Mr. Damien Walshe:

To follow up with specific examples, it pains me to say this as someone from Cavan but on behalf of everyone in rural Ireland, we have to accept that what happens in Dublin inevitably gets rolled out at a national level. There are very worrying trends at a national level, particularly in the Dublin city area, of promoting the ideas of floating bus stops. They are clearly not designed for anyone who uses public transport and they are certainly not designed with anyone who has a mobility issue in mind. Anyone who is a parent of small children should be aware that these present a real danger. The idea is of a bus stop that is disconnected from the pavement, with a cycle lane bisecting the pavement and the bus stop. As people get off the bus, they have to cross a cycle lane to reach safety. The idea is that this will promote greater access for cyclists. I cycle, but I certainly do not want to cycle into the middle of a bus stop. However, their installation has begun. The real danger and threat they present to pedestrians, regardless of impairment, have been flagged but they are being rolled out on an ongoing basis. We feel there is a potential case to be made by disabled people against Dublin City Council under the Equal Status Acts, if they were supported by bodies such as the Irish Human Rights Equality Commission.

We should not have to get into a space like this. This comes back to fundamental engagement with DPOs. I do not think there is an intention to try to injure disabled people in designing these systems but they are being designed by people who do not use public transport and do not have impairments. They are not engaging with DPOs. They would argue they are trying to create a mechanism to allow more people to safely cycle to and from work or to socialise. That is a good idea, but not at the expense of the inclusion of disabled people in society. That is a very concrete example. If it becomes the norm in Dublin and is not challenged, it will become the norm in Cork, Galway and elsewhere. It is about considering the unintended consequences of designing a system that is promoting active travel and seems intended to reduce our reliance on carbon-based transport but which will have a very real effect on people with disabilities.

E-scooters are good in theory if they reduce the numbers of people using cars. However, they need to be regulated. They travel at great speed. They tend not to be used by people who have a good understanding around pedestrians. We are introducing them in shared spaces despite the fact they are silent. We have examples from the UK and the Netherlands where e-scooters are having a real impact on the ability of disabled people to navigate society. Let us put a system in place now whereby we design urban and rural spaces that are inclusive and promote active travel but not at the expense of disabled people participating in society.