Ciarán Cuffe has criticised transport agencies for holding back on a vision that would put walking and cycling at the heart of Dublin’s transport policy

At the annual lecture of the Dublin Cycling Campaign (www.dublincycling.ie) this evening Cuffe stated that it is time for a radical rethink of transport policies in Dublin to favour cyclists and pedestrians.

Mr. Cuffe, the incoming chair of Dublin City Council’s Strategic Policy Committee on Transport said:

“There is no shortage of plans and programmes to improve cycling, but there is a lack of vision and drive to move these plans forward. Agencies have to ask themselves, what are they doing to make improvements happen?”

“Good ideas have been around for twenty years, but often have only got as far as the drawing board.

“Far too many of the cycle lanes in Dublin are built on the Morse code principle: a dash here, a dot there and a lack of joined-up thinking.

“Looking ahead I intend to prioritise the needs of vulnerable cyclists: children; women and older people in my time on the Council. This requires state-of-the art-facilities that are well designed and maintained. I understand the concerns of those who complain about cyclists on the footpaths, but the response has to include safer facilities for cyclists on public roads.

Other measures that I intend prioritising include:

• reducing the amount of one way streets that carry several lanes of traffic

• introducing contra-flow cycle lanes in key locations such as Upper Camden Street, Stephen’s Green and Parnell Square

• reducing the timing cycle length of traffic signals to prioritise cyclists and pedestrians

• building quality cycle facilities on the Liffey Quays and along the Rivers Tolka and Dodder as well as continuing the works at the Grand and Royal Canal, and the Sutton to Sandycove Project”.

“It is time to build a real cycling culture in Dublin, learning from cities such as Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Paris. I want to see more city officials on their bikes, and a ‘normalising’ of cycling in City Hall and the Civic Offices.

“The number of bicycle journeys rose by 82 per cent during the five-year period, jumping from 10 million journeys in 2006 to 18 million journeys in 2011. We now need to build on this success.”

Dublin Cycling Campaign is a member of Cyclist.ie - The Irish Cycling Advocacy Network

Ciarán Cuffe Biography Ciarán is an architect and town planner. He chairs the Masters Programme in Urban Regeneration and Development at the Dublin Institute of Technology. He is a city councillor for Dublin’s North Inner City and chairs Dublin City Council’s Transport Committee. He was a Junior Minister in 2010-2011 with responsibility for planning and sustainable transport. He lives in Dublin’s Stoneybatter.