THE possibility of transforming Colbert Station into a smarter travel hub is being explored as part of a project for which Limerick was granted €9 million in funding. The money was awarded to turn the city and environs into a sustainable travel centre, after proposals were submitted to the Department of Transport in a joint effort by Limerick city and county councils. The four hubs to be focused on for cycle lanes, pedestrian routes and community engagement are the city centre, Corbally, Castletroy and Southill.
And the railway station is also to become a centre for smarter travel, with cycle lanes linking it to the city, bicycle parking facilities and a bike hire scheme.
“At the moment there are a lot of buses from the station to other counties, but the connectivity to the city and suburbs isn’t great,” head of the roads department, Paul Crowe, told a Transport meeting of the county council.
“We are aiming to have increased commuter bus services as part of the smarter travel plans”.
Mr Crowe explained that Limerick had been an excellent location for a smarter travel plan due its topography, which is very flat, and the fact that it is a very compact city.
The aim of smarter travel is to encourage people to be environmentally conscious and use sustainable means of transport, rather than cars.
“Figures show that over 50% of car trips were under 10km, 70% of which are generated in the Corbally and Castletroy areas.
“We hope to change attitudes and the culture of using cars”.
The project will involve the introduction of new cycle lanes, pedestrian routes, display signs that will indicate time required to walk or cycle to a destination and community engagement with schools and various groups.
“Considering the price of petrol, smarter travel is something that will benefit people in more than one way,” said Cllr Mike Houlihan, while Cllr Noel Gleeson said that the colleges should introduce programmes of car pooling so that students with the same timetable could travel together.
“This shows what can be done when two local authorities work together,” commented Cllr Jerome Scanlan.
