Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for the opportunity to address this issue and discuss park-and-ride facilities. In my constituency of Dublin West that has a population including many Cavan people, I am aware from engaging with people who are commuting and have family members of the importance of this to the people in Cavan.

There are a substantial number of people in regional towns, the rural hinterland and, to a lesser extent, in the metropolitan area who do not have ease of access to high-quality public transport, either through walking or cycling. Appropriately located and designed park-and-ride facilities can enable these people to access public transport and enhance their options to reach a wide range of destinations in a sustainable manner and increase the usage of public transport, thereby maximising the value of investment in existing and new schemes. Park and ride can intercept car trips where people are reliant on a private car at an early point in their journey, thereby reducing the distances travelled by private car with a corresponding reduction in carbon emissions and congestion.

The National Transport Authority, NTA, has long recognised the importance of high-capacity park-and-ride facilities at designated public transport interchanges. It has been providing these facilities as part of ongoing investment in public transport. In line with the climate action plan, and to support the timely delivery of park-and-ride sites and a cohesive overall programme, the NTA established the park-and-ride development office in February 2020. This office provides design services to assist in the delivery of park-and-ride projects throughout the State. Plans to expand the park-and-ride network are set out in the various metropolitan area transport strategies which have been prepared by the NTA.

Caution must be exercised in the planning of park-and-ride facilities to ensure unintended consequences do not arise as a result of their provision, such as encouraging more dispersed development patterns by enabling longer distance commuting. It is the intention of the NTA, in conjunction with TII, Irish Rail, local authorities and landowners to deliver high quality major interchange facilities or mobility hubs at appropriate locations served by high-capacity public transport services. These will be designed to be as seamless as possible and will incorporate a wide range of facilities as appropriate, such as cycle parking, seating and shelter.

TII, in collaboration with Cavan County Council, is investigating the provision of enhanced parking facilities and works to improve the safety of rural bus stops on the N3, much of which the Deputy has spoken to in her contribution. This work began early this year.

There are currently three locations identified by TII and Cavan County Council. Cavan County Council has begun work to prepare feasibility and options reports for two of these locations. When that has concluded we can provide a further update on progress. The fact that we have investment and the two important delivery agencies in transport, the NTA and TII with the local authority making further progress with feasibility and option reports, will enable us to make further decisions on funding and where the best location might be. The commuter population in Cavan makes it an important place for that option as well as removing the displacement effect to which the Deputy referred in GAA clubs and elsewhere, which occurs as a consequence of the lack of a hub. That is an important context as we advance the feasibility and options reports.

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