PLANS HAVE BEEN announced to “fast-track” the delivery of 1,000 kilometres of cycle routes by the end of the decade.

The National Cycling Network Plan was published today and proposes a cycle network of close to 3,500 kilometres.

The National Cycling Network (NCN) said this cycle network will connect more than 2.8 million people nationally and link over 200 cities, towns and villages.

It’s planned that 80% of households and nearly 90% of jobs will be located within 5 kilometres of this cycle network.

The plan has been developed in the context of national policies to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by no later than 2050.  

Last year’s Climate Action Plan noted a need to facilitate a 50% increase in daily walking and cycling journeys and a need to significantly improve the infrastructure networks to allow for this.

The cycling network will be composed of 85 corridors, integrating existing and planned greenways, as well as an extensive new network of safe cycle routes along existing roads.

Transport Minister Eamon Ryan today the new NCN plan at the opening of the latest extension to the Grand Canal Greenway – an 11 km stretch from Alymers Bridge to Sallins in Co Kildare. 

When completed, this Greenway will be a continuous, almost entirely segregated, route along the entirety of the 130km canal stretching from Dublin to the River Shannon.

Minister Ryan said this development in Kildare “shows we are already well on the way to developing this new visionary national cycling network”.

He added that “plans are also underway to fast-track delivery of a further 1,000 km of cycle routes by 2030”.

This 1,000 km of cycle route accounts for around 30% of the overall network and the expected cost of delivery up to 2030 is around €677 million.

The remainder of the cycling network is to be developed between 2031 and 2040 and the overall indicative price for the entirety of the cycling network is between €1.49 billion and €1.91 billion.

Meanwhile, chief executive of Transport Infrastructure Ireland Peter Walsh said the Government’s commitment to sustainable transportation options is “highlighted with today’s announcement of the National Cycle Network”.

He added: “The national cycle network will open in phases throughout the country in the coming years, it will provide a safe and enjoyable way for people to travel, and it will support a more sustainable future for the country.”