Transport Policy

A referred reply was forwarded to the Deputy under Standing Order 51.

I am writing to you concerning the matters you raised in Parliamentary Question No. 80 on 19 January last, which have been referred to the National Transport Authority (NTA) for reply. The Cork Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy (CMATS) was developed by the National Transport Authority (NTA) in collaboration with Transport Infrastructure Ireland, Cork City Council and Cork County Council. Since its publication in 2020, there has been good progress in delivering key elements of CMATS, including the Cork Area Commuter Rail Programme, BusConnects Cork, Cork Light Rail and the Active Travel Programme. Each of these elements is dealt with in more detail, below. Cork Commuter Rail Programme The Cork Area Commuter Rail Programme is a key element of CMATS and seeks the transformational enhancement of the rail system in Cork to improve the attractiveness of rail, support compact urban growth, encourage and enable modal shift to public transport, and reduce congestion and emissions. Representing the largest investment in the rail network in Cork ever undertaken by the State, the Cork Area Commuter Rail Programme comprises a number of separate but interrelated projects that will deliver:

- The integration of the three existing railway corridors in the Cork area, which penetrate the city at Kent Station interchange, facilitating a high frequency north-east connection through the city between Mallow and Midleton/Cobh;

- Full electrification, or alternative fuelling (most likely battery-electric) of the suburban rail fleet; Page 2 of 4 • Other infrastructure improvements required to accommodate a transformative 10-minute frequency (from current 30-minute frequency) for the suburban rail network in Cork;

- Additional rolling stock to be introduced to meet the potential of existing and future demand;

- A multi-modal integrated transport hub for the city provided at Kent Station to promote modal shift from the private car and enhance attractiveness of the city docklands regeneration and development; and

- New stations at prime regeneration sites, Park & Ride interchange points and new development areas. Work is already underway on this overall programme, with planning/design development work and tendering work ongoing. The Government’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan 2021 has secured European funding of initial parts of the overall programme, which have been prioritised for immediate progress, being: (i) Re-signalling of the lines to facilitate the subsequent electrified service; (ii) The creation of an additional through-running line, with an additional platform, at Kent Station; and (iii) Double tracking of the current single line between Glounthaune and Midleton. Planning permission has now been obtained for the additional platform at Kent Station (item (ii) above). Tenders for these construction works have been sought and it is expected that the construction contract will be awarded during Q1 of this year, with work to commence on site shortly thereafter. Separately, a tender process for the re-signalling project (item (i) above) is well advanced with the expectation that this contract will be signed in a number of months.

A Railway Order has been submitted to An Bord Pleanála for double tracking the current single line between Glounthaune and Midleton (item (iii) above). The statutory consultation period in respect of that application concluded on 12th January. However, the timeline for determination of the application by An Bord Pleanála is uncertain. BusConnects Cork – Bus Network Redesign Specialist designers Jarrett Walker & Associates have carried out a review of the current bus services and, in conjunction with the NTA, Cork City Council, Cork County Council and Bus Éireann, developed a new network of bus services for the Cork Metropolitan Area. Following an extensive public consultation process, the new BusConnects network was finalised and published in June of last year. The draft network will provide an increase of over fifty percent in bus services across the city. It will provide a better overall network that will allow more people to gain more access to more places more quickly, whilst fully integrating with rail modes. Planning for the implementation of the new bus network has commenced and it is expected that the new network will be fully operational by the end of 2024. Full details of the draft new network are available at https://busconnects.ie/cork/busconnects-cork-new-bus-network/ . Page 3 of 4 BusConnects Cork – Bus Infrastructure

A key component of the overall BusConnects Programme for Cork is the implementation of bus priority measures, generally bus lanes, on key bus corridors serving the city. Without removing bus movements from general traffic congestion, the punctuality, reliability and faster journeys that are the key characteristics of a good public transport system, cannot be delivered. It is intended that the bus priority measures will enable reliable and faster bus journey times, and provide much needed journey time certainty for bus users. In June of last year the NTA published detailed proposals for 12 Sustainable Transport Corridors, setting out proposals for bus and cycle infrastructure along those key corridors. Public consultation in relation to these plans ran until early in October 2022, with close to 3,000 submissions received. The NTA are currently reviewing and revising the scheme designs to take account of feedback received. A further round of public consultation is expected to be commenced at the end of March or early April, following which it is hoped to advance proposals for planning consent to An Bord Pleanála in about 18 to 24 months’ time. Cork Light Rail The Cork Light Rail project seeks to provide a high capacity, high quality east west public transport corridor connecting Ballincollig in the west to Mahon Point in the east via the city centre as identified in CMATS.

A Strategic Assessment Report for the project has been prepared which has been submitted to the Department of Transport for approval under the provisions of the Public Spending Code. An engineering design team has been appointed to undertake an alignment options study and identify the optimum alignment for the proposed light rail line. It is anticipated that a draft proposal will be finalised early in 2023, which will then be the subject of a non-statutory public consultation in the first half of this year. Active Travel (Cycling, Walking) The overall 2022 funding allocation to Cork City Council for Active Travel projects, being cycling and walking projects was €46,291,000, allowing the progression and development of 78 separate projects. The overall 2022 funding allocation to Cork County Council for Active Travel projects, being cycling and walking projects was €20,456,545, allowing the progression and development of 32 separate projects. Funding allocations for 2023 are expected to be announced shortly. Page 4 of 4

I trust that the above information is of assistance.