Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this debate. Anyone who travels around Dublin will be well aware of the gridlock that exists in our transportation system. To give an example, this evening I had to be in Killarney Street, which is 2 km away from here, for 5 p.m. I did not get there because I was offered a lift in a car. I should have gone on my bike, which is outside, but I foolishly accepted a lift in a car. It took me 30 minutes to get from Leinster House to Killarney Street, a journey which would have taken ten minutes on a bike. That is just one illustration of the gridlock which exists in the centre of the city. In addition, anyone who uses the Luas will know that if one wants to get on it in the Minister's constituency or mine, one has a very slim chance of getting on between 8 a.m. and 8.30 a.m. The Minister may be aware of this. There is simply not enough physical room to get onto the Luas.

I want to deal with one aspect of the transport system which has been ignored not just by the Minister, but by the Government. It is an area of transportation which has huge potential and which is used widely in the city at present but which the Government has not given the resources or attention it deserves. I want to refer to people in this city who cycle. There are a huge number of people in this city who cycle into work on a daily basis. I cannot claim to do it every day, but I do it most days. We have seen from research carried out that the number of people using bikes in this city has doubled in the past six years. In 2017 there were very nearly 95,000 people using bikes on a daily basis in the capital city. It is becoming an increasingly popular and effective form of transport and the statistics show that between 2015 and 2016 there was a rise of more than 17% in the number of persons using bikes in this city.

We have also seen the extraordinary success of the dublinbikes scheme. It started when I was a member of Dublin City Council. At that time I was told that it would be extended beyond the canals. To date, that has not happened. We need to ensure that happens promptly, but it will only happen if adequate funding is provided by the Minister and the Government to ensure that we can extend out this extremely successful and effective form of public transport. I had an opportunity to look at the national development plan, as did most Members of this House, in order to see what is provided in it for cycle ways. I wanted to find out what the Government's vision is not only for 2040, but for the near future in terms of providing cycle lanes throughout the country. Cycling is mentioned in the plan but only in a very general and limited way. It talks about the delivery of a comprehensive cycling and walking network for Ireland's cities. We need more specifics than that.

It is surprising that so many people are cycling as many threats are posed to cyclists. I regret to say it is extremely dangerous to cycle around this city. The Government needs to ensure greater protection for cyclists. Some 15 cyclists were killed in this city in 2017. I would like to hear the Minister talk about that and about measures that can be introduced to make cycling safer for people. One of the ways in which that can be done is by having designated cycling lanes. We have one or two of them in the city.

There is one that goes down by the canal in my own constituency. It is hugely popular. However, there is no vision or plan in place to ensure that this type of cycle path can be extended beyond that area and throughout the city to a further degree.

We also need a vision for cycling. In other cities in Europe, where there are successful cycle paths and where people engage in cycling happily and safely, there have been government plans behind it. In Amsterdam and Berlin, where proposals were announced recently, there is a vision to encourage and protect cyclists. Many people want to see their children cycling to school but they are concerned that they will not be safe. Regrettably, we do not have a vision for protecting cyclists at present. We do not have a vision as to how we can promote cycling to increase its use. People want to cycle. We have seen it from the use of dublinbikes that people are prepared to use it. More people want to avail of it. It really is for the Minister and the Government to drive this mode of safe transport that can be of such benefit to society as a whole.

See this speech in context