Fingal. We have a few developments happening like side roads, greenways and things that will connect schools, housing estates and town centres. These kind of things would provide benefit without disrupting traffic and the need to say that half a road must be given over - within the city anyhow. What I also find when I cycle between these areas is that although drivers feel they may be able to get somewhere faster if the cyclist was not in their way, I often pass them shortly afterwards at traffic lights or as they hit a junction or another line of cars. Some people perceive that cyclists hold them up and are in the way and that if cyclists were out of the way, they would get to their destinations quicker. Regarding certain roads with a long stretch between towns and 80 km/h speed limits, I am not familiar with all of the roads where these speed limits are in place. However, these roads are so narrow and the distances so great that motorists would effectively be held up for long periods. A different type of infrastructure is needed in those cases. In terms of what we can do quickly, we could develop those shorter roads that link small sections of towns to provide people with access so that they do not need to use cars to cover those short distances. Once that is safer, we will find that more people will be able to cycle. We see it between Baldoyle and Portmarnock, where I live. Just under 2 km of greenway is being completed on a very narrow road where I have had a few close passes involving dangerous overtaking by cars. Once that goes in, it will enable so many more people to cycle from schools, of which there are over 20 in the area. It is a very highly populated area. The link for those people at the moment is that they must take the car, which creates the congestion that then creates the traffic that slows everybody down and creates the environment where drivers feel they must go faster to get where they are trying to go.