Walking, wheeling and cycling take up to 510,000 cars off Dublin roads every day, according to latest Walking and Cycling Index.
NTA survey shows increase in number of residents cycling at least five days a week – now 12%.
Almost a half of residents in Dublin want to walk or wheel more and a third want to cycle more.
The National Transport Authority has today published the findings of its latest survey of walking, wheeling and cycling in the Dublin Metropolitan Area, which reveals that those who walk, wheel or cycle for non-leisure trips when they could have used a car take up to 510,000 cars off Dublin’s roads every day. The survey also reveals that 12% of residents are cycling at least five times a week, up from 8% in 2023. 70% of residents walk or wheel (meaning the use of a wheelchair or mobility scooter) at least five times a week.
The Walking and Cycling Index provides the largest assessment of walking, wheeling, and cycling in Ireland and the UK. It is delivered in collaboration with local authorities in the Dublin Metropolitan Area, the National Transport Authority and the sustainable transport charity, Walk Wheel Cycle Trust. Alongside the Dublin Metropolitan Area Walking and Cycling Index, the Cork, Limerick, Shannon, Galway, and Waterford Metropolitan Areas are also publishing Index reports today.
Dublin Metropolitan Region | Walking and Cycling Index 2025 – National Transport
The Dublin Metropolitan Area Walking and Cycling Index is based on an independent demographically representative survey of more than 1,100 residents from across Dublin Metropolitan Area, aged 16 and above, not just those who walk, wheel or cycle. The Dublin Metropolitan Area covers an area from Donabate in Fingal to Greystones in County Wicklow in the south, and as far west as Kilcock in County Kildare.
It reveals that 66% of residents are in favour of additional investment in walking and wheeling and 55% of residents are in favour of additional investment in cycling, this contrasts with 36% who would like to see additional investment for driving. The survey points to a continuing demand for active travel with 45% expressing their desire to walk or wheel more in the future, and 34% expressing a desire to cycle more.
The report found that walking, wheeling and cycling create an annual economic benefit for residents and the wider Dublin Metropolitan Area of €2.19billion. This includes €1.71 of a net economic benefit for each km cycled instead of driven and €1.23 benefit of each km walked instead of driven. These costs were determined through an analysis of travel time, vehicle operating costs, health benefits, air quality and taxation.
Every day, up to 510,000 non-leisure return walking, wheeling and cycling trips are made daily in the Dublin Metropolitan Area by residents who could have used a car. If these cars were all in a traffic jam it would tail back 2,452 kilometres.
The report also found that walking, wheeling and cycling save 97,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions in Dublin each year, which is equivalent to about 1,210,000 residents taking flights from Dublin to London Heathrow.
The benefits of walking and cycling to the Dublin Metropolitan Area are outlined in the report, with the physical activity benefits of walking and cycling preventing 4,346 serious long-term health conditions annually, valued at approx. €55.7 million – equivalent to the cost of over 920,000 GP appointments.
The Index showed that residents’ travel choices and their perceptions of walking, wheeling, and cycling vary between different groups. It found that 49% of residents with a disability walk or wheel at least five days a week in Dublin, while 71% of residents without a disability walk or wheel. While 71% of women and 68% of men walk or wheel at least five days a week, there is a larger gender gap when it comes to cycling, with 35% of men cycling at least once a week, compared with 17% of women. However, the number of women who do not cycle but say they would like to has increased to 27%, growing from 22% in 2023. Older residents continue to engage in active travel with 62% of residents aged 66+ walking or wheeling at least 5 days a week, and 12% of residents aged 66+ cycling at least once a week.
The report shows notable increases in residents feeling safe walking/wheeling and cycling versus 2023. 87% think it’s safe to walk/wheel in their local area (up from 82% in 2023), and 90% think their area is a good place to walk/wheel (up from 87%).
When asked what would help them walk or wheel more, the majority of Dublin Metropolitan Area residents point to better footpath accessibility including dropped kerbs at crossing points, nicer places along streets to stop and rest, fewer cars parked on footpaths, and more frequent crossing points with reduced wait times. The report highlights that 72% of roads in the Dublin Metropolitan Area meeting at traffic‑light junctions now have a dedicated pedestrian crossing, which is a small improvement on 2023.
59% of residents think it’s safe to cycle in their local area but there are measures which would help them cycle more. Residents want infrastructural improvements such as cycle tracks away from roads, or along roads physically separated from traffic and pedestrians. 71% of residents in the Dublin Metropolitan Area support building cycle tracks physically separated from traffic and pedestrians even when that means less room for other traffic. The Dublin Metropolitan Area now has 129 km of traffic‑free paths away from roads and 201 km of cycle paths along roads physically separated from pedestrians and traffic, plus 211 km of cycle track beside the footpath but marked out by a different surface.
Dublin residents also recognise the importance of liveable neighbourhoods. 79% of residents support creating ‘low traffic’ neighbourhoods – where groups of streets, bordered by main roads, have ‘through’ motor vehicle traffic greatly reduced. 85% support reducing speed limits, improving crossing points and introducing protected cycle paths in school neighbourhoods. 58% support closing residential streets outside schools to cars during drop-off and pick-up times. The report shows Dublin residents support walking/wheeling infrastructure to encourage them to use the bus more, 80% want improve crossing facilities near bus stops, and 77% want improved walking and wheeling routes to and from bus stops.
Anne Shaw, CEO of the National Transport Authority said:
“This latest edition of the Dublin Metropolitan Area Walking and Cycling Index provides valuable insights into how people travel and what is needed to make walking, wheeling and cycling safer, easier and more attractive. Since the last Index in 2023, we have worked with local authorities to deliver record investment in active travel infrastructure. Projects such as the Clontarf to City Centre Bus Priority and Active Travel Scheme, the Dodder Urban Greenway, and the expansion of neighbourhood networks and Safe Routes to School initiatives reflect our shared commitment to creating safe, connected streets.
The feedback in the report is clear: people want to walk, wheel and cycle more. We are responding with infrastructure that supports this ambition and helps create a healthier, safer and more liveable Dublin Metropolitan Area.”
The Dublin Metropolitan Area Walking and Cycling Index can be accessed at : Dublin Metropolitan Region | Walking and Cycling Index 2025 – National Transport
