Safer roads and more dedicated cycle lanes would encourage more people to cycle. Stock image
Safety concerns are the main barrier preventing more people from cycling, according to a new survey.
The research indicated that the vast majority of Irish adults rarely or never cycle, with just 13pc cycling weekly.
The most common deterrents were the volume of traffic (66pc), dangerous driving (61pc), a lack of confidence cycling in traffic (51pc) and a lack of segregated cycle lanes (40pc).
Other reasons given were weather conditions (34pc), previous incidents or near-misses (21pc) and poor street lighting in the evening (21pc).
The survey was conducted by polling company Ireland Thinks for insurer RedClick, a partner of the Dublinbikes service.
The bike-sharing scheme is operated by JCDecaux on behalf of Dublin City Council.
The research was conducted with a nationally representative sample of 1,648 participants.
It indicated that 82pc of Irish adults rarely or never cycle and just 13pc said they cycled weekly.
This compared to 24pc of EU citizens who cycle weekly, 47pc of Danes and 42pc of Finnish citizens.
The research found that 56pc of adults in Ireland said safety concerns had stopped them from cycling.
Women are more than 25pc more likely than men to cite safety concerns as a barrier (62pc vs 49pc).
When asked what changes would encourage them or others to cycle more, safer roads and improved driver-cyclist etiquette emerged as people’s top priority (56pc).
Other suggestions included more dedicated cycle lanes (38pc), more secure parking (22pc), greater policing of bike theft (22pc), and improved street lighting (17pc).
The survey also indicates that 35pc of adults own a bike, 4pc own an electric bike, 1pc own a cargo bike. A total of 5pc use Dublinbikes or another bike-sharing service, rising to 9pc in Dublin.
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