A Year On.. Transport and Connectivity in a post-COVID Ireland
Event Information
About this Event
SCHEDULE
9.30am- Active Travel- A Driver of Public Health
Robert Burns- Director of Infrastructure, Sustainable Mobility and Climate Change in Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council.
Dr. Marica Cassarino-Lecturer and Researcher at the School of Applied Psychology, University College Cork.
11.00am- Sustainable Rural Mobility
Prof. Brian Caulfield- Associate Professor in the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering, Trinity College Dublin
Dr. Páraic Carroll- Assistant Professor in the School of Civil Engineering, University College Dublin
12.15pm- The future of Public Transport in Ireland
Stephen Kent- Chief Executive Officer at Bus Éireann
Jim Meade- Chief Executive Officer, Iarnrod Eireann-Irish Rail
1.30pm- Seminar ends
More info on Speakers and Talks
A YEAR ON... TRANSPORT AND CONNECTIVITY IN A POST-COVID IRELAND
Active Travel- A Driver of Public Health
Periods of lockdown have seen far less cars on the road. People are re-discovering the joy of cycling and getting to know their local neighbourhoods better, enjoying cleaner air and for some, the sound of birdsong. Will this disruption result in sustained behavioural change or will we return to pre-COVID levels of car use?
Robert Burns, Director of Infrastructure, Sustainable Mobility and Climate Change in Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council, will present on their impressive COVID Mobility and Public Realm response as well as the success of their new Coastal Mobility Route. Frank Fitzgerald, Sustainable Travel & Road Safety Awareness Officer from Cork City Council will outline how they have responded and what lies ahead for Cork city. Dr. Marica Cassarino, Lecturer and Researcher at the School of Applied Psychology, University College Cork will discuss the psychological and social gains of promoting active travel and the increasing need to design cities that can sustain both health and happiness, especially amongst the most vulnerable groups.
Sustainable Rural Mobility
Dr. Páraic Carroll, Assistant Professor in the School of Civil Engineering at University College Dublin, will present on the recent research highlighting transport disadvantage and car dependency in Rural Ireland. Prof Brian Caulfield, Associate Professor in the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering, Trinity College Dublin will examine the issues of rural transport, drawing from international examples and outlining potential pilot projects that might work here.
We will be discussing how COVID has reconnected us with our rural towns and villages and for some, removed the burden of long daily commutes. Could COVID-19 be a catalyst for reviving rural towns and communities? David O’Brien, the Cork Local Link manager will outline how their ‘Demand Led’ service has adapted during COVID-19 to meet the evolving needs of the community. Alex Grassick, the newly appointed Digital Innovation Officer in Cork County Council will share their plans for responding to the new trend in home working by setting up Digital Working Hubs in county towns.
The future of Public Transport in Ireland
Public Transport has been hit hard with capacity running at 25% for much of the year. We will hear from the CEOs of Bus Eireann and Iarnrod Eireann-Irish Rail, Stephen Kent and Jim Meade respectively, as to the impact COVID- 19 has had on the sector and discuss what the future of public transport in Ireland might look like. Darragh Kyne, a Commercial Analyst with Gas Networks Ireland, will discuss GNI’s role in decarbonising transport and highlight some of the great initiatives that GNI have been involved on which promote sustainable public transport using renewable gas.
CPD Accredited by RIAI, RTPI, IPI and EI.
The Webinar is hosted by Cork City Council.
Funded by Healthy Ireland.
The Transport & Mobility Forum, Cork (TMF) is a representative group of organisations who have a common interest in sustainable and active travel. TMF fully support sustainable modes of travel measures and policies. Sustainable and Active Travel helps reduce congestion on our roads, supports a low carbon economy, reduces noise and air pollution, improves public health and quality of life.