Galway Bay fm newsroom - Concerns have been raised over the prioritised route selection process and the timeline for the rollout of the planned city cycle network.
Several councillors raised issues regarding the planned cycling infrastructure at last evening's meeting of the city council.
During a discussion on the April and May Chief Executive’s reports, several councillors voiced concerns regarding the proposed cycle network plan.
The May CE report outlines that route option selection reports have been issued to the National Transport Authority for the initial phases of the plan at Ballyloughane Road, Doughiska Road South, Eglinton Canal, Clybaun Road, and Bóthar Stíofain.
Social Democrats Councillor Owen Hanley told the meeting that while any improvement to the city’s cycle network is welcome, the wrong routes have been prioritised on the east side of the city.
He said the other proposed routes around Doughiska, Castlepark, Ballybane and the Monivea Road need cycling infrastructure more urgently and as a cyclist he doesn’t feel safe using these roads in their current state.
This was echoed by Fianna Fáil Councillor John Connolly who said there are routes in the west side of the city that should have been included in the initial route selection process.
Councillor Connolly said he’s extremely frustrated at the length of time it is taking to rollout the proposed cycle network - adding that it’s difficult to see when these projects will actually go to construction.
In response, Senior Engineer Uinsinn Finn said the specific routes that have been selected were chosen because they can be delivered in the quickest time possible and it is the council’s intention to begin construction this year.
Mr Finn said the NTA is the funder and the gateway system for the scheme and that the Local Authority is ready to push through to the public consultation phase as soon as it gets the go-ahead from the national transport body.
