Mairead Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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231. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the reason that County Galway was excluded from pathfinder funding for cycling and active travel projects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53367/22]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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The Pathfinder Programme is designed to demonstrate how Local Authorities and Transport Agencies can develop practical sustainable mobility measures that will have a genuinely transformative impact on how we travel, and how we can do this at speed. The proposals that have been selected to the Programme are a representative sample of the over 55 projects that were proposed by every Local Authority across the country. It is intended that these projects will provide a template that can be replicated and scaled-up elsewhere, with a strong emphasis on experimental and innovative approaches.

It important to note that the Pathfinder Programme is not a new funding stream. It is an initiative aimed at ensuring that the projects selected provide the impetus to deliver quickly (by the end of 2025), and to showcase and demonstrate what can be achieved with the right level of ambition and innovation.

The Assessment team and SMP Leadership Group considered all the proposals against the criteria for the Pathfinder programme. My Department has already written to all local authorities laying out in more detail the rationale for these assessments and why certain proposals were not selected.

It should be noted that one of the proposals put forward by Galway County Council, focused on Safe Routes to School infrastructure in Oranmore, will indeed be progressed as part of a wider Pathfinder Project which will accelerate the Safe Routes to School programme across the country.

In addition, it is worth noting that the Pathfinder Project for Galway City - which is the Cross-City Link element of the wider BusConnects project - will also make a real difference to the lives of those living in Galway city and county who must commute into and through the city for work, education, and other essential aspects of their daily lives.

I would like to re-iterate that not being selected as a Pathfinder Project does not mean that the proposals submitted should not proceed where already planned. My Department will work with the relevant Local Authorities to provide feedback and supports to ensure that all are able to extract benefits and learnings from the programme.

All local authorities will also have access to training workshops being developed through the Regional Assemblies to build capacity and learn from the experience of those Pathfinders selected, as part of the ‘Smart and Sustainable Mobility Training Workshops’ Pathfinder - a capacity-building and education initiative for Local Authorities (LAs), Councillors and Public.