There are not enough cyclists in Dublin to justify the “enormous” costs of new cycle lanes, according to a journalist. 

By December 2023, the inbound cycle path from Clontarf to the city centre was 95% complete. 

Sunday Independent columnist David Quinn, however, said he takes a bus along the cycle path every day and hasn’t seen many cyclists. 

“I like using public transport so I'm not particularly a car user,” he told Newstalk Breakfast. 

“I just don’t see a sufficient number of cyclists to justify the enormous efforts that have been put into these cycle lanes and the enormous disruption that has been caused. 

“There have been bicycle lanes of some description for years, so people have had time to get used to them for years and I'm just not seeing the transfer taking place from cars to bicycles.” 

Buses, taxis and cyclists on North Strand Road. Image: Sasko Lazarov / RollingNews.ie

Green Party Councillor Donna Cooney said she cycles along North Strand – and she doesn’t know how Mr Quinn can’t see all the cyclists. 

“There’s adapted bikes, cargo bikes, [parents] bringing children to the park,” she said. 

“I've seen businesses doing laundry services on a cargo bike.” 

She said a count of cyclists in April found there had been a 24% increase in cyclists using the new lane in the last year, with roughly 2,000 people using the lane. 

Cllr Cooney also pointed out that the cycle lane out of the city isn’t completed yet, which might still deter some people from cycling. 

“People that are nervous or like to cycle in a safe segregated route are not going to cycle into town when they know they can’t get out of the city,” she said. 

“But at the DART stations, the bike stations are completely full because people are cycling down.” 

The Dublin councillor also pointed out that the main reason for high costs and delays on the cycle is due to an old water main that needed replacing. 

Using cycle lanes

Mr Quinn said the most CSO data in 2022 found only 3% of people cycled to work – down from a high of 7% in 1986. 

“You have this gigantic effort being put into bikes and the number is still 3%,” he said. 

The CSO data measured commuters’ choices across the Republic of Ireland rather than just within Dublin. 

The same survey found that 3% of commuters in Ireland use the train, DART or Luas to get to work. 

According to the CSO survey, Dublin City had the highest proportion of commuters cycling to work in 2022 at 10%.