Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

220. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport to outline the total number of kilometres of dedicated cycle lanes available across Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24615/23]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Since 2010 my Department has provided funding to the National Transport Authority (NTA) under the Sustainable Transport Measures Grants (STMG) Programme and the Regional Cities Programme to implement sustainable transport projects, including providing cycling infrastructure, in the Greater Dublin Area and the regional cities of Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford.

The current Programme for Government has committed to investing approximately €360 million per annum in cross-Governmental funding for walking and cycling over the lifetime of the Government. This investment will help support my own Department's planned delivery of almost 1,000 kilometres of improved walking and cycling infrastructure by 2025, additional investment in Greenways and the continuation and potential expansion of various behavioural change programmes.

2021 saw the expansion of the NTA's Active Travel investment programme to rural Ireland. €72.8m was allocated to 19 local authorities. It should be noted this allocation was higher than the entire Active Travel budget for 2019 and does not include the increased funding allocated to the GDA and regional cities.

This year has seen a continuation of the significant investment in walking and cycling with €290 million administered through the NTA's Active Travel Programme in 2023, as well as €63 million allocated to Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) for investment in our Greenways.

In partnership with the Department of Education we also launched the Safe Routes to Schools Programme in 2021, which aims to accelerate the delivery of safe walking, scooting and cycling infrastructure on key access routes to schools. It has had a great response, with applications received from schools in every county in Ireland.

My Department is not the only Government Department to invest in cycling infrastructure, with projects being funded under the Department of Rural and Community Development's Rural Regeneration and Development Fund, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage's Urban Regeneration and Development Fund, and on a smaller scale, by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media through Sport Ireland Trails.

Since the increase in funding from the beginning of this Government term in 2020, almost 150 km of segregated or light segregation cycle track was constructed under the NTA's Active Travel Programme by the end of last year, in addition to approximately 36km of urban greenway, over 40km of shared space (pedestrian and cyclist shared infrastructure) and 7km of quietways.

Given the long-term nature of investment in cycling, however, at least in our major urban centres, as well as the fact that cycling infrastructure is not funded solely by one Department or agency, it is currently difficult to quantify the total number of kilometres of cycling infrastructure currently in existence; however my Department is exploring with local authorities, the NTA and TII the possibility of mapping all active travel infrastructure in order to provide us with the clarity on the existing cycle routes and pedestrian facilities available.