The Green Party have drafted a new exemption that would remove the need for planning permission for bike storage units within certain limits.

Steven Matthews, the Green Party spokesperson for Planning and Local Government, has brought forward an exemption to remove regulations around domestic planning permission.

The propsal would cover structures solely intended for the storage of bicycles or ‘personal powered transporters', such as e-scooters and e-bikes.

The approximate floor area would be 4 metres squared and would have an approximate height of 1.2 metres.

The storage units would be "appropriately screened" or finished "in keeping with the character of the house or street," according to the proposal.

On Newstalk Breakfast, Deputy Matthews said increased funding in cycling infrastructure has meant there are "so many more people cycling now and scooting around the place."

"It is sensible and reasonable to allow them to store those bikes in the front garden," he said.

Storage units

Deputy Matthews suggested that individuals would be permitted to build bunker-like structures for their bikes.

"You can buy these bike bunkers online, or you see people have constructed them as well – [they are] small timber structures," he said.

"As long as it's small, discreet, in character with the building, and solely for the use of bicycles, I don't think people should need to go to the planning process to get permission to do that."

Planning permission

Fianna Fáil TD and Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture Chair Jackie Kelly said the proposal is "logical", but would require strict controls.

"If we're talking about residential areas or in business areas, where people are going to work, and [we are] talking about constructing buildings there for bikes, they most definitely would need planning,' he said.

"The size of it has to be clearly stated ... planning permission and regulations are there for people who are in the vicinity, so that their rights aren't infringed on."

Deputy Matthews said easier access to domestic sheds would lead to a greater increase in cycling.

"If you have your bike and it's locked in a little shed in the front garden, it's much more likely that you're going to pop open the shed and hop on the bike," he said.

Rural Ireland

Deputy Kelly said the issue of planning permission for one-off houses in rural Ireland is "a huge issue".

"Every week, I have a number of people in my constituency offices who are looking for planning where they were born and raised and they find extremely frustrated that they can't get planning," he said.

"To keep rural communities alive, we have to keep people in the areas where they were born and where they went to school or where they want to live."

According to Deputy Matthews, 45% of all houses permitted in 2021 were one-off houses.

"That doesn't strike me as a problem, that's about 7500 houses and that trend is continuing upwards," he said.