Politics

Plans for a bicycle maintenance station at Leinster House ‘stall’ after furore over €336,000 shelter

Officials at Leinster House asked in July for more bike spaces for the complex, saying demand for existing stands was very high

The controversial bike shelter at Leinster House. Photograph Nick Bradshaw/The Irish Times
The controversial bike shelter at Leinster House. Photograph Nick Bradshaw/The Irish Times
Ken Foxe
Sun Nov 17 2024 - 13:11

Plans for a bike maintenance station at Leinster House appear to have stalled after the furore over the spending of €336,000 on a bicycle shelter.

The Oireachtas had asked the Office of Public Works (OPW) for a facility where staff and politicians could carry out basic repairs to their bicycles.

Officials at Leinster House also asked in July for more bike spaces for the complex, saying that demand for existing stands was very high.

The email was sent before the costs of the covered bike shelter, which sparked a major controversy, emerged publicly.

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“Could you consider a proposal to install a bike maintenance station at the location where the Constance Markievicz statue is currently located, please?“ it stated. “The type of station we are contemplating is shown below [a similar facility at UCD] – merely as an example which demonstrates the principle.”

The email said the House of the Oireachtas Commission had decided no further covered shelters should be provided but that extra bike parking was needed as an inspection on a non-sitting day for the Dáil and Seanad had shown “that every single bike parking space in Kildare Street was in use”.

Similar self-fix bicycle stations have been installed in a variety of locations, with the kiosks equipped with a pump to inflate tyres and other tools for carrying out basic repairs.

There has been no progress on the project since the request, with the OPW having faced criticism over the cost of multiple projects.

A spokeswoman for the OPW confirmed it had received requests for the provision of additional cycling infrastructure at Leinster House and that these would be “dealt with in the normal way”.

“To date, no action has been taken in respect of either request,” she added.

The Oireachtas said its request remains with the OPW.