Galway has serious potential to become a cycling tourism hub and the Galway City Council must take advantage of sustainable transport opportunities to make this a reality.
This is the view of Labour Galway-West TD Derek Nolan who is calling on City Hall officials to engage with national bodies to explore sustainable transport opportunities and attract cycling tourism.
“Cycling is taking off massively in Galway,” said Dep Nolan. “You only have to look at the amount of charity cycles and the number of children taking part in green schools initiative to see we are taking to our bikes far more often. And more people are taking to their bikes for leisure at the weekend. This is something Galway needs to capitalise on.”
The Public Transport Minister, Alan Kelly, recently secured €65 million for local authorities to invest specifically in cycling and walking infrastructure, such as for examining the potential for greenways, cycle-lanes, and improving safety measures around junctions.
The funding is in addition to the Galway Public Bike Scheme which will be rolled out next summer, and the majority of it has been ring-fenced specifically to improve the local transport environment.
Dep Nolan said the council must engage with the Department of Transport as well as the National Transport Authority to “make sure Galway makes a strong funding application”.
“The more children we get cycling to school and the more commuters that take to their bikes,” he said, “the more we will alleviate traffic problems, improve our local environment and make Galway even more attractive for tourists.”
