Council open door for discussion on Active Travel

Thomas Lyons

Last Tuesday week a UN report flagged that the world has lost the opportunity to prevent global warming significantly exceeding the critical threshold of 1.5C above pre-industrial levels.

That is an unpalatable headline for anyone who thinks beyond their own lifespan and ponders the future for their children’s children. The report was not entirely doom laden, it pointed out that renewable electricity generation overtook coal-fired generation globally for the first time in 2025.

Coal-fired generation is a big problem. A little further down the roster of villains responsible for climate damage is the internal combustion engine; however, as a mode of transport in rural Ireland the ICE is almost inevitable.

On the same day the UN Environment Programme warned about global emissions, the Westmeath public were invited to have their say on the latest phase of the Mullingar Active Travel scheme.

Westmeath County Council, in partnership with the National Transport Authority (NTA), invited residents, members of the public and other interested parties to attend a public information and feedback session on the preliminary design of the latest Active Travel scheme for Mullingar.

Arrayed on the tables in the Executive Lounge of Áras an Chontae, Mullingar were the plans for the Longford Road and R394 scheme.

Council staff were on hand to answer questions on the preliminary design proposals, giving the public an opportunity to learn more about the planned scheme and offer feedback to the project team.

The purpose of the Active Travel initiatives is simple; to improve conditions for people walking, cycling and using other sustainable modes of transport, while helping to create safer and more accessible streets and public spaces.

There are other intended consequences. Getting people out of cars and moving is good for the environment and good for the overall health of the population.

The Mullingar ‘Active Travel Bundle’ covers around 9.1km of road around the town, and is divided into four separate routes. This scheme will connect to the Dublin to Galway Greenway, connecting the Saunders pedestrian and cycle bridge, the path network along the Ardmore Road and the Dublin Road.

It’s to incentivise walking and cycling by making it a safer, more pleasant and attractive option.

Pat Nally, who leads the Active Travel programme for Westmeath County Council, explained why the local authority were reaching out for input: “The purpose of the non-statutory public consultation is to bring this scheme to Part 8, where the public get a formal input.

“We can gather snippets of information that we might have missed that the public can input so that we may want to amend or change something before it goes to the formal planning process. “

In 2019, Ireland spent €45 million on active travel infrastructure. By 2025, that figure had risen to €360 million, an eightfold increase in just six years. That money is considered an investment by the state in the health of the people who avail of the opportunity it presents, and an investment in Co2 reductions.

The sheets of paper in Áras an Chontae illustrated the upgrades to the existing footpaths from the Robinstown roundabout to Dublin Galway Greenway and from St Finian’s College to the Abbeylands roundabout along the Longford Road.

Details also highlighted the upgrade of the junctions and roundabouts to make side roads easier for pedestrians to cross at all roundabouts and the provision of around 4.5km of new protected cycle track.

“It’s a fact-finding mission,” Pat said of the session, “just to see the people who use the road every day to let them have an input into what we’re doing.”

Any change to the status quo can cause kickbacks. The reallocation of road space from private cars to segregated cycle lanes has triggered resistance from motorists and businesses concerned about parking and traffic flow.

It may sound overly dramatic, but the mantra of “change or die” coming from the environmental lobby may not be as hysterical as it sounds. Getting people out of cars is becoming increasingly more important, but that is not the point of the Active Travel scheme.

“The schemes aren’t targeted at removing every car from the road,” Pat says. “The idea is that people who live within one or two kilometres have a choice. That actually leaves road space for the people from the hinterland to get into the town. We hope it’s a win-win. These are not targeted at people who live five kilometres out of town and we’re not expecting them to stop at the edge of town and cycle.”

The council say once the changes are in place, the population adapts: “We’ve had submissions,” the Active Travel programme lead said. “The fact we have it on the website means some people will not call in tonight, they can send us an email when they see the drawings. It’s out there in different formats so people can engage. They usually get back with issues that are local to where they live.”

More people walking and cycling is, fundamentally, a good thing: “It’s to give them a choice, a safe choice. A lot of people say that if it’s built like this, they’ll allow their kids to go out unsupervised because they know they’re safe. We’re not taking out traffic, we’re just reallocating space.”

From early next year, there will be a move by local authorities to roll out a 30kmh speed limit in housing estates, town centres, and urban cores. The works undertaken for the Active Travel schemes will augment that.

“The council are conscious that we do need to slow the roads down,” Pat says. “If you are cycling on the road, if you don’t want to be on the cycleway, it’s a slower environment for you. There’s a lot of crossing points and all crossings are ramps. I know people have their own views on ramps, but it’s about slowing that traffic down.”

The NTA say that every euro invested in active travel produces almost €4 in economic benefits, including improved health and lower absenteeism rates, more tourism, reduced congestion and thousands of jobs created.

Increasing the number of people using active travel reduces mortality and healthcare costs. Pat says there is a clear focus to the schemes.

“At the top of the tree is the pedestrian, not the cyclist. We have to think of the pedestrian first. We have to facilitate them, and then the cyclist.”

Last week’s session was not the only opportunity for the public to have their say: “If you have a particular view, you need to make your submission when the planning process goes live. Because then the councillors hear those submissions and we have to address them, and they get to make a decision, listening to all the voices.

“They have to make a conscious decision knowing what the public think of the scheme. But that’s at the formal planning stage. For the moment, it’s about gathering the little bits of information or snippets that we missed.”

The preliminary design will remain available to view at Áras on Chontae, Mount Street, Mullingar, N91 FH4N until close of business on Friday 30 October and at mullingaractivetravel.com.