Tipperary towns and villages need to get away from the ‘chock a block’ traffic

Tipperary is known as the Premier County yet when it comes to keeping up with the times we are lagging behind. There are footpaths being built left, right and centre but who is looking at the routes and where are they going?

Why aren’t they going to the schools and the main shopping areas in towns and villages?

“Sustainable living” are the buzzwords across the developed world yet in Ireland we lag far behind Denmark and Finland as well as other leading countries in terms of sustainability and cleverness of design. Increasingly worldwide, in developed countries, there is a model shift towards getting away from car dependency to encourage walking and cycling.

Right across the EU, cycling is seen as a sustainable mode of transport. Yet go to towns in Tipperary and they are filled with cars. Footpaths and cycle lanes are built but not around a town or into a town but rather just for a stretch of road with no obvious destination or starting point.

All the planners have to do is start building cycling and walking routes to primary schools. Then to secondary schools. Then to shops and tourist attractions. It is time to get with the rest of the world and upgrade Tipperary.

The safety issues regarding footpaths in Dundrum were raised at a recent meeting of the Tipperary/Cahir/Cashel MD and the issue is as relevant to any village in the county. The walking conditions are hazardous and dangerous in Dundrum due to the volume of traffic near walkers in parts, and in many ways that is the same in many villages except many potential walkers drive as the roads are lethal to walk on.

In a lot of places people just don’t walk or kids don’t cycle because of the danger of cars and the lack of infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists. The roads in Ireland are lethal. We know that from the amount of people killed each year in this country in road related deaths, and yet there is no off-road cycle or walk lanes of note in many villages and towns in Tipperary. This must be addressed in the county.

Likewise the lack of electric vehicle charging points in Cahir. It is unbelievable really in 2023 with climate action plans and a heating planet. There is much talk about the “model shift” needed, from cars to more sustainable forms of transport, but is it taken seriously?

Cycle and walking paths should now take priority.