Results 18,681-18,700 of 31,374 for speaker:Eamon Ryan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: We must be careful here in that we must provide good quality greenways, but we also have a very extensive network to build. What I am saying to TII is that we must be careful we do not over-engineer. We learnt during Covid that we could do things very quickly. The critical political decision is for there to be a good surface and to provide the space. Does it have to be the mother of all...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: I agree.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: The Deputy is a very good railway engineer with specialist knowledge in signalling and systems and so I listened with real intent. I would love to know his views on what we do with the Wexford line. It is a stunning rail line. It passes through Avoca and Rathdrum and is probably one of the most spectacular rail journeys in the world. Do we use it effectively? I come back to asking this...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: I agree with the Deputy that we need to make public transport cheaper. It is a difficult balancing act because there is a whole variety of ways in which we need to make it cheaper. As I mentioned earlier, the Connecting Ireland new public transport service for rural Ireland is a hugely progressive development. That needs new money and additional public service obligation, PSO, subvention....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: Taking Clare for example, I agree with what was said about the bus service. We need rail and it is important, but I recall some years ago Ennistymon was served by just one or two buses a day. I agree about the costs, and the ability for us to double or triple that, and then the response when there is a reliable service is transformational. There are incredible towns and beautiful villages...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: I referred to this earlier. As Deputy Matthews stated, we could build stations on existing lines relatively cheaply. Irish Rail has project plans it could take off the shelf that are not hugely expensive. I would start with Moyross in the next three years and then build out from there. We can do it and the council can help by doing the planning around it with the Land Development Agency...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: I hope the Chairman will not mind if Senator Horkan and I go very local. I am a constituent of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, where he was formerly a councillor. We have a long history. The Clonskeagh Road is very familiar to me. I live off it. Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown has done the best in terms of advancing new active travel. It is very difficult. The proposal for Deansgrange is very...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: It has been recommended that it be a one-way road. As we all know, the current patterns on the road are atrociously inappropriate. The use of the road is not good for anyone. It is not safe or easy to navigate. Could we decide, on that road, to take that space? That would change how we use Clonskeagh Road. That is a local government political decision. These are difficult political...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: Very briefly, we should be making those brave decisions now. The public will respond with a massive increase in the number of people using the system in a sustainable way, which would prove that this is a traffic system for everyone. The Senator referred to the morning news about the Drummartin Link Road. That will happen everywhere unless we act fast to make sure that we do not just...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: I am quite happy to meet Senator Buttimer.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: Capital.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: Outside it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: Yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: NIFTI is not the decision gate. It has to inform. It has to state that one has to look at the rail option as well as the motorway option.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: It would say that one has to look at upgrading the existing road rather than building a new road. It would say that one has to make sure one is doing a certain thing and is supporting active travel and other arrangements, but it is not the decision gate.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: The Chair knows my view. I said this earlier. I think we should prioritise bypasses and likes of the bypass at Charleville and Buttevant and do that in the same way that we are talking about Tipperary town. That does not preclude the upgrade of the road. Do I believe a full motorway makes sense in this instance? I do not.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: I believe we should address safety issues first. I do not think that has to be through motorway design.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: There is no ideology. It is good engineering and good outcomes. I do not think NIFTI indicates that there is a first priority and then a second priority. It is about better-balanced regional development. I summarised it. It is also about compact development and low-carbon development. That third one is also critical.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: I would look at the engineering and economic case. As I said, we have an existing project pipeline requiring €70 billion. Much of that is in Limerick, Cork and Galway. If there is one thing that I want to make clear here, it is that I think we need to invest in Cork, Galway, Waterford and Limerick in particular, because we are not seeing them develop quickly enough.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: National Investment Framework for Transport in Ireland: Discussion (26 Jan 2022)

Eamon Ryan: I will quote someone from outside. I hope he does not mind. Professor Edgar Morgenroth is an economist from DCU who was involved, as I understand, in the drafting of the national planning framework. I heard him say one thing that is simple but true. If we really want to see Cork, Galway, Waterford and Limerick develop, we must invest in the cites. That is the big plan.