Sir, – Last year, nine cyclists were killed on Irish roads and 216 were seriously injured. Segregated cycle paths have become more common since the pandemic. Compared to unsegregated cycle lanes, they provide much greater protection for cyclists against the risk of collision with motorists. This reduces the safety risks that discourage people from considering using a bicycle. Fortunately, I have local access to less protected unsegregated cycle lanes, but at least motorists tend not to drift into the cycle lane. Rather than drive, I cycle three times a week approximately one kilometre each way to pick up some items in the local supermarket. Although there are plenty of bicycle parking bays, nine times out of 10, I am the only cyclist using a space to lock my bike. The much larger car park on the other hand is usually at least half full. Despite the more widespread availability of cycle lanes, this anecdotal evidence suggests cycling has not become a mainstream way of getting around locally. Furthermore, cycling short distances appears not to be replacing car journeys at scale.
BusConnects plans to replace the unsegregated cycle lanes I use with bus lanes. This regressive step will force cyclists to have to share space with buses, which may be too scary a prospect for many to consider. The message this sends is that BusConnects deprioritises the safety needs of cyclists. It will probably result in fewer people considering cycling rather than driving for local journeys. BusConnects infrastructure plans should be revised to future-proof the needs of cyclists and help grow cycling trips rather than focus only on increasing bus user volume. – Yours, etc,
MARK FOX,
Dublin 18.