Beginning in 2018, Dublin Cycling Campaign have presented various Dublin Mayors with bicycles to help them get around the city and county using a healthy, cheap, efficient, and non- polluting form of transport. Two years ago, we presented Fingal Mayor Cllr Howard Mahony with a bicycle which was then passed on to his successor, Cllr Adrian Henchy.

When we contacted the current Mayor, Cllr Brian McDonagh, to ask if he would like to keep this bike to use during his term of office, we learned that he had already been presented with a Dolly cargo bike by the Fingal Active Travel team for use during his Mayoral duties. He also has his own bike and access to a fold-up bike, so he already has plenty of pedal-powered transport options. We will therefore pass on the Campaign bike to someone else.

We wanted to find out how Mayor McDonagh likes his new cargo bike, so representatives of Dublin Cycling Campaign met him in Portmarnock on Monday 16 September. Director of Services for Environment, Climate Action, Active Travel & Sport at Fingal County Council, David Storey, was also present, along with Emma Court and John Hartnett from the Fingal Active Travel Unit. We thanked them all very much for all the work that has been done to make walking, wheeling, and cycling safer and more accessible for Fingal residents. Even in the short time we were there we observed many people using the segregated walking and cycling path that leads from the DART station to the entrance to the recently-opened Portmarnock to Baldoyle Greenway.

Mayor McDonagh told us that the cargo bike has proved very useful for attending official engagements because of its carrying capacity, and the battery assists with longer and hillier journeys around the large county of Fingal.

Mayor McDonagh said “I feel it’s very important to lead by example in aiming to reduce emissions. I’m very proud to be the first Mayor of Fingal to use an eCargo bike for official duties and I look forward to touring the County during my term as Mayor”.

Thank you very much to Stephen McGinn, Walking and Cycling Officer in the Active Travel Unit, for setting up the meeting, and to Dublin Cycling Campaign representatives Siobhán McNamara, Tom Sheedy and Cllr David Healy for attending. We wish Mayor McDonagh all the best during his term of office and we think the cargo bike will get plenty of use over the coming year.

After the meeting, Siobhán took the opportunity to cycle the greenway as far as Baldoyle. It was a glorious morning and there were people of all ages walking and cycling on the picturesque route. It was very encouraging to see this example of high-quality, segregated infrastructure which is an amenity for both local residents and visitors to the area.

Photo credit: Kevin McFeely (Coalesce)