Tim Lombard (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State and it is great to have the opportunity to have him in the Chamber to discuss this issue.

Kinsale is a thriving town and is the second biggest town in Cork South-West. It has a population of nearly 6,000 people and the population increased quite significantly in the last census. There has been a 13% increase in population in Kinsale since 2016. It is the start of the Wild Atlantic Way and has wonderful things going for it. The hand of history and the hand of geography have been really kind to Kinsale over the last millennium. However, we need to look at the key issues affecting the town and how we try to make sure the town is a fit-for-purpose town in this day and age.

It is a heritage town and has so much going for it such as Charles Fort, James Fort and Desmond Castle, as well as real historic sites like the Battle of Kinsale sites. Unfortunately, traffic and congestion are a huge issue in the town itself. At present, 70% of traffic goes through the town and does not stop there. Last Sunday, when I was going through the town of Kinsale, I was in a traffic jam for 25 minutes. It is unfortunate that we have a scenario whereby Kinsale is suffering from a huge traffic issue that affects the town.

As for my vision for Kinsale, it is that the majority of streets be pedestrian-only. We should have fewer cars in the town and should take the cars out of the town. What a gem and a wonderful place it then would be. It really would be an iconic visitor location and people would visit in higher numbers than they do at the moment.

We need to do more about trying to work on this congestion issue. We have increased the frequency of the bus service, which has doubled in the last few months. We now have a bus service every 30 minutes going to Cork city, which is really welcome and has provided a great connectivity for the town. However, the key issue is trying to make sure that we have a solution to get the cars around the town, because beaches are at the other side of Kinsale. I speak of Garrylucas, Garrettstown and Coolmain Strand, which are wonderful locations the Minister of State should visit himself if he has the opportunity. That is the key issue that we have for the next six or seven months, namely, that people will be trying to get through Kinsale and will not have the ability to go around it.

This strategy that has been brought forward is really welcome and is something that has been talked about for so long. What engagement will there be, what engagement will there be with the local authorities and how will that engagement happen? We need to make sure that that engagement is going to include both local authorities and community groups. I am speaking in particular about Kinsale Chamber of Tourism and Business. That has produced a really dynamic report about how we can make sure that Kinsale is going to be a thriving town going forward when it comes to the key issues of infrastructure. It produced a significant report that reimagines Kinsale. They got their own private consultant in to do it. We need to engage with groups like that, that have done so much about trying to make sure Kinsale is a thriving town going forward. We also need to engage with the local authority. Our relationships with the local authority, the public and Kinsale businesses need to be worked on.

This issue about trying to get a bypass to relieve the traffic around Kinsale is something we need to start generally talking about. There is no major plan or line in the map there and the conversation needs to begin somewhere. I hope that this document brought forward is the start of an actual conversation about how we can reduce the congestion issues that are damning the wonderful town of Kinsale. The Minister of State might give me an update on where this proposal is, where he plans to go regarding the consultation and whether there is a possibility of a roadshow. Could the Department go to locations that are being affected by congestion in order that they can take into consideration the people's views regarding what can be brought forward?

Seán Kyne (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Senator. The Minister of State has four minutes.

Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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I thank the Senator for raising this matter. The Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan, asked me to answer this and gave me a comprehensive answer. I hope I have time to read it. He wants to provide an update on the new moving together strategy, which is currently out on public consultation. As well as extensive engagement with a wide range of stakeholders during development of this draft strategy, I understand the Department of Transport is planning further engagement with critical stakeholders over the coming months while the public consultation is under way. Alleviating traffic congestion is important to everyone. This new strategy has potential to deliver efficiency across our national transport system for the benefit of all. I would encourage the Senator to engage with the Department of Transport as a key stakeholder.

Senator Lombard will know that in recent decades, like most other countries, car and road based freight have become the dominant means for moving people and goods within Ireland. Through urban planning and road building programmes, this trend was supported by allocating more and more of our public and civic spaces to cars, vans and trucks. While this makes sense from several perspectives, it did give rise to some problems. One of those is traffic congestion and there has also been a cultural shift in how we think about public space and how we prioritise its use. Motorised transport became the priority, while space for people rather than cars became inadvertently demoted. Communities became severed by heavily trafficked streets and active transport became a much greater challenge.Knowing what we now know, we may have adopted a different approach; however, there is still a lot to be learned from our past. Before motorised transport was all-pervasive, people walked and cycled to the local shops, supported local businesses and lived in a way that limited waste and used resources efficiently. Our towns were thriving marketplaces as well as vibrant centres for community living. Today, however, many of our historic medieval and market towns are choked with traffic. Narrow streets in beautiful towns like Kinsale mean space is at a premium. Congestion, as well as causing localised pollution and health implications, makes it difficult to access shops and services. Equally, it makes it difficult for people to move about safely. This particularly affects children and the elderly, which has implications for independence and community life. Congestion does not work for anyone. It does not work for drivers or users of public transport, and it certainly does not work for anybody who wants to walk, wheel or cycle. Therefore, we need a new approach.

In its 2022 report Redesigning Ireland's Transport for Net Zero, the OECD advised that Ireland is unlikely to achieve its climate goals without a systemic change in its transport system and substantially different patterns of travel behaviour than those observed today. The OECD called for policies of high transformative potential, such as road space reallocation. With a growing population and a buoyant economy, the transport sector is now at a critical juncture and there is growing recognition that, across the world, the prevailing car-centric model is reaching the limits of its efficiency. It is having impacts on towns like Kinsale, which have a rich historical heritage but that need to meet the service and retail needs of surrounding areas as well as those of visitors and tourists. To this end, the new strategy, Moving Together, is being developed to help alleviate the impacts of car dependency on the economy, environment and health of our society. Cars, vans and trucks will continue to be a vital part of our transport mix but we must plan for their use in a better way. Local authorities like Cork County Council will be critical in this planning. It is intended that the strategy will provide the guidance needed for local authorities and local council representatives to develop bespoke plans for their own areas — plans that are co-created with local communities in towns like Kinsale.

Later in the year, after the public consultation has concluded, on 21 August, and the Department of Transport has completed its engagement plan, it is intended to bring the draft strategy, along with an implementation plan, to the Government. The Minister for Transport urges local government representatives to engage as much as possible in the development of this strategy so it fully reflects the types of issues faced by towns up and down the country in their efforts to address congestion.

Tim Lombard (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for that very comprehensive response. Moving forward together is the key to making sure we find a suitable solution to traffic congestion in Kinsale. Part of this involves making sure parts of Kinsale are pedestrian only, which would be really positive for the town. Potentially, there could be a one-way system, which would really work, but the bypass is the key to ensuring we get 70% of the cars out of the town. The cars are choking the town at the moment. We have seen the increase in public transport, which has been really welcome, but it is a matter of getting cars out of the town centre, which is choking. I ask that we have a roadshow. We need to meet the people. Fundamentally, the Department officials, instead of seeking consultation, need to go to the towns and villages and engage. They should go to Kinsale, in particular, and form a view of what is happening in such towns, which is probably happening in every town and village around Ireland. This is to give an indication that something outside the Pale might be something different. I suggest we do this. I believe that if we do so, the knock-on implication will be that we will all move forward together. If we do that, we will see a better place for everyone.

Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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Kinsale is really a special place. It is one of the most beautiful towns in Ireland. It is thriving because there is so much demand. It is famous not only for its restaurants but also for its beautiful buildings, its landscape, its bay and sailing. This is reflected in the demand for holiday homes and so on and the vast number of visitors. I certainly had some very nice holidays there.

I am delighted that the Senator has a vision for the town that involves fewer cars, more life in the centre and streets coming back to life. I take his point that there should be something like a roadshow. I will bring that to the attention of the Minister for Transport and discuss it with him. The Senator can contact me directly about it.

In my town, Dún Laoghaire, we went through a process called Living Streets, whereby we had a plan and vision for reducing the amount of traffic. The aim was that you would still be allowed to drive for A to B but that it would be easier and safer to walk, cycle and use a bus. It involves a lot of public debate. We had five public debates. There was considerable discussion and there were people for and against the proposal. At the end of the consultation, most wanted to make the change. There were those who doubted it and thought it might have been a fix. Then we had an election and the first two elected – the top two councillors – were the people who had supported the scheme. Now we have a very strong demographic movement in favour of it. It does not mean you steamroll over the people with concerns, because you have to address all the concerns. You do not want to divide your community. It is not an easy thing to do. The prize is that Dún Laoghaire is increasingly becoming a destination that people want to go to, hopefully not one that is congested with cars.