Road/Transport Infrastructure

People Before Profit would:

  • Complete all planned motorway and national road schemes using public finance, to enhance safety and journey times for road users. No further road tolls to be introduced on Irish national roads or motorways;
  • End all private concessions on the operation and maintenance of Ireland’s motorway network, which is currently managed and operated entirely by private entities. Ireland’s road network should be managed, maintained and operated by local authorities or Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII);
  • End all road tolling schemes on the Irish road network. All public infrastructure should be provided on the basis of universality;
  • Put an end to procuring transport infrastructure works from the private sector. Road upgrades and maintenance should be carried out by local authorities. Procuring these works from the private sector, who carry them out on a for-profit basis, has led to the bleeding of public finances and an inefficient, delay-prone mechanism for road and infrastructure upgrades;
  • End all use of Private Public Partnership (PPP) schemes in the delivery of transport infrastructure. These schemes are nothing more than a mechanism to privatise the provision of Ireland’s infrastructure and drain public finances through what are effectively high-interest loans. End all on-going PPP schemes on Irish transport infrastructure in order to protect future public finances.

Cycling

Cycling brings many benefits to society, including improved health to cyclists, fewer cars on the road resulting in reduced emissions and less congestion, and improved tourism attrcation/recreational facilities in both urban and rural areas.

People Before Profit would:

  • Improve priority for cyclists over other forms of traffic in urban areas;
  • Implement a programme of urban cycling routes connecting suburban areas to city and town centres;
  • Expand the rural cycling greenway network throughout the country to allow for interconnectivity of towns and villages, and to provide amenities for the public.