John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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169. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the steps he has taken to ensure an increased take-up of cycling by females; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40834/20]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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As the Deputy will be aware my Department provides funding to support An Taisce’s Green Schools Travel programme which last year launched a national campaign entitled #andshecycles which aims to encourage schoolgirls in particular to cycle and address some of the barriers that may prevent them from cycling.

Separately of course the new Programme for Government – Our Shared Future sets out an ambitious and wide-ranging set of commitments in relation to walking and cycling, supported by an increased multi-annual budgetary allocation amounting to some €1.8 billion over the lifetime of the Government. Importantly I want to see this funding deliver segregated cycling infrastructure across the country and I note that the evaluation of the Smarter Travel Areas programme, available on my Department's website, demonstrates that poor perception of safety is the biggest barrier to increasing cycling mode share generally.

Finally my Department is currently carrying out a review of Sustainable Mobility Policy and issues such as those raised by the Deputy can be considered more fully in the context of this work which is currently ongoing. I intend that the new policy framework will provide a strategic backdrop to the increased investment planned by this Government across the sustainable mobility programme, including active travel.