Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

We will have another session specifically on transport during which, I am sure, we will discuss this in more detail. With regard to Deputy Farrell's point on the offshore opportunity, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Coveney, will appear before the committee next Wednesday at 5.30 p.m. He will have a very significant role in enabling private sector investment and the development of the supply chain. That will be a very important session, which I am sure the Deputy will be interested in attending. The Minister, Deputy Coveney, takes a very special interest in the offshore opportunity we have. That will be a very good session.

I will speak to the point about the local government challenge, which has been expressed with respect to the roll-out of EV charging. I would differ slightly from colleagues in that I am of the view that not only do we need large numbers of EVs, we also need to evolve our policy a little and become somewhat more discerning. The Minister alluded to that. The challenge in urban areas is that it is harder with terraced houses and a lack of driveways and so on. As Deputy O'Sullivan pointed out, however, the need for EVs is not perhaps as great in our urban areas because of the availability of walking and cycling networks and public transport. The challenge relates not only to EVs but also to the active travel, responsibility for which lies with local government. This goes back to the point about other Departments and their role in advancing meaningful climate action. They are at an arm's remove from the Minister, and another Minister has responsibility for local government. Therefore, it comes back to that point again. I am sure we will bring it up with the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, when he appears before this committee in a few weeks' time.

We are seeing really good projects stumbling week in, week out, particularly in the active travel and public transport area in this country, because of the political difficulty of delivering them. I certainly acknowledge the Minister's point that local knowledge is important. We need that buy-in from councillors and local management. At some point, however, we have to say that this infrastructure is incredibly important and it cannot fall at the hurdle of local politics. We are seeing some really good schemes in County Limerick and we are going through those challenges. A really exciting scheme is going before the council next Monday. I am very hopeful that it will be supported. It will be one of the most significant active travel projects outside Dublin and including Dublin, because it links the suburb of Raheen-Dooradoyle with the city centre. It involves some very hard decisions around how we use road space. I am confident that the councillors in Limerick will support this project and realise that while there will be an impact, of course, to people living along the route in terms of moving on-street parking, there will also be a huge benefit to the city that is far greater than the impact. It is a challenge, however, if the lack of ambition that might exist persists on the management side of local authorities across the country or if there is hesitancy and difficulty on the political side. What do we do then if these projects stumble? I welcome the Minister's comments on the experimental traffic orders. I will be interested to hear more about those and when the Minister envisages the regulation for those orders will come in. I would certainly welcome more of his thoughts on that piece.