State agency blamed for Laois commuting blues
IDA tackled by Laois candidate over over job creation record
The State company responsible for getting companies from America and elsewhere to create jobs in Ireland is responsible for the thousands of Laois people being forced to leave the county each day for work.
Labour Local Elecctions candidate in Graiguecullen Portarlington Eoin Barry criticised what he said was was a lack of Industrial Development Authority (IDA) investment which has resulted in Laois workers travelling further than workers in any other county in the country, travelling on average 24 km a day in their car to work.
He said figures revealed to the Labour Party show that the average commute of people in Ireland is 16.9kms, while the average commute for college students continues to rise, up to 34.8kms in 2022. He claimed that the figures confirmed that Laois workers travel the furthest average distance in the country at 24.4km.
“Far too many of us are spending far too much time in the car travelling to and from work. It’s a drain on people’s energy and it cuts into family and personal time.
“People in Laois travel 24.4km on average to work in their car. There are a plethora of problems that explain this, but a lack of public transport options, affordable housing options and the lack of clarity on workers’ right to work remotely are among the reasons more and more people are being forced into the car.
"It is also clear that in Laois the lack of IDA investment in our county is one of the main causes of these long commutes. In 2021 figures showed that Laois received only 157 IDA supported jobs, the lowest in the county and less than half of the second lowest county.
“That’s why Labour continue to push for a right to flexible work for all employees who can work from home.
“The commuting crisis is particularly stark for our students, with average commutes at 34.8kms, up from 32.4 in 2016. The lack of a third level institution in Laois continues to impact many students in Laois, driving up their commute time and taking away from the opportunities that come with college life, like getting involved in teams, societies, clubs and socialising with new friends. For too many students college accommodation is simply too expensive.
“Commuting isn’t working for people and the commuter crisis shows no sign of abating for people in Laois, we need a renewed focused on IDA backed jobs in the county to reduce the number of people that need to commute,” he concluded.
The 2022 Census showed that The CSO has found that there were almost 71,500 people living in the county in April 2022 aged 15 and over and of these almost 40,000 people were at work. The Leinster Express / Laois Live reported that It found that 6,221 people had a journey time of 60 minutes and over.